A hundred years ago it seems to have been commonplace to have postcards made from personal photos. I found this example of an “occasional postcard,” meaning it was made on the occasion of Harold Remine sitting on the moon.
The two men with Harold are his brother-in-law Frank Tazelaar on the left and his father Richard Remine on the right (the taller man).
Here is what it says on the back:
The postcard is addressed to Harold’s sister, Therese Remine or Genevieve Remine Tazelaar. He was the youngest of three children, the only boy, and Therese was the youngest girl–six years older than Harold. I think it might have been Therese. Apparently, at this young age, Harold didn’t believe in basic punctuation, such as periods and commas–or know how to spell “rode”–(and you thought only kids today are lazy), although he went on to graduate from the University of Michigan and become the Chief Engineer of the Quebec Hydro Electrical Commission.
Well sister how do you like the picture we got this taken on Burdick Street after leaving you at the train papas broke one plate so we had to pose twice before we could get a good one we told ma we had road out to Otsego and back on the moon isn’t that a _____ for you life ___ me. YHE Harold Remine
Can you read that last line? I can’t quite make it out. Also, what does YHE mean? I tried Googling it, but came up empty-handed. I assume the Y means Your or Yours. What do you think?
When he refers to Papa breaking a plate, he means a glass plate or negative of the image.
Do you think Harold is about 14 or 15 here? If so, that would make this photo from about 1911-1912. Genevieve and Frank Tazelaar were married in 1906, so the timing on that is correct, as well. Harold seems big, but he could even be a bit younger, I suppo
Harold Henry Remine
1897–1975
BIRTH 7 SEPTEMBER 1897 • Kalamazoo City, Kalamazoo, Michigan
DEATH DECEMBER 1975 • Montreal, Quebec, Canada
The Family Kalamazoo 