ESCANABA POSTCARD MUSEUM
  • Lobby
    • How It Began
    • FAQ
    • Street Names
    • Where'd They Go?
    • Postcard History
    • Download Requests
    • Related Websites
    • Survey
    • Comments
    • EPM on Facebook
  • Structures
    • Carnegie Library
    • Churches >
      • Catholic >
        • St. Anne
        • St. Joseph
        • St. Patrick
      • Lutheran >
        • Bethany
      • Methodist/Episcopal >
        • First M. E.
        • St. Stephen's
      • Multiple Views
    • Hospitals >
      • Delta County Hospital
      • St. Francis Hospital
    • Lighthouses >
      • Sand Point
      • Other Lighthouses
    • Lodging >
      • Hotels >
        • Delta Hotel
        • House of Ludington
        • Tilden House
      • Motels & Cabins >
        • Brotherton
        • Memory Lane
        • Mobil Cabins
        • Shell Cabins
        • Simpson's
        • Sunset
    • Municipal Buildings >
      • City Hall
      • Court House
      • Public Utilities
    • Post Office
    • Private Residences >
      • Camps & Cottages
      • Houses
    • Retail >
      • Banks
      • Restaurants
      • Stores & Shops
    • Schools >
      • High School >
        • Franklin High School
        • Escanaba High School
      • Junior High School
      • Parochial
    • Wm Bonifas Auditorium
    • Other Structures
  • Recreation
    • Destinations >
      • Fayette
      • Kitch-iti-kipi
    • Festivals & Fairs
    • On the Water >
      • Boating >
        • Excursion Cruises
        • Lakes & Rivers
        • Municipal Dock
        • Yacht Harbor
      • Fishing
      • Rivers
      • Swimming
    • Parks & Campgrounds >
      • Bay Shore/City Park
      • Brotherton Park
      • Ludington Park
      • Pioneer Trail Park
      • Tourist Camp
    • Sports >
      • Football
    • Wildlife
  • Transportation
    • Bridges
    • City Streets >
      • Campbell Street
      • Lake Shore Drive
      • Ludington Street
      • Michigan Avenue
      • Ogden Avenue
      • Tweedy Street
      • Wells Avenue
      • Other City Streets
    • Roads & Drives >
      • Ford River Drive
      • Bay Shore Drive
      • Other Roads & Drives
  • Industry
    • Agriculture
    • Forest Products
    • Hydro-electric Power
    • Manufacturing
    • Railroading
    • Shipping >
      • Coal
      • Iron Ore
      • Freight
  • Miscellaneous
    • Comic
    • First Flight
    • Greeting
    • Holiday
    • Novelty >
      • Embossed
      • Felt Pennant
      • Glitter
      • Leather
  • Blog

Variations: Ship at Coal Dock

11/9/2017

0 Comments

 
Variations is a new feature we're introducing with a very puzzling set of cards. Variations refers to multiple cards that are clearly based on the same photograph, but with subtle–and sometimes not-so-subtle–differences. Often these cards are even from the same publisher or printer.

Many variations simply feature different color schemes, or the removal of small items–clouds and telephone wires seem to be the most popular items commonly airbrushed out of old postcards. In fact, sometimes the telephone wires disappear, leaving the poles holding absolutely nothing aloft!

The two cards featured in this post are both from the linen era, and clearly were made from the same original photograph. They were both published/printed by the E. C. Kropp Co. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Both cards feature the same title and series number on the obverse, and a similar item number on the reverse.

​Titled 'Ship at Coal Dock', both cards depict the J.J. Turner at the Escanaba coal dock in the process of unloading. A small sailboat appears to be at anchor in the left foreground. Depending on the card, a small motor launch is visible in the right foreground.

The cards c
ontain three variations: two common variations--color and clouds--and also one of the most obvious object removals we've ever seen. Here's a look at the variations:
  • The color change is fairly dramatic, affecting nearly every part of the cards with the exception of the dock and coal piles.
  • The changes to the sky include removal of most of the clouds and the addition of a red and orange sunset.
  • The biggest variation, of course, is the removal (or addition?) of an entire boat on the right side of the image!
Picture
Picture
High-res obverse and reverse images of these cards can be viewed by visiting our Coal exhibit.
The question that comes to mind when looking at these types of variation is, why? It could be argued that the changes to the sky enhance the beauty of the card, and the Turner does stand out a little more and seems to appear slightly longer without another boat in front of it, so perhaps that's why.

'Why' is closely followed by 'how' when contemplating a variation of this magnitude. Nowadays, this type of photo manipulation could be done in minutes using Photoshop or similar software. But what was involved to accomplish something like this back in the day? And why bother with something that clearly must have been a time consuming process?

Lastly, while it may or may not be relevant, it's interesting to note that the card without the small boat appears much more often on online auction/sales sites as the card with the boat. Is this because fewer of this card were made, or simply that fewer survived to be sold?

Of course, we'll probably never know the answer to any of these questions, but it certainly makes an otherwise ordinary card a little more entertaining when you take into account its mysterious twin.

Have an idea about any of these variations? Let us know what you think in the comments.
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Categories

    All
    Bridges
    Christmas
    Churches
    Coal
    Current Events
    Easter
    Escanaba River
    Football
    Holiday
    Hotels
    House Of Ludington
    Hydro-electric
    Lighthouses
    Messages
    Michigan Avenue
    Milestones
    O. B. Fuller
    Ore Docks
    Sand Point Lighthouse
    Shipping
    Sports
    St. Anne Church
    Streets
    Structures
    Then & Now
    Variations
    Where'd They Go?

    Archives

    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017

    RSS Feed

Escanaba Postcard Museum welcomes visitors to download and use any of the images contained on its website, with limitations. Please review our Download Requests page for additional info.
© 2009-2019 Escanaba Postcard Museum | Updated Jul 2019 | Card Count: 325
  • Lobby
    • How It Began
    • FAQ
    • Street Names
    • Where'd They Go?
    • Postcard History
    • Download Requests
    • Related Websites
    • Survey
    • Comments
    • EPM on Facebook
  • Structures
    • Carnegie Library
    • Churches >
      • Catholic >
        • St. Anne
        • St. Joseph
        • St. Patrick
      • Lutheran >
        • Bethany
      • Methodist/Episcopal >
        • First M. E.
        • St. Stephen's
      • Multiple Views
    • Hospitals >
      • Delta County Hospital
      • St. Francis Hospital
    • Lighthouses >
      • Sand Point
      • Other Lighthouses
    • Lodging >
      • Hotels >
        • Delta Hotel
        • House of Ludington
        • Tilden House
      • Motels & Cabins >
        • Brotherton
        • Memory Lane
        • Mobil Cabins
        • Shell Cabins
        • Simpson's
        • Sunset
    • Municipal Buildings >
      • City Hall
      • Court House
      • Public Utilities
    • Post Office
    • Private Residences >
      • Camps & Cottages
      • Houses
    • Retail >
      • Banks
      • Restaurants
      • Stores & Shops
    • Schools >
      • High School >
        • Franklin High School
        • Escanaba High School
      • Junior High School
      • Parochial
    • Wm Bonifas Auditorium
    • Other Structures
  • Recreation
    • Destinations >
      • Fayette
      • Kitch-iti-kipi
    • Festivals & Fairs
    • On the Water >
      • Boating >
        • Excursion Cruises
        • Lakes & Rivers
        • Municipal Dock
        • Yacht Harbor
      • Fishing
      • Rivers
      • Swimming
    • Parks & Campgrounds >
      • Bay Shore/City Park
      • Brotherton Park
      • Ludington Park
      • Pioneer Trail Park
      • Tourist Camp
    • Sports >
      • Football
    • Wildlife
  • Transportation
    • Bridges
    • City Streets >
      • Campbell Street
      • Lake Shore Drive
      • Ludington Street
      • Michigan Avenue
      • Ogden Avenue
      • Tweedy Street
      • Wells Avenue
      • Other City Streets
    • Roads & Drives >
      • Ford River Drive
      • Bay Shore Drive
      • Other Roads & Drives
  • Industry
    • Agriculture
    • Forest Products
    • Hydro-electric Power
    • Manufacturing
    • Railroading
    • Shipping >
      • Coal
      • Iron Ore
      • Freight
  • Miscellaneous
    • Comic
    • First Flight
    • Greeting
    • Holiday
    • Novelty >
      • Embossed
      • Felt Pennant
      • Glitter
      • Leather
  • Blog