Hillsdale NJ Public School No 1

Here's a recent post card I acquired. It was part of a group of other post cards depicting vintage views of my old stomping ground in northern New Jersey.





What I find intriguing is the message:

Hillsdale,
Nov. 9, '08

I received your postal last Friday. I have been teased
with a severe cold for about two weeks. We all were
troubled with colds except my brother whom I lost about
a week ago, but I'm glad I'm free. Hope you are all well,
remember me to all, and ans. soon. I remain yours truly.

Henry

"But I'm glad I'm free"? What sort of relationship did Henry have with his brother? Intriguing.

Robert

Nice card. Anyone one in the family attend?
Maybe he meant the brother lost his battle and caught the cold, while Henry didn't. Otherwise, that's grim!

That's a much better interpretation.

Robert, is the card canceled twice, on two different dates?


Peter

Small world ! I sold my collection of Hillsdale NJ postcards to fellow Hillsdalean Ed Parrasch. Do you know Ed?

chasa: No, I don't know Ed. I actually lived in Woodcliff Lake (1968-1984). I'm collecting WCL post cards; this Hillsdale one was a bonus.

Petert4522: The Hillsdale postmark seems to have the wrong date inserted, should be Nov 9, not Nov 19. The Norwood receiving postmark is the correct date based upon the message date written by the sender.

Regards, Robert

My dad was superintendent of the WCL post office in those years [as a branch of Westwood they did not have a Postmaster].

It is a small world. My friend and I would ride our bicycles to the small WCL post office to buy the latest commemoratives.

Robert

The Hillsdale cancel is dated the "9" and not the 19th, as first appears.

Consider the following explanation: Postmasters and clerks were very careful with correct dates and were required to make daily impressions in log books. The "9" slug is inserted at a slight angle to the plane of the rest of the cancelation device (red line) in such a manner that the edge of the slug takes ink and makes an impression resembling a "1" before the 9.



The more interesting error (and a true error), is the Hillsdale device having TWO hour slugs, both 8PM and 2PM instead of the year date slug!

Thanks for the explanation.
Robert

Another ex-Hillsdale guy here. I didn't spend much time there; my parents got a house on Piermont Ave and lived there for a few years while I was away at university; this was in the early 1970s. Years later, I briefly worked in Park Ridge and would go through Hillsdale once in a while. I liked it around there and wish I'd gotten the chance to know the area better.