Willis Shertzler lived in New Holland, a borough within a rich agricultural area of Lancaster County, PA.
This area, northeast of the city of Lancaster, became the home of a national agricultural machine company.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Holland,_Pennsylvania
On December 31, 1907, Willis received a New Year postcard.
The postcard was mailed from an undecipherable location in Pennsylvania.
(It is possible that the faint and blurred postmark is “New Holland”.)
The face of the postcard bears a drawing of three silvery bells.
The bells are embossed, and linked with a silver ribbon.
A gold field adorned with sprigs of holly provides a backdrop.
A printed legend declares: “Hearty New Year Greetings”.
The sender is identified in a penciled inscription, “Ross”.
The postcard, with an “undivided back”, was printed a year or two before the postcard was mailed.
We do not know the relationship of Willis and Ross – they could be neighbors, school mates, or members of the same Sunday School.
Willis seems to have enjoyed the New Year souvenir as he preserved it throughout his life.
One hopes that the friends enjoyed a happy New Year and maintained a postcard correspondence for many years.
