Postcard from Mrs. HERMANSON to Rena LERFALD, 1908

Recently, my father-in-law loaned us a pile of postcards that had belonged to his maternal grandparents, George Rice WESTABY, III and Rena LERFALD (click on the links to read more about their lives and see photos). Actually, the majority were received by Rena, and provide insight into her life as a young woman. I have begun to scan them, and will feature them here on my blog.

(front)


(back)

This postcard is not postmarked nor was it dated at the time it was sent. It appears to have been used as a calling card by Mrs. Hermanson, whoever she was (friend, neighbor, possible employer? Looking at the 1910 U.S. Federal Census brought up several possibilities.). At a much later date, it appears that Rena wrote 1908 on the back of the card--the ink and her style of writing here matches notations she made on other postcards in the collection.

Rena would have been 18 years old on September 25th of this year. She lived in Woodville, St. Croix Co., Wisconsin with her parents, Peter Johnsen LERFALD and Regina LERFALD, immigrants from Norway who were first cousins to each other. Rena was the youngest surviving child of five siblings: Sofia, b. 1882; John, b. 1884; Anna, b. 1886; and Ole, b. 1888. An infant girl, Nannie, did not survive. At this time in Rena's life, she and her sister Anna were looking for work as hired girls or maids. There were a lot of postcards sent to Rena by Anna; I don't believe I have any written by Rena to Anna (I haven't gone through this collection extensively, yet, to be sure).

Source: The Westaby-Lerfald Postcard Collection. Privately held by Troy Midkiff, Vancouver, Washington.