On rare occasions I find a letter still in its envelope inside a book. This one dated January 29, 1976 and mailed on Jan 30 of that year was
Left Inside my rare copy of
Call Mr. Fortune (Dutton, 1921) by H. C. Bailey. I uncovered a wealth of information about the letter's writer, her husband and the photographer who took the photo on the stationery.
First, the photographer. Sally Savage has had her work shown in galleries and museums in her native Nyack, NY. She specialized in "documenting just about every aspect of life and change in [Rockland] county since the late 1960s" according to the New York Heritage website of the Nyack Library. Her photo entitled "reeds on Piermont pier" was apparently sold in a set of stationery that Ruth Brawner bought sometime in the 1970s. A large collection of Savage's photographs is in the New York Heritage Digital Collections held in the Nyack Library.
The letter itself is a quaint "thank you" written by Ruth Brawner to Mrs. Paul (Charlotte) Bardwell. I'm not including a photo of the envelope because of the street address on the return address label and the street address of Mrs. Bardwell.
For those of you who cannot decipher American cursive handwriting the letter reads:
Dear Charalate [sic],
Thank you for arranging the Madrigal Singers to take part in our BiCentennial [sic] dinner.
Everyone without exception has said how much they enjoyed the singing and the fine menu.
Gratefully,
Ruth & Howard
I'm curious what the Bardwells were doing in southeastern New York in January 1976. According to online obituaries for both people they lived in Texas most of their lives. Regardless, the more interesting people are the Brawners. F
or decades they were actively involved in civic life of Piermont, NY where they were lifelong residents. Ruth Brawner was a big time organizer involved in all sorts of events in her hometown and was known for "sharing her wealth of knowledge pertaining to the history of Piermont, which included her vast collection of photographs."
Howard served in the US Navy as a radio technician, was a member of the local Rotary, a village trustee, and for 66 years was part of the volunteer fire department known as Empire Hose Company #1. He was also president of the volunteer ambulance team for the fire department. Ruth and Howard were named Outstanding Citizens of Piermont one year after this letter was written. Their photograph was published in a local newsletter in the summer of 1977. That photo is at the right.
