The Vogels of Artesia, New Mexico 2

   

Another hand franked postcard from "Pvt. Roy R. Vogel, 346th Air Base Sgdn., Municipal Air Port , Memphis, Tenn, Barrack 411 S."  Well, now we know Roy's middle initial and his barracks assignment.  Once again it's mailed to "Miss Dorothy Vogel, Artesia, New Mex, Box #632."  Spelled out a bit differently, but the same recipient. And the message, "Dear Dot, I received a letter from you and one from Jane a week or so ago so will send this on to both of you as I have so much waiting to do.  The pictures are just like the animals in the zoo.  It is the second largest in the world.  I am feeling all all right.  I will be closing for today.  Your cousin Roy."  Well, not too detailed, and I have my doubts that the Memphis Zoo was the second largest in the world, but how much can you get on a postcard, and how much honesty can you expect from a young private who was probably away from home for the first time in his life.

  The postmark is "MEMPHIS TENN, DEC 3, 8 PM DE SOTO STA. 1" The caption, "Scenes from the Memphis Zoo, one of the finest in the world."  Click on The Vogel Collection in labels to bring up the rest. 

The Zoo

  I don't know where this was taken, but I walk through the old, abandoned, Los Angeles Zoo, from time to time, and sure looks like it was taken near the cages. 

At the Zoo

Written on the back, "Taken at the Continental Divide."  Those of us of a certain age can remember when it was possible to travel the country, going from one roadside zoo to another.  Most of them were pretty much like the one in this photo.  Wooden pens, dirty, and way too small for the animals being exhibited.

Happy Cows

Remember the California Milk Commission commercials about happy cows and happy milk?

Anyway, I know a lot of vegan, animal lovers, animal rights types and they're always telling me about how intelligent animals are, almost always comparing animal intelligence to human intelligence.  Having grown up in a small rural town, having worked on farms, and being an avid hiker backpacker who has seen plenty of animals up close, I always point out that we are all intelligent in the way we need to be to survive, and it's foolish to compare people and, let's say cattle.  Still, I can't help but wonder, is the one cow saying to the other, "I hate being all penned up in a zoo.  Ah, to run free."  While the other replies, "Well, we're not being eaten here, so stop complaining."  

Another contact print with glass negative from Toronto.  Perhaps the Toronto Zoo.

At The Zoo

No animals can be seen in this photo, nevertheless, it's a zoo.  I can remember a childhood visit to The Pittsburgh Zoo, with it's iron bared cages.  Eventually, Pittsburgh updated things with "humane" enclosures like the one in this photo.  Open air, concrete levels, and moats replacing bars to keep the animals confined.  I've mixed feelings on zoos.  I like to hike and backpack, and after seeing large animals in the wild, (Including a mountain lion in Griffith Park) it's hard to watch a bored grizzly bear pacing back and forth like some sort of deranged mental patient.  On the other hand, I suspect that, eventually, most large animal species will go extinct in the wild and zoo stocks will be it.

According to the caption, these three people are "Verne, Ed, & Betty."  I can't think of a woman's name that would be shortened to Verne.  But, I went to high school with a girl we all called Charlie.  I always assumed that it was short for Charlotte.  I latter found out that her father wanted a son and when he didn't get one, he named his daughter Charles.