Marine Fire Department - Parris Island, South Carolina

The postage-free message sent from Private Lester W. Johnson to his mother reads:

Dear Mother

I am feeling good and hope you all are the same. Mother please send me Woudro and Marys address so I can write to them and tell them my address so they can write to me and how they are getting along. Good luck to all from your son Lester W. Johnson.

Valentine's Day

What a great message:

Dear Gussie;

How are you any way. I hope you are well. Have been looking for a letter for a long time, but cepose

you are to busy to write. We are all well except having a cold + that is nothing new this time of year. We had quite a snowstorm here last Sunday + all drifted up. There must of been about 5-6 in of snow. We have five more little pigs 17 in all they are growing fine. Girlie is getting quite a girth she is singing here to beat the band you just ought to hear her. Hoping to hear from you soon. With lots of love from us all. Martha.

Here are a few more valentines:

Fire Engines and Fire Hydrants - Elmira, New York

The distinctive American-La France fire engines are still around today. The headquarters and manufacturing were located in Elmira, New York until the mid 1990s;  now they are located in South Carolina.  I am not a big fan of motorized vehicles in general, but some of the old fire engines are really very beautiful. It's not surprising that there are fire engine enthusiasts, but you may be surprised to know that there is a national organization called the Society for the Preservation and Appreciation of Antique Motor Fire Apparatus in America (SPAAMFAA) with about 50 chapters nationwide! You too could be a member and probably get a great t-shirt.

The Kennedy Valve Co., founded in 1877, manufactured fire hydrants and was also located in Elmira (and still is!)  Elmira was the one-stop-shopping place for all of your fire-fighting needs. If you didn't think fire hydrants could be beautiful and interesting, take a look at this page from the fire hydrant website. You will notice that the pictured hydrants are marked by location, with some designated as being in a private collection. Yes, there are people who collect fire hydrants. I don't have any desire to collect them, but since I looked at this card, I started paying a little bit more attention to them and noticed that several of the hydrants in our neighborhood in Oregon were manufactured by the Kennedy Valve Co. in Elmira. Unfortunately, now my neighbors have seen me taking pictures of fire hydrants and are probably convinced I've lost my mind. The relentless Oregon rain will do that; I'm not even sure we need fire hydrants here.