A postcard from Broughty Ferry in 1921

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This postcard was sent to Winnie Barber in August 1921.The card shows a view of Panmure Street, Broughty Ferry, a seaside town near Dundee.

The message is quite difficult to read ; the writer has packed a lot in to the space available.

“10 Lewington Tce, Broughty Ferry
Right across the road from the foot of this street is the sea & the sands, you do get a blow
sometimes coming down this street,you can just see the corner of our Tce to the right. At
the top of this street are the trams so you see I have not far to walk. I go up to town every Friday
it makes a break in the week. I always see somebody I know. Hope you keep well , how is Aunt Annie?
E.C.”

The reference to Aunt Annie suggests that this was sent by one of Winnie’s cousins, probably on the Crerar side of the family.

I think this modern image from Google Street View shows the same location:

3 Panmure St Dundee, Scotland Google Street View 2020 Image capture July 2012

The Culvers, Sandown – a very jolly time in 1921

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Sent just a few days after the card in my previous post, this card shows a view of The Culvers, Sandown, Isle of Wight. It was sent to Winnie Barber in July 1921 – she was still staying in Cromer.

The Culvers, Sandown- a card from the “Peerless” Series

The message reads

“Dear Scratching Lady
Thanks for PC. I am having a very jolly time + most comfortable, wish I were staying another month.
Have not met many PIO girls that I know.
Kind regards
Seally”

The PIO must refer to their place of work but as yet I haven’t been able to find out exactly what this is.  And why is Winnie addressed as the “scratching lady”? Was she convalescing in Cromer after  an itchy illness?

“Having a topping time”: Sandown, Isle of Wight

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This card was sent  to Winnie Barber in 1921 whilst she was staying in Cromer, Norfolk.  The view shows the Esplanade , with children playing on the shore.

The Esplanade, Sandown. No. 1 in the Photogravure Series.

The message is brief:

It reads

“Dear Barber,
We’re having a topping time here, + like the place very much
Love
Leggatt + Tony”

The writers were probably good friends of Winnie’s, or possibly two of her work colleagues?

 

Tewkesbury High Street – a card posted in 1920

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This sepia card from the Abbey Studio, Tewkesbury, shows a fairly quiet view of Tewkesbury High Street.   If the clock is showing the correct time the photograph was taken at 11.30 a.m.


The card was posted on July 29th in Hereford and the senders had obviously been touring the west of England before heading into Wales.

The message reads

Dear Winnie,
We have got along splendidly so far. Oxford, Bath Wells, Glastonbury, Cheddar, Weston-s-mare, Bristol, Gloucester, Cheltenham, Tewkesbury, Tintern Abbey, Monmouth, Abergavenny, Crickhowell. We are in Wales now. Scenery is lovely – weather middling cloudy, showers with bright intervals. Love from the two of us.

Auntie Nell and Percy.

I’m not sure of the relationship here – “Auntie Nell” could be Winnie’s aunt Ellen on her Barber side of the family, her father’s sister.  Perhaps “Percy” is her uncle Percy,  Ellen’s younger brother?

A modern view of the same location showing the buildings on the left hand side of the road:

Tewkesbury, Church Street, Barton Street and High Street Junction

Creative Commons Licence [Some Rights Reserved]   © Copyright Roy Hughes and licensed for reuse under creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0

The interior of St Stephen’s Church, Bournemouth – a card posted in 1920

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This card, which was posted to Winnie Barber in February 1920, is one of the “Boots Cash Chemists Pelham Series, No 453a”. The image shows the interior of St Stephen’s Church in Bournemouth.

 

The card was sent from 55 Revelstoke Road, SW, and seems to have been posted in Wandsworth. Revelstoke Road is adjacent to Wimbledon Park.

The message is quite detailed; some of it seems to have been written in pencil and then written over in ink. It reads:

Dear Freddie

Will you please ask Dany(?) if she received my letter safely. If so, will she please answer it as I want to know if she is coming to tea Sat.
Well Freddie how are you getting on? I am coming in next Monday, I hope nobody’s got my job. Please let me know. With love, Mooney (?)

The name of the sender is difficult to decipher – but I assume she was one of Winnie Barber’s work colleagues.   Winnie was now almost 18 ; I wonder what her occupation was, and whether the next batch of cards gives us any clues.

 

Bexhill on Sea – the Colonnade – a postcard sent in 1920

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This postcard was sent to Winnie Barber by her grandfather “GB”.    It shows a very busy scene on the seafront at Bexhill, with people enjoying a stroll on a fine summer day.

The message reads

“from grandfather with best love glad to say I feel much better  GB”

A modren view of the same location
© Copyright Malc McDonald and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

Sandown High Street – a card sent in 1919

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This card was sent from Sandown, on the Isle of Wight,  on 26th September 1919.

The photograph shows a busy shopping street, the shops have their awnings out and people are out shopping and strolling on  a pleasant day.

This card is the first in my collection to be written by Winnie Barber. She is writing to her father.   Her message reads:

Dear Dadda,
Received registered letter safely and shall look for you tomorrow evening at time mentioned. Weather still good. Blackberrying today. Afraid of railway strike. Still hope for best. Love from both, Winnie

The railway strike began at midnight that evening (26th September) and lasted for 9 days until 5th October, so if George Barber had planned to travel by train from Palmers Green it seems unlikely that he arrived the next day.  I wonder whether Winnie and her companions had to extend their holiday in Sandown?

A modern view of the same location, which looks reassuringly unchanged 100 years after the postcard was sent!

A pretty spot: a postcard from Hyde Heath in 1917

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The pencil writing on this postcard is very faded now and quite hard to read.  The postcard shows a view over the common at Hyde Heath in the Chiltern Hills in Buckinghamshire. A figure dressed in white can be seen on the footpath which leads towards a cottage.

The card was sent by “A” (Annie Barber?) to George Barber in October 1917.  The message (written upside down on the card)   reads

Thursday
25/10/17
This pretty spot is only 5 min walk from where we are living. We walked
to Little Missenden this morning. The weather has improved to-day. There
are beautiful walks all around here. Winnie picked a bunch of poppies this morning while on our walk.
A.

It seems that Annie and Winnie were taking a  holiday, leaving George at home, presumably because he was at work.