Attached, there is a fascinating biographical sketch of Mrs. Rineer, wife of a Civil War soldier. Because the surname exists with spelling variations, there are alternative biographies that are plausible – more research is needed.
Mrs. Samuel Rineer lived in Lancaster, the historic city in southeast Pennsylvania.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancaster,_Pennsylvania
Mrs. Rineer’s home at 106 East Vine Street is a lovely Federal-style townhouse constructed in 1800.
Beautifully maintained, it remains a single-family home today.
In December of 1914, Mrs. Rineer received a Christmas postcard from Emma.
The postcard was mailed from Lancaster, so we might assume that Emma was a neighbor or nearby friend.
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In the center of the face, a framed medallion encloses an embossed sailboat laden with holly.
A garland of holly leaves and berries forms a left border of the face.
Beneath the sailboat, embossed gilt letters proclaim, “A Merry Christmas”.
I could not distinguish a publisher’s mark, but the postcard was “Printed in Germany”.
It is a pretty postcard, but would have been brilliant when first printed – without the distortions of fading and foxing, and the smudges of ink received in the mail.
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On the reverse, Emma writes, “Wishing you a Merry Xmas” and signs her name.
At some time, the postcard appears to have been used for jotting notes.
There is a penciled scrawl that I believe is intended to be “Belgian Congo” and another that might be “Angola”.
This is not the first time that we have seen postcards later used as note paper – sometimes with sums of figures, appointments, or directions noted on the card.
One hopes that Emma and Mrs. Rineer enjoyed a wonderful Christmas and that they maintained a postcard correspondence for many years.
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RESEARCH NOTE
On September 12, 1840, Samuel Rineer (the surname is spelled variably even within his family) was born in Martic Township of southern Lancaster County.
Samuel was the son of Stacey Rineer (1803-1890) and Rebecca Crandall (1811-deceased).
The third child of Stacey and Rebecca, Samuel had an older sister and brother, and a younger brother.
All the siblings lived to adulthood.
In 1859, Samuel married Catherine Singer (1841-1925) in Martic Township.
The couple had a daughter in 1860.
The same year, Samuel enlisted in the Union Army.
He was mustered out with a surgeon’s report, suggesting he had been injured.
Nevertheless, Samuel re-enlisted and was mustered out when the war ended.
There are numerous records, until his death in 1920, of pension benefits paid to Samuel as a Civil War veteran.
In 1880, Samuel and Catherine are living in Lancaster, but there are records of their residence in Providence Township and in Lancaster City in succeeding years.
In 1900, the daughter and two grandchildren are living with Samuel and Catherine in Providence Township – the daughter’s husband (John Mylin) died at age 30 in 1891.
In February of 1920, in his 80th year, Samuel died in Strasburg, PA.
Catherine died in Lancaster in March of 1925; she was 83 years old.
Samuel and Catherine are buried in the Woodward Hill Cemetery in the city of Lancaster.
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/188195718/catharine-rineer
