Mrs. Mary Franks lived in Canton, the county seat of Stark County in the northeast quadrant of Ohio.
The initial settlement between branches of the Nimishillen Creek became a large manufacturing city in the 19th century due to the number of railroad lines that served the area.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canton,_Ohio
In December of 1923, Mary received a Christmas postcard from her friend, Augusta Bucey.
Augusta mailed the postcard from Fort Myers, “The City of Palms” on the southwest coast of Florida.
Begun as a military outpost in the Seminole Wars of subjugation, Fort Myers was taken by a Pennsylvania Company in the Civil War – which gave Union forces access to the cattle herds that then grazed over southwest Florida.
With the coming of the railroad in the late 19th century, Fort Myers began growing as a popular vacation and resort destination.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Myers,_Florida
The face of the postcard displays a scene of leisurely relaxation amid a stand of Palm Trees and flowering bushes.
The summery drawing is entitled, “A Midwinter Scene”.
Brightly-colored poinsettias draw attention to the top of the card where a printed heading announces, “Christmas Greetings from Florida”.
On the reverse, Augusta extends an invitation. “Come on down to Florida, you can get a room where we are staying.”
Augusta assures Mary, “We are having a fine time, expect to stay ‘till Spring.”
It is not clear if Augusta is traveling with her husband or a friend – she repeatedly refers to “we”.
For another “month or two”, Augusta plans “to stop in Tampa.
The message closes with a wish, “Merry Xmas to you.”
Some time ago, we saw a postcard celebrating the Christmas climate of California “A Salute from the West to the East”.
It seems that those in warm climates could not resist sending tantalizing images to their northern friends.
One hopes that Augusta and her party continued to enjoy Florida, and that Mary and her household enjoyed a wonderful Christmas.
