Many of us remember when the birthdays of Lincoln and Washington were celebrated as distinct national holidays.
Our grade school classrooms were decorated with construction paper log cabins and rail fences on February 12, then with cherry trees and hatchets on February 22.
In the early 20th century, hundreds of postcard designs also celebrated these presidential birthdays.
This postcard illustration of George Washington as military commander shows him standing with a rearing steed among the broken instruments of war.
Unfortunately, glitter was applied to portions of the postcard – a vulgar practice circa 1910.
The glitter causes significant deterioration of the face of the postcard, obliterating many details of the illustration.
On the reverse, patriotic designs adorn the “undivided back”.
Although appropriate to the celebration of Washington’s Birthday (and probably printed for that occasion), the postcard was mailed in September of 1906.
Addressed to Miss Tillie Shoff who lived at 528 Spruce Street in Lancaster, the postcard was mailed from another place in Pennsylvania- the postmark is very faint.
