DISCLAIMER

This description has been created to the best of our ability, and may occasionally contain errors. You are purchasing the exact item shown in the photos. Please review all pictures carefully, as they serve as the primary description of the item's current condition, features, and details.

This card was postmarked at the little post office of Mabel, Lane County, Oregon, on July 31, 1957, the day the office closed. That was about 79 years after it opened under its first postmaster, Alfred Drury. The back carries three different Mabel handstamps and a collector's handwritten notes on the office's history, so it documents the end of a small Oregon post office.

1. Postal Markings & Operational Analysis

The Format: A plain cream card, about 5 x 2 7/8 inches, sent as a privately printed postcard. "LAST DAY POST MARK" is printed at the top right of the front and again at the top left of the back. The addressee's name and address are also printed on the front. This was a common format for postmark collectors who asked postmasters to cancel a card on an office's final day.

The Stamp: A 2¢ carmine rose Thomas Jefferson stamp from the Liberty Series, cancelled by the bars of the postmark.

The Origin Postmark: A black 4-bar circular datestamp reading "MABEL / OREG." and dated "JUL 31 1957 A.M." The killer bars run across the stamp.

Postal Rates & Law: 2¢ was the domestic postcard rate in force in mid-1957. The rate went up to 3¢ on August 1, 1958, so this card was correctly paid.

Payment Status: Prepaid with the 2¢ adhesive.

Additional Markings (reverse): The back has a straight-line "JUL 31 1957" date stamp. It also has a second strike of the black 4-bar "MABEL / OREG." postmark with A.M. time, and two violet double-circle datestamps, both dated JUL 31 1957. One reads "MABEL, OREGON." with "M.O.B." (money order business) at the base. The other reads "MABEL OREG." and its lower legend is too weak to read. Having the office's several handstamps all struck on the closing date is what a last-day collector would want.

The Destination Address: Printed as:
MILLARD MAY, No. 1075
1035 E. Walnut St.
Green Bay, Wis.
A word in pencil sits below the address.

Condition: The card has even toning, with a lighter vertical band across the middle where something once covered it, some soiling, and light edge and corner wear. Overall it is sound, and the strikes are clear.

2. Historical Significance

Mabel is an unincorporated community in Lane County, Oregon, on the Mohawk River northeast of Springfield. The Mohawk Valley communities nearby include Marcola, Mohawk and Wendling. Lewis A. McArthur's Oregon Geographic Names says the post office was named for Miss Maud Mabel Drury, second daughter of the first postmaster, Alfred Drury. It also notes that the office was established about 1878 and did not always stand in the same place. The office was discontinued in 1957, so this card shows the final day of a Mohawk Valley post office that had served for nearly 80 years.

The notes on the back match this history. They record the office as established May 27, 1878, with Alfred Drury as first postmaster and named for his daughter. They also give a population of just 17 in 1957 and name the last postmaster. We could not find any published information about the addressee, Millard May of Green Bay. The printed "No. 1075" after his name looks like a collector's membership or reference number.

3. Transcription

Reverse (manuscript notes):
[save] [rotated word, unclear]
Mabel, Oregon,
Estab.
May 27
1878
Pop now
17
1st Pm. -
Alfred Drury
Last Pm.
Mildreth C. Gwyn
Named for his daughter

Front (pencil, below address): [Boob / Book?]

ABOUT ELECTRO ANTIQUES

At Electro Antiques, we are dedicated to rescuing, rediscovering, and restoring this history of electronics and computing, reviving and preserving it for future generations.

We also specialize in signs, advertising, and some ephemera.

All of our items are genuine, vintage or antique items, unless they are otherwise noted as a reproduction.

We want you to be absolutely happy with your purchase.

PAYMENT

Payment must be made within three (3) calendar days of auction close.

Non-paying Bidder Cases are automatically opened after 7 days of non-payment.

SHIPPING

We ship via USPS on most items.

We only ship to confirmed U.S. addresses, or international through eBay's international shipment program.

Please message us through the eBay platform if any of your purchases arrive damaged, or you have any questions about our items we have listed.

CUSTOMER SERVICE

Please message us through eBay's message system.