Rock River, Yost Park in Distance, Beloit, Wis. (B)

Undated. From Gilman Ream[?] to Miss Mabel Gilbertson, Argyle.

The picture

A wide, calm stretch of the Rock River seen from a raised railroad track on the near bank: a launch towing a small flat boat in mid-river with its wake trailing right, a point with a clump of tall trees at left, a small wooded island at right, low meadows and a few farm buildings on the far side, under an orange-and-blue sky.

• Printed caption: Beloit, Wis. Rock River Yost Park in distance.
• Printing: colored halftone · color
• Condition: corner wear and small losses at all four corners; light creasing at left

The back

• Layout: divided back (message at left, address at right)
• Printed: POST CARD (with a triangular emblem lettered QUALITY over a monogram HCL[?]) · ADDRESS ONLY ON THIS SIDE. · BELOIT, WIS. The Rock River Valley is one of the most beautiful regions in the world. The water power for which the Rock River is famous, is the basis for extensive manufacturing interests at cities like Beloit and Janesville. These towns are closely linked together and connected with the outer world by the extensive transportation service of the Chicago & North Western Ry. · Beloit is the seat of Beloit college and a city of great natural beauty, built on rolling ground overlooking the beautiful river at a point where the Illinois-Wisconsin state line crosses the stream.
• Stamp box: Place the Stamp Here / ONE CENT / for United States and Island Possessions, Cuba, Canada and Mexico. / TWO CENTS / For Foreign.
• Condition: toning; a small ink spot by the emblem

Exact copy

Line for line as written. [?] follows an uncertain word; [illegible] marks one that cannot be read; ~~ ~~ is crossed out, ^ ^ written above the line, […] runs off the card.

Message (back of the card, left half, in pencil, written up and to the left in two lines, written sideways):

From
Gilman Ream[?]

Address:

Miss, Mabel Gilbertson,
Box 42   Argyle
R. F. D. 1.   Wis.
c/o T. G.[?] Gilbertson

Reading version

The message joined into sentences, the spelling lightly modernized only where it helps; uncertain words keep their marks.

From Gilman Ream[?]

Who

• Mabel Gilbertson — recipient, Box 42, R.F.D. 1, Argyle, Wis.
• T. G.[?] Gilbertson — in whose care the card is addressed, Argyle, Wis.
• Gilman Ream[?] — sender

When

How	Date	Basis
card-features	after 1907-03-01	divided back: allowed in the US from 1 Mar. 1907

The readings

Part	Status	Readers
caption	all agree	claude, gemini, gpt
address	majority	claude, gemini, gpt
message	majority	claude, gemini, gpt
signature	in message	claude, gemini

Uncertain readings:

• message: Ream (or Rean, Rear, Kean) — the last letter is a single hump: m, n or r
• address, line 4: T. G. (or Oly, J. G., I. G.) — looped capitals run together: two initials, or a short first name such as Oly

Reader's note: Addressed in pencil but never stamped or postmarked: delivered by hand or sent in an envelope, so it gives no date. Argyle is in Lafayette County, Wis. Same view and printing as pc-056 (Leighton no. 28812). The image is a dealer's, padded to a square with white bars that prepare removed.

Scans: Rock River, Yost Park in Distance, Beloit, Wis. - B - 01.webp and Rock River, Yost Park in Distance, Beloit, Wis. - B - 02.webp (sha256 3a6ebb3d00d7…, 108eedaecdfd…). Media: front — decoded from WEBP and saved as PNG (no pixel changed); the white bars a dealer added to square the image removed: kept pixels [0, 288, 1600, 1312]; the scanner's white edge trimmed: kept pixels [0, 3, 1600, 1023]; back — decoded from WEBP and saved as PNG (no pixel changed); the white bars a dealer added to square the image removed: kept pixels [0, 175, 960, 785]; the scanner's white edge trimmed: kept pixels [0, 1, 960, 609]