Tolagoa Bay Wharf, New Zealand

Joe from New Zealand is collecting postcards from each U.S. state. You can find him and send him a message at the Postcrossing project here. I sent him an Alaskan card and he returned this beautiful card showing the East Coast north of Gisborne where the Tolagoa Bay Wharf, the longest wharf in the Southern Hemisphere, stretches into the sea. The wharf was opened December 1929. Today it being restored in phases yet remains in need of further restoration. See this web site if you are interested in helping with the renovations of the wharf.

Australia and New Zealand are on my wish list of places to travel before the big curtain descends or as people of faith believe before the big curtain lifts. Joe says it is hot there this time of year (summer in the southern hemisphere) and he is making many fun trips to the beach. Ah, the beach, the waves, the sun. Maybe that is why I like this card so much. It reminds me that summer exists somewhere in the world and will return here (Fairbanks, Alaska) in May.

The Last Log Cabin in Detroit

Friends Rick and Jan brought me these two gems. The lower one sports what was once gold glitter to highlight the roof line and tree branches. They found these cards while on a trip to the American Southeast. They know I collect railroad postcards and anything from Michigan, especially Southeastern Michigan, and brought back a generous pack of very fine cards.

Both of these cards show the same point of view of Detroit, Michigan's, Palmer Park log cabin built in 1885 as a summer home for Senator Thomas W. Palmer and his wife Lizzie. It is reputed to be the last remaining log cabin in Detroit. It was once open to the public daily but is now closed, except on Michigan's Cabin Day, in which tours and historic presentations are made at 100 cabins around the state. This year's Cabin Day is June 27. A quick Internet search uncovered other postcard views of the cabin and a more recent photo on Flickr.

Pioneers of the Trans-Continential Rail Road

Glen of Calgary sent these two railroad themed postcards recently. Glen's has the Gem's World Postcards blog here. He has added several quality railroad postcards to my collection, especially Canadian Pacific postcards. The Sleeper Only trans-Canada trains began in 1907 on a limited basis (a three runs a week) and became more popular and frequent during the 1920s, following the prosperity after World War I. Americans seeking a way around U.S. alcohol prohibition were frequent passengers. They also sought out the train for its luxurious interiors and high quality wines and liquors.

The painting reproduction poster postcard at the top by an unknown artist appears to be a commemoration of the driving of the last spike at Craigellachie, British Columbia on November 7, 1885. It is almost a duplicate copy of the photo of that event, see below.