Alan Mays' photos with the keyword: hand lettering

"Glick's Hikory & Apple Wood Smoked Meats. Home Made Cheese. Home Made Butter & Brooms. Bologna Sticks." A wonderfully unpretentious hand-painted sign for Glick's Meat and Cheese stand at Root's Country Market and Auction, located near Manheim , Pennsylvania.

A postcard-sized example of ornamental penmanship featuring a flourished bird. The piece is unsigned and may date to as early as the 1880s or 1890s. "Compliments of Mr. and Mrs. J. S. Shoemaker, Dakota, Ill." Joseph Shellenberger Shoemaker (1854-1936) was a well-known bishop in the Mennonite Church. He and his wife, Elizabeth Sechrist Brubaker (1856-1931), were married in 1877, and they were members of the Freeport Mennonite Church in Freeport, Illinois. For additional examples of bird flourishes and other ornamental penmanship, see my Writing, Lettering, Flourishing album and the Clinton Clark Scrapbook , which was uploaded to the Internet Archive by IAMPETH (International Association of Master Penmen, Engrossers, and Teachers of Handwriting).

"Chas. H. Smith. Compliments." (I'm not sure that the middle initial is H, however.) An impressive example of ornamental penmanship on a hand-drawn and -lettered "flourished" calling card that likely dates to the late nineteenth or early twentieth century. Note how the bird appears to be eyeing an insect of some sort. Here are some other similarly ornate cards: Although it's not as ornate, this flourished card also features a bird chasing after an insect: This one's even simpler: The design on the following calling card is printed, but it imitates the hand-drawn and -lettered cards:

"Witches Watch - Oct. 31st, '14. 8:00 p.m. - Masks! 2439 No. Eleventh Street. Admission - 25¢. ea. Guess you know who all!" Handwritten note on the back of the invitation: "George: Let me know if you come and how --singles or doubles! Marg. Hunsicker, 2852 N. Orkney St." A hundred-year-old Halloween party invitation! The flustered jack-o'-lanterns appear to be printed die-cut pumpkin shapes, but I'm not certain whether the witch silhouette was cut by hand or from a die. After using Google to search for the addresses (2439 N. Eleventh Street and 2852 N. Orkney Street), I believe that the location is probably Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I was surprised to discover that I couldn't find any precedent for the term "Witches Watch." I assumed that watching for the appearance of witches would be a common activity--and party theme--during the Halloween season, but the only reference to a similarly named event that I was able to locate came from the Spokane Daily Chronicle , Oct. 21, 1937, p. 3: "'Witches' Watch Halloween Ball. Chewelah, Wash., Oct. 21--(Special.)--Witches and pumpkins of paper decorated the Masonic hall Wednesday night when the Eastern Star held its invitational dance. Refreshments were served." Or perhaps I have it all wrong--maybe the witches are the ones who are doing the watching. Or--on a sillier note--could it refer to a timepiece worn by witches? Any other sightings of "Witches Watch" out there?

"W. L. Alexander. May I see you home? Or will I have to set on the fence and watch you meander by?"

A Victorian-era calling card with handwritten name and date: "Alice A. Collar. Dec. 31st, 1878. A.A.C."

"Clara H. Watkins, Landlady, Hotel, Long Green, Md."

Ena L. Metcalf. Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind.