The Teacher 1908

Iron & Steel Preservation

Postcard: Sherwood Bridge, Bellevue, Michigan

Postcard: Black Friars Bridge, London, Canada; postmark 1912

Postcard: River Street, Milan, Michigan; postmark 1921

Postcard: Kent Street Bridge, Portland, Michigan

Postcard: "The first Suspension Bridge built in the United States, Cin." postmark 1908

Postcard: "Suspension Bridge Across the Ohio River, Cincinnati, O"

Postcard: Newtown Creek Bridge and Dam, Elmira, New York

One Postcard, One Bridge, One Key
(by guest writer Nan Jackson)

There was an era in American history when the postcard served as the "social media" of the day, providing a means for people to communicate by short notes relatively quickly. Some of these postcards have lasted to this day, found among the papers and photographs in many antique shops. When Vern Mesler, already a frequenter of antique shops and flea markets, started restoring historic bridges for the Calhoun County Historic Bridge Park, he began to notice the occasional picture of a bridge as he browsed for interesting photographs, tools and miscellaneous objects. It was the postcard bin, the more disorganized the better, where bridge treasures were most apt to be found. Over the years his postcard collection has grown. I would like to tell you about just one such postcard.

From: Vern Mesler postcard collection

Dated March 11, 1908, the photograph on the postcard includes, to be sure, a metal truss bridge. The Maple Rapids Bridge, a common style of Pratt through truss, was an important part of the transportation system for a small Michigan town and its environs. Indeed, Vern probably picked up the postcard because of the bridge, scanning quickly through the bin while his wife waited outside. However, over the many months since acquiring this card of the Maple Rapids Bridge, Vern has become more and more intrigued by the scene next to the bridge and has come to see the bridge as secondary, a bystander to the community portrait that occupies the left half of the photograph.

One of the things that drew Vern's attention as he wondered about the identities of these people was the stack of books in one woman's lap and what looked like a large key hanging from her coat. Was this the class picture of the students from a one-room school? Was the March date on the postcard close to the time the photograph was actually taken, the students assembled at the bridge on their last day of school before they were needed by their families for seasonal chores? What about the timbers stacked up near the river that provided a handy place for the students to sit--were they ready for a nearby building site or would they be dragged into the river to be taken downstream for construction far away, as was the destination of so many trees in Michigan's once abundant forests?

Vern's eyes returned again and again to the teacher. The stack of books. The large key. Her striking hat. Curious about who she was and the gathering of young people around her, he set off to see if anyone in her community over a century later would know anything about her. What better place to inquire than the local bar in the small village of Maple Rapids.

Late afternoon on an early winter day, after having the photograph enlarged and framed, he drove north from Lansing and after a while headed west along a two lane country road. The bar was not hard to find, its subdued lights the only illumination at the crossroads of the village as night fell. The walls of the bar were lined with old photographs, the owner a man who clearly cares about local history and was happy to add the postcard photo to his gallery, along with a note requesting information. Surely someone among the village regulars will see the photo and remember some bit of family lore or community history. Meanwhile, Vern is waiting.