In March of 1925, Mr. and Mrs. Henry Cole were still awaiting the coming of Spring in Hackettstown, New Jersey.

(Hackettstown is a town in the middle of northern New Jersey; it bears little resemblance to the larger population centers to the east.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hackettstown,_New_Jersey

The Coles received a postcard from Ruth and Frank who were touring Florida.

The face of the postcard bears photographs of the oldest structures in St. Augustine, the fortress (Castillo de San Marcos, begun in 1672) and the city walls (strengthened with masonry about the same time as the fortress).

The postcard was published by the W. J. Harris Company of Saint Augustine, and printed in the United States.

The oldest city in the United States, decades earlier than the settlements at Jamestown or Plymouth, St. Augustine has a long history of changing nationality due to the successive struggles of European colonial powers – Spain, France, and Great Britain.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Augustine,_Florida

Soon after becoming a US Territory in 1821, aggressive expansion by new settlers led to three wars with the indigenous Seminole people.

Florida became a State in 1845, and joined the Confederacy in 1861.

All of northern Florida was transformed by the coming of the railroad in the 1870’s and the rebuilding of St. Augustine as a tourist mecca by Henry Flagler.

Even after the railroads extended to Palm Beach and to Miami, St. Augustine remained a stopping point for rail travelers and automobile drivers from the north.

One hopes that Ruth and Frank enjoyed their visit to this storied place, and that the Coles were warmed by the remembrance from Florida.