Keokuk, Iowa

Here are some views from a postcard folder of Keokuk, Iowa. Today the town has a population of about 10,400, with lots of historic buildings and attractions.

Here's a view of Main Street, which looks very much the same today, except for the cars.

And here's a great view of the generator room at the power plant.

Here's a view of the Union Depot in better days. It's still standing, but has fallen into disrepair. The City of Keokuk bought the building in 2010 for $1 so they could add it to the National Historic Register, making it eligible for federal preservation grants.

The Hotel Iowa, built in 1913, is also still standing and was renovated in 2006.

Shepherd of The Hills

This postcard folder  from Branson, Missouri was postmarked in 1925. It has lots of pictures of Marvel Cave. I won't bore you with those, but I will show you the much more interesting views from Shepherd of the Hills. The card doesn't tell you anything about Shepherd of the Hills. I think it's assumed that you already know. I didn't.

In the pictures below, we see the postmaster and Uncle Matt and Aunt Mollie, parents of young Matt. Apparently, you are already supposed to know who young Matt is, because no explanation is provided.  It turns out that this all refers to a book called The Shepherd of the Hills, written in 1907 by Harold Bell Wright. Years later the book was made into a movie starring John Wayne. The story is loosely based on the residents of the area, presumably including Uncle Matt and Aunt Mollie. You can find out more about the book here. Re-enactments of the story have been produced in Branson since 1960.

Here's another photo of Ike, the postmaster.

And here's the back of the folder.

Durban, South Africa

Here's an early view of the beach promenade in Durban, South Africa. I spent a year in South Africa many years ago. Although I didn't live in Durban, I did visit some friends there. It didn't look a bit like this picture, much more developed.

In Durban and also in Johannesburg, I visited what we called a witch doctor's shop. I'm not sure that's an accurate description, but in both cases the proprietor sold remedies and potions made from both plant and animal products, which were supposed to cure ailments, bring you good health, good luck, break spells, etc.
Here's are a couple of snapshots I took in the Durban shop.

Note the cash register on the left. And in the photo below, the cashier is ready to ring up the purchase.  What was the purchase? Well, there were lots of exciting things we could have bought, but we were very young with little money to spend.  About the only thing we could afford was a dung ball. Yep, that's one of those cute little spherical balls of elephant dung rolled by a dung beetle. Our instructions were to pinch off part of the ball, roll it into a little wick, attach it to the top of the ball and light it for good luck.  It's hard to say if it worked or not.

On another occasion, a friend of mine went to a witch doctor's shop in Johannesburg to buy some 'love potion' for a friend in the United States. The doctor took one look at him and said, "Oh, love potion...for you? Extra Strong!" I guess he thought my skinny white friend needed a lot of help.  When my friend returned to the United States, he gave the potion to the woman who had requested it. The tiny bottle sat on her shelf for several years unopened, until one day she decided to dab some on before going to a party.  She didn't break out in a rash, which is what I would have expected, but she did meet the man she would later marry at that party. A coincidence, no doubt, but it made for a good story.

If you'd like to learn more about the dung beetle (and who doesn't?), you can watch them in action on this National Geographic Video.
Be sure to check out Sepia Saturday this week too...no dung at all there.