Mr. Gibson Seeks a Pen-Pal – Providence, Rhode Island (circa 1920)

Miss Mary B. Meyers lived in New Bloomfield, a borough of Perry County in central Pennsylvania.

The borough was named for fields of clover that once covered the area.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Bloomfield,_Pennsylvania

Sometime around 1920, Miss Meyers received a postcard from Providence, Rhode Island.

(The stamp was cancelled without a postmark, which makes the precise date uncertain.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Providence,_Rhode_Island

Mr. R. F. Gibson was seeking a pen-pal or a postcard exchange.

On the reverse, Mr. Gibson writes, “Would be pleased to exchange letters if you care to”.

These requests were not uncommon, as some periodicals featured a kind of “Personals” page or column where individuals could solicit pen-pals or postcard exchanges.

Of course, it is also possible that Mr. Gibson had been introduced to Miss Meyers and that he was interested in pursuing a continuing relationship.

The face of the postcard is a drawing of the “new” Hospital Trust Building in Providence.

Built between 1917 and 1919, the 11-story, steel-frame construction was an anchor of the commercial center, Market Square.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhode_Island_Hospital_Trust_Building

The Hospital Trust was established in 1867 to manage the financial affairs of the Rhode Island Hospital, now a non-profit health system and major teaching hospital affiliated with Brown University.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhode_Island_Hospital

The Hospital Trust grew to become a powerhouse of local commercial banking and was acquired by the Bank of Boston in 1985.

The historic building is now occupied by the Rhode Island School of Design.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhode_Island_School_of_Design

This postcard illustration is a drawing; the postcard was published by Morris Berman of New Haven, Connecticut.

One hopes that Miss Meyers responded favorably to the overture by Mr. Gibson, and that the two became friends and correspondents for many years.

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