Halloween Postcard

Sofia Kinzer

Copyright La Crosse County Historical Society

With Halloween only days away, signs of the season surround us. We see store displays, decorated yards and, of course, social media pages filled with posts about the upcoming holiday. Historically, however, one popular way to share the excitement of Halloween was to send postcards, like the one shown here.

This postcard was sent in 1913 to Miss Marian Dorset from a woman named Edna. “Have a good time but do be very careful lots of love to you. I miss you girls very muchly. Edna,” she wrote on the back of the card.

Marian Dorset was the daughter of Nannie Colwell Dorset and the Rev. Dorset. Nannie had an elder daughter, also called Nannie, by her first husband, Capt. Wilson Colwell, a locally famous Civil War hero who was killed in battle.

The first two decades of the 20th century are known as the golden age of postcards. Starting in 1873, the U.S. Postal Service sold postcards, and those were the only ones permitted in the mail. The Private Mailing Card Act of 1898 allowed private companies to produce and sell penny postcards, and business exploded.

Sending, receiving and collecting postcards was a craze across the nation, and at its peak it was estimated that more than 1 billion cards — each with a 1-cent stamp — were sent through the mail annually.

At first, the cards were required to have “private mailing card” printed on the back, but that law later changed to “post card,” and that is the name we still know them by today.

During the golden age of postcards, many were simply greeting cards, not the souvenir cards we know today. Up until World War II, many of these postcards were designed in the United States, but often they were printed in Germany due to superior printing techniques and lower labor costs.

Many Halloween postcards from the early 20th century were simply to express well wishes, but some of these cards, such as the one featured here, had an additional theme: romance.

Halloween itself evolved from the Celtic festival of Samhain, to All Soul’s Day during the 12th century, to a less serious, more playful holiday during the Victorian Era (1837-1901). During this time — with all the pumpkins and black cats — romantic legends were commonly associated with the holiday. One of these was that a young woman could get hints as to the name or nature of her future husband on Halloween night by performing various rituals, such as eating an apple while gazing into a candlelit mirror.

While this postcard is from a later time, it seems that these legends, and the association of the holiday with romance, likely endured in the minds of Halloween’s celebrants.

This article was originally published in the La Crosse Tribune on October 28, 2017.

This object can be viewed in our online collections database by clicking here.

Bozo the Clown Costume

Robert Mullen

Catalog Number: 1979.017.01

Copyright La Crosse County Historical Society

Clowns have gotten a bad rap in recent years, with scary movies and strange people turning clowns into something to fear. Despite the recent hype, clowns have a much longer history of being fun and entertaining characters.

Perhaps the best known clown in America is Bozo the Clown. Bozo was created in the 1940s for a children’s storytelling record. He became a mascot for Capital Records and soon was appearing on television. In 1956 he became a franchised character, and TV stations across the country purchased the rights to create their own children’s programs hosted by Bozo, usually played by a local actor wearing a specially created costume.

WKBT-TV picked up the character in 1962, and broadcast the program for five years in the La Crosse area. The local Bozo was played by longtime radio and TV announcer Jack Martin. Martin interacted with a live audience of children, entertaining them with jokes and slapstick comedy, while also showing animated cartoons.

This blue costume Martin wore was typical of those worn by other actors across the country. It included a headpiece with Bozo’s wild red hair, oversize shoes, layered collar, white gloves and a red bulbous nose. Martin’s character featured white and red facial makeup to give Bozo a huge smile and high arched eyebrows. The program was a popular show with children, as they clamored to be in the audience and be seen on television.

At age 70, Martin was an older Bozo, yet he still showed up in character at many local parades, fundraisers and other activities. When he was interviewed after WKBT canceled the show in 1967, he seemed proud of his role as Bozo: “In my 30 years in radio and television, I can truly say that this is the finest thing I have given to the tri-state region.”

Martin began his career as a vaudeville actor before becoming a broadcaster at the La Crosse radio station WKBH (now WIZM) in 1932. He later became a news and farm reporter. Martin was a widely known personality in the community, and he was named Oktoberfest festmaster in 1967. He died in 1979 at age 87.

In 2017, Martin was recognized by the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association for his community contributions. His Bozo outfit was donated to the La Crosse County Historical Society by his wife in 1977.

Bozo has faded in popularity since its peak in the 1960s; however, the world’s best known clown lives on. He can be found on YouTube, and he even has a Facebook page. Here you will find proof that there is nothing to fear about Bozo.

This article was originally published in the La Crosse Tribune on October 21, 2017.

This object can be viewed in our online collections database by clicking here.

Howard Nestingen's White Rabbit

Ivy King

Catalog Number: 1986.044.01

Copyright La Crosse County Historical Society

Howard Nestingen was a member of the Naval Reserves and commander of the Navy Reserve Officers School. In total, Nestingen was a naval officer for 38 years.

Nestingen was born in Westby in 1921, and he played an active role in the La Crosse area. He worked at Dairyland Power Cooperative, and he helped with the nuclear power plant near Genoa.

This stuffed rabbit was Nestingen’s as a child. He received the rabbit when he was about 10 years old, which dates the piece to the early 1930s. The rabbit is white plush, with a suit of colorful wool felt; he has a dark orange pair of trousers, with a lighter orange tuxedo-style jacket. He has white plastic eyes and long ears that are lined with pink velvet. The rabbit is stuffed with wood wool.

With the rabbit’s style of clothes, he appears to be dressed in the style of Lewis Carroll’s White Rabbit in “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.” In the book, the rabbit appears wearing a waistcoat similar to the one worn by Nestingen’s rabbit.

Carroll’s fantasy novel was published in 1865. It was immensely popular, and it changed children’s literature by adding nonsensical amusement to the genre. Carroll’s story is about a young girl named Alice who falls through a rabbit hole into a fantasy world. The White Rabbit is the first character Alice meets, and he leads her into Wonderland. The rabbit appears periodically throughout the novel and acts as a guide for Alice.

The book’s protagonist was based on a young girl named Alice, and it’s believed that Dean Liddell, Alice’s father, may have been the inspiration for the White Rabbit. Similar to the rabbit, Liddell notoriously ran late, specifically to church services.

In the 1930s, the story of Alice remained popular, which explains why Nestingen had his own version of the White Rabbit. “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” was republished a number of times during this era. A film titled “Alice in Wonderland” was released in 1933. The live-action, 77-minute film featured an all-star cast.

This article was originally published in the La Crosse Tribune on October 14, 2017.

This object can be viewed in our online collections database by clicking here.