Postcard of the Week

Southeast Entrance to University of Arkansas

At the corner of Dickson Street and Arkansas Avenue, the southeast entrance to the University of Arkansas used to have a steel gate at the top of the steps, since removed and replaced with sandstone pillars on either side in 1922. This card was printed by the Albertype Company of Brooklyn, New York, for the University of Arkansas Book Store. It was postmarked August 31, 1923, and addressed to Mrs. Annie Cole of Liberal, Kansas, and it reads: “Dean requested me to tell you of Vera Williams death that occurred on the 8th of August. Received long letter from her husband. W.C.”

Carnall Hall

This early post card shows Carnall Hall, the first women’s dormitory on the University of Arkansas campus. Built at the beginning of the 20th century, it was named for Ella Howison Carnall, one of the first female faculty members at the university. The hall was renovated in 2003 and reopened as the Inn at Carnall Hall with Ella’s Restaurant on the main floor. This card was postally unused. It was published by the Frisco Drug Store.

First Catch

Titled “His First Catch,” this photo by Burch Grabill was taken in 1910. The details of this photograph are worth noting. Dressed in fringed leather fishing gear and sporting a new rod and reel, the young boy carries the catch of the day, a bass nearly as big as he is. A rail fence on the far side of the pond gives a hint of how picturesque the rolling fields surrounding Fayetteville were at the time. This card was postally unused.

Shipley Bakery

The W.G. Shipley Baking Company began baking bread, Mrs. Shipley’s fine cakes and pastries, and other Holsum Dairy goods on July 1, 1927. Their main bakery in Fayetteville was on Dickson Street for years, and was converted into restaurants and retail space in the late 1990s. The building at left is now the Bangkok Cuisine restaurant while the building on the right recently reopened as a Wasabi restaurant. Although the exterior of the buildings has only changed minimally, the fragrance of baker's yeast no longer fills the alley. This postally unused card was a Curteich C.T. Art-Colortone card printed in Chicago.

Fayetteville Square

The north side of the square during the 1950s included an F.W. Woolworth Co., McIlroy Bank and Trust, and the Boston Store, among other businesses. The Washington County Courthouse stands at the eastern end of Center Street, and Hunt’s department store was at the corner. Postally unused, this card was printed by Curteich with “natural color reproduction” from an Ektachrome photo by Brock and distributed by Ozark Post Card Publishers of Monet, Missouri.