"Tap'er Light!"

What does "tap'er light" mean? It literally means, "take it easy," or "be careful and have a good day." It comes from the practice of setting explosives in the mines; they had to pack in certain types of explosive charges by carefully tapping them in with a hammer. Hit the charge too hard, or miss and strike a spark off of rock, and ka-BOOM!  This cards is postmarked 1945

1950's RPPC of Tourist

The stamp boxes (SELLO-Papel Kodak) on these real photo "tarjeta postales" identify them to be of Mexican origin, circa 1950...as if the sunglasses weren't proof enough of the date! The interesting part to me, are the ornate iron doors she's looking through. With a little research, I found that they happen to be the entrance doors to the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles. The card below gives me the impression that they may have visited the iconic L.A. landmark when it was closed. 

Old Ox Cart Ale - Standard Brewing Co.

The Standard Brewing Company was founded in 1889 as an ale brewery.  It was originally located at 10 Cataract Street in Rochester, New York.  By the time of prohibition, the brewery's capacity was 30,000 barrels per year.

After repeal, Standard reopened at 436 Lake Avenue, the previous location of the Flower City Brewery.

In 1956, as a result of competitive pressures, Standard Brewing entered into a merger with its local rival, Rochester Brewing Company.  The consolidated firm was renamed the Standard-Rochester Brewing Company and continued in operation at Rochester's plant at 770 Emerson Street until the brewery ceased operation in 1970.

Cape Cod and the Pilgrimland

A couple of 1930 vintage postcards of Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard...with maps! I'm always a sucker for a postcard with a pretty map!

Southern Pacific 4449

In 1983, train enthusiasts voted the SP 4449 the most popular locomotive in the nation. Southern Pacific 4449 is the only surviving example of the SP GS-4 class of steam locomotive. The GS stands for Golden State since operated in regular service in California. It was built by Lima Locomotive Works (Lima, Ohio) in May of 1941 and received the red and orange "Daylight" paint scheme for the passenger trains of the same name which it hauled until it was retired from service in 1956 and put into storage.

SP 4449 was restored in Portland Oregon and returned to operation April 21, 1975 wearing a special paint scheme of red, white and blue to celebrate the American Bicentennial (card below). As part of the American Freedom Train, it pulled a display train around the United States. After nearly 2 years on the road, 4449 was returned to Portland. The "Daylight" colors have been restored and the train has made several appearances throughout the country since then.

Sing Fat Company, Los Angeles

The main store for Sing Fat Co. was in San Francisco's Chinatown. 

This branch was located in downtown Los Angeles. 

The logo above is from the back of the card.

Chinese Gardeners in California

These 2 guys don't look to happy about having their picture taken. Strange looking postcard with a very interesting design on the back. I couldn't find any info on Mr. Reeves, the Mission Artist.