The Endicott Johnson Shoe Factory

Last Saturday I mentioned that my mother-in-law's parents came from Moravia and settled in Binghamton, New York, where they worked at the Endicott Johnson shoe factory. Here's a postcard of a stitching room at the factory, circa 1915.

Endicott-Johnson had a great reputation for treating workers well and building quality housing and public facilities such as libraries, parks, and golf courses.

Here's a photo of the stitching room staff in 1937. The red arrow points to Elizabeth Tomecek, the mother of Josephine from last week's post.

Photo by George H. Pennell, Commercial Photographer, Endicott, New York

The photo seems to indicate that they were also manufacturing Red Cross shoes there. Red Cross was experiencing a boom at the time and may have partnered with Endicott Johnson to meet the demand. Click here to see a previous post on Red Cross shoes. If you want to know more about the history of Endicott-Johnson, there are a couple of very good sources, including a National Public Radio story from December, 2010, and a website created by Professor Gerald Zahavi of the State University of New York at Albany. Professor Zahavi promises to post additional material in the future, including oral histories.

Here's the back of the postcard.

The message reads:

Hello mama We are all feeling as usual. Gess you can read a little of it. When are you coming home.

S.C.S.

Sadly, Binghamton, Endicott, Johnson City, and surrounding areas are currently suffering through a catastrophic flood.

Be sure to wander over to Sepia Saturday for great old photos and the stories behind them.

Iowa

This is some of the most beautiful corn I've seen. Nice composition, color, and lettering.

And here are some more lovely views from this circa 1930 postcard folder.

Back to School - Cornell

Cornell students have been back in class and hard at work for a couple of weeks now.  Here are some old cards of Cornell, with not a student in sight.

The last card is the only one with a message on the back. It was sent to Mrs. George Collier in Warsaw, New York in 1927.

The message reads:

We are having a nice visit with the Judd family. Carrie

I found a little bit of information on the Collier family. The Perry Herald reported on May 12, 1926 that, Mr. and Mrs. George Collier motored to Buffalo on Wednesday and visited Mr. and Mrs. James Mauaher.

This announcement was followed by:
The farmers began sowing peas on last Friday.
Mrs. George Gould of Warsaw spent from Friday until Sunday with her daughter Mrs. Fred Adrian.
Mrs. Mildred Widrig was home from Geneseo for the week end.

Among many other announcements, it was also noted that, Mr. and Mrs, W.H. Scott called at the George W. Beardsley home Monday afternoon, and that, Mr. and Mrs. Guy L. Beardsley were Sunday dinner guests of Mr. and Mrs. S.C. Travis of Silver Springs.
Nothing got past those reporters, not even the fact that Charles Sage had purchased a new Chevrolet Coupe.

This one seems particularly appropriate, since Jane Austen books all revolve around visits between households and families:

Miss Jane Austin of Geneseo was a guest Sunday of her grandfather, E.G. Austin.