Fantasy Farm Motel

I always thought the No Tell Motel was a family joke . This picture postcard proves places with names like the No Tell Motel and the Half Way Inn really exist.

The Fantasy Farm postcard was sent by friends of my grandmother to an address in Largo, Florida. The addressee’s name does not ring any bells with me but somehow my grandmother seized it and gave it to me. I suspect she persuaded yet another friend to retrieve their sent postcards for my collection. At the time she gave me the card I thought it was yet another example of the ubiquitous non-discript advertisement postcards that were free to any traveler in America during the mid-century. I did not think anything was odd or off color or weird so my guess is I was given the card before entering puberty. Now I think of it as a classic of commercial double entendre.

To learn more about the Fantasy Farm Motel go here.

The postcard was published by Perry Printing Co. Inc. of Middletown, Ohio. I think it was sent in the early sixties. The postage stamp is a Washington 5 cent. I can read June 3^rd on the post mark but not the year. Also on the reverse side is a AAA symbol, so it must have received the American Automobile Association‘s stamp of approval.

The Fantasy Farm was part of an amusement park. The motel had all the amenities of the day, including “spacious carpeted rooms, ceramic (tub and shower) baths, television, room phones, free morning coffee, electric heating and air conditioning, family pool and good food” to boot. The motel’s slogan states, “Modern as tomorrow…in a restful, rural atmosphere.”

The hand written message tells the story of our mysterious travelers. “We arrived here last Tue. And have been plenty busy since. We are staying at this motel. It is very nice. Our children live only five miles north and south of the motel. They raised the devil when we moved into the motel but we thought it was the best…”

No doubt, the best plan when staying at the Fantasy Farm Motel is to stay at least five miles from the children.

Grist(for the)Mill

The summer season is a busy one for most Alaskans, especially with those of us who make their living seasonally from fishing, hunting, construction or tourism. If you work in remote areas, far from computer access, there are few opportunities to post on this or any other blogs.

The image on the postcard above is of a gristmill in Appalachia. These big water wheels were used in the U.S. to grind wheat and corn before oil-based machines came to prominence in the early 20th-century. Most were retired after World War II but some, like Tom Walker's Grist Mill in Michigan, lasted into the late 1960's.

This card was produced by W. M. Cline Company of Chattanooga, Tennessee. This giant 9x6.5 inches card was added to my collection on a childhood road trip along the Skyline Drive in the Appalachian Mountains.