This was what an established orchard looked like in North Yakima, Washington during the early 1900's. You see large trees, spaced far apart with open ditches carrying water down long, well cultivated rows. Click for the back of the postcard.

This postcard of Picking Apples on Five Mile Prairie near Spokane, Washington dates to 1908 when it cost only one cent to send it from Spokane on October 2nd to New Straitsville, Ohio!

It took two cents to mail the Shenandoah Valley, Virginia apple picking postcard (shown below) back in 1952. On the back is the message:

Dear Rose and Jack,
Having a wonderful time here. Also quite & peaceful out here. You should see it. It is really beautiful. Love, Teresa & Johnny

Picking Oranges

The postmark date on this card is December 5, 1981 and the stamp cost 13¢.

Lakeland, Fla.

Just a note to say "Hello" and hope all are well and that you may not have too severe a winter. We had a good safe trip here. Weather has been quite cool so far and rain is needed. Orange crop is fair but they are not ripe enough yet. Hope you have a nice Christmas and a happy New Year. Ernst and May

This"looking back" fruit card is postmarked, May 1, 1924, from New Smyrna, Florida and addressed to a Miss Alice of Fitzgerald, Georgia. Back in 1924, the cost to mail this card was just 1¢.

4/30/24
Alice I promised to send you a box of oranges from Fla so here they are. From Guess Who

Cherry Orchard in Bloom

A cherry orchard in full bloom is the subject of this postcard from the 1940's. This linen card, softly colored in pinks and white captures the springtime beauty of fruit trees. Rows and rows of cherry trees seemingly stretch as far as the eye can see, converging in the far distance at what we can only assume is the cluster of homestead trees and houses where the families live that work this well kept orchard.

The message on the back of the postcard written in January 1944 obliquely refers to men in the service during WWII. It reads:

Dear Hannah, Glad to get your card. Hope you don't get sick. Sincerely hope your sisters husband is better by now. There is so much sickness around. I had to get medicine from the Dr befor I could get over the flu. Hope you keep hearing from Jim. Suppose Claude will soon be going. Write. As ever, Ruth

Most postcards are purchased by vacationers and other travelers on a journey away from home. They are usually bought off the rack, hastily written, addressed, stamped and tossed in the mail as a gesture which says "thinking of you" to the ones who have been left behind. Postcards are local for the most part. They epitomize a place. While quite inexpensive to buy (though not so cheap these days) with images that can be sublime, more often times they are quite tacky. Rarely on your trips to far off places will you find postcards which are high art such as this black and white photograph of "Half Dome, Apple Orchard, Yosemite, Wyoming" photographed by Ansel Adams in April 1933. (Department of the Interior, National Park Service contributing agency to the National Archive and Records Administration archive). But if postcards do last long enough, over decades, even a century plus, there is no doubt, they will become collectible.

For pictures of our orchard home in Kittitas Valley, Washington, take a peek at the Eberhart Album and Orchard Seasons pages.

Click to see the Fruit From Washington Collection
of Exaggerated Fruit and Novelty Postcards also Rare Northwest Postcards from the Collection of E. Morgan Williams

Interested in other Nostalgia in Paper Collectibles?
Visit the Fruit From Washington Fruit Crate Label Collection and the special
Jack Zweisler Fruit Crate Label Collection

Postcards are practically guaranteed to put a smile on someone's face. So does a gift of fruit. Send a FruitFromWashington gift box to that special someone.

[ Home ] [ Today's Weather ] [ Growing Conditions ] [ Look Back ]
[ Orchard Practices ] [ Transportation ] [ Links to Kittitas Valley Historical Views ]
[ Weather Links ] [ Chicago Milwaukee St. Paul Railway ] [ Northern Pacific Railroad ]
[ Yellowstone Line ] [ Kittitas Valley Hay Production ] [ Kittitas Valley View Properties ]

Send a Free Digital Postcard with 20th Century Americana Farm Scenes

Return to Top