"A Pretty Town Tho Full of Saloons"

Some time ago we met Jacob Van Nuys by accident, after he happened to mail a postcard from Hobart in the midst of a road trip from Chicago to Colon, Michigan in 1909.

Now, through the magic of Ebay, we discover that his son Arthur accompanied him on that trip.


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Writing to his wife, Arthur described Hobart as "a pretty town tho full of saloons"!

42 Miles in 3.5 Hours (Random Old Photo)

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I recently bought this postcard, postmarked 1909, of Hobart High School. I had already posted a colorized version of this to the Downtown Hobart blog; now I can add this version.

The message on the back is interesting — we have a retired farmer taking a road trip by automobile.



The sender was, I believe, Jacob H. Van Nuys, and I call him a retired farmer because he called himself a farmer in the 1880 Census; by the time the 1910 Census came around, he gave his occupation as "None," but he and his Lucinda ("Mrs. J.H.") were able to maintain their own household in the village of Colon, Michigan … and, the previous year, Jacob had been able to afford a road trip to Chicago.

When he writes of traveling 42 miles in three-and-a-half hours, I think he's bragging, not complaining, since he goes on to mention that "the car runs fine" and is "a vary nice one."