Vanessa WoodFigure 1: “A Christmas Greeting Postcard” (front)
Figure 2: “A Christmas Greeting Postcard” (reverse)
“A Christmas Greeting Postcard,” front and back, addressed to Mrs. C.J. Chrysler of Big Pine, Cal. [Calif.], in the author’s collection, received in 2011 from mother’s estate. The names are not found in the author’s family tree. It is believed by the author it was purchased by her mother at a garage sale in California after 1983.
Transcription of Back of Postcard
left:
Dear Grandma, It doesn’t
seem possible that a year
has passed since I received
you kind letter, but it is
so nevertheless and Xmas is
here again. So I am writing a
line and enclosing a little
rememberance with this card
with loving wishes for Xmas.
From Anna
right:
Mrs C. J. Chrysler
Bigpine
Cal.
About the Postcard
The postcard is from the author’s personal collection (see Figure 1). The front of the card is a dreamy sunrise or sunset at a natural waterfront. The scene is framed by snowy holly and gold trim, with a green stylized background, similar to the arts and crafts style wallpapers popular from about 1905. There is no manufacturer’s mark or name on the item. There are no stamps or postal franking (see Figure 2). However the back shows a one-cent stamp was needed for postage. The one-cent postcard rate remained the same, as late as 1928. The sender said they were sending a “little rememberance”–If they was a gift then the card may have been enclosed with the gift rather than mailed on its own.
The Recipient
The recipient, “Mrs C. J. Chrysler,” probably Cynthia Jane (Crowell) Chrysler. Cynthia was born about 1834 in Canada. She married Joseph F. Chrysler in 1854 in Ontario, Canada.1 In 1910 Cynthia and her husband were enumerated in Big Pine, Inyo County, California.2 Cynthia died in 1913 and is buried in the cemetery at Big Pine.3
The Writer
Cynthia had no known granddaughters whose names were Anna (see Table).
Conclusions
The postcard was addressed to Cynthia (Crowell) Chrysler at Big Pine, California. She died in 1913, so the postcard was likely written before her death. The design of the postcard is similar to arts and crafts designs popular from about 1905. Cynthia had thirteen granddaughters. None of her granddaughters were named Ann or Anna. Depending upon when the postcard was written, it is plausible a great-granddaughter wrote the card. Rather than step into the data of living people, the research ties the postcard to the Chrysler family in Big Pine and leaves the door open for the family to research the identity of Anna the writer.
FEATURED IMAGE: Vanessa Wood, “Supermarket Holiday Wreaths,” in author’s private collection, 4 November 2021.
The front of the postcard is the illustrated side and the back is the opposite side that usually contains a message and recipient address.
- Ontario, Canada, marriages, 7 January 1854, Joseph Freeman Chrysler and Cynthia Jane Crowell; database with images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/7870488:7921 : viewed 3 December 2023); showing Archives of Ontario, District Marriage Registers, 1801-1858; series no. Ms932, reel 1.
- 1910 U.S. census, Inyo County, Calif., pop. sched., ED 16, Twp. 2, sheet 7A, dw. 107, fam. 110, Cyntha [sic] J. Crysler [sic] in Joseph F. Crysler [sic] household; digital images, FamilySearch.org (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9RJN-S6W : viewed 3 December 2023); showing NARA microfilm publication T624, roll 78.
- Find A Grave, https://findagrave.com/, memorial 224137488, image of Cynthia J. Chrysler, Bertha M. Inman, and Joseph F. Chrysler marker gravestone (Big Pine Cem., Big Pine, Inyo Co., Calif.) by “Rosemarie Mendes Todd,” 10 March 2021.
