This is the first is a 2-month long series of posts on the WWII process of V-mail. They are an accompaniment of the Ephemera Club perks for February and March 2022.
What was V-Mail?
V-Mail was a hybrid mail process employed by the US military during WWII (1942-1945). Faced with competing issues of limited cargo space and the need for reliable mail to sustain the moral of troops, the US military adapted a British innovation. Letters would be captured to film, transported in this compressed form, them reprinted at the other end to then be delivered to their destinations. Rather than displacing vital supplies like food and equipment, equally vital mail could now be condensed into small film reels rather than bags-upon-bags of paper mail. Image 1 shows the difference in volume between paper mail and the same volume transferred to film.
How did V-Mail differ from standard paper mail?
Other than the benefit of volume when in transit, V-Mail varied from standard mail in a number of ways.
Stationery: Unlike standard mail, V-Mail required specific, standardized stationery to work. Image 2 shows a scanned example of this specialized stationery. These could be acquired by civilians at the post office, with the first two sheets each day being free, and the option of purchasing more there or at neighbourhood stores. They were produced by various sanctioned companies. These sheets contained directions on their up, where to write, and how to fold them. > More on how V-Mail was used later in the series!
Letter Format: With the specialized stationary, writers had to adapt their approach to letter writing. Due to the conversion to film and then re-printing, the letter writer needed to make sure their ink was dark and handwriting of a legible size when reprinted on a smaller paper size. Along with this, for the most part letter could not include any loose items, and lipstick marks were prohibited as they interfered with the machinery. > More on how V-Mail was used later in the series!
Format for the recipient: Rather than receiving the same physical letter sent by the writer, the recipient instead would receive a printed image of the letter. This re-print would be reproduced at a smaller scale than the original, on photographic paper, then sent on in a new envelope to the intended recipient. Image 4 shows an example of a re-printed letter. > More on the process of how V-Mail worked later in the series!
Security and Reliability: A big advantage to V-Mail aside from volume in transit was that the process had built-in security and insurance. As part of the filming process, letters went through censorship to remove information that could jeopardize the war-effort. Along side this, the process of capturing the images foiled many espionage efforts. Once transferred to film, the original letters were kept in storage on-site until they received confirmation the film reels had been safely received. This provided a back-up in the event of the reels being lost, damaged, or destroyed in transit. >More on the process of how V-Mail worked later in the series!
More on this topic to come — Follow @steve-rogers-new-york to seen new posts as they are released.
If you want more in the topic, my full research notes on all topics are available for all $3+ Patreonpatrons!
Images
“V-Mail is Speed Mail” Promotional image | Source V-Mail stationery scan | SRNY Personal Collection Re-printed V-Mail letter, July 18 1943 | Source “Reach Your Boy Overseas” Promotional poster | Source Volume comparison with clerk, NY embarkment center | Source
This post series is thanks to my fantastic Patreon supports at the Ephemera Club level. For February and March 2021, the curated perks will be built around the theme of V-Mail. February will include a genuine sheet of V-Mail stationery (unused), and March will include a genuine re-printed letter received at the end of the process. If you would like to receive these and other cool items like them each month, head over to the Patreon. Spaces are limited!
[Support SRNY through PatreonandKo-Fi] And join us onDiscordfor fun conversation! I also have an Etsywith up-cycled nerdy crafts
The Magic Carpet Fun House was one of many attractions at Coney Island in the early- to mid-20th century. Located at 1501 Bowery and West 15th Street, the attraction was run by Edie and Seymour Maxim, who also ran the Donkey Game next-door. On the other side of the Magic Carpet Fun House was the Tunnel of Laughs and opposite these was the Thunderbolt Roller Coaster.
It opened somewhere between 1925-1941, and like many of these types of attractions, it is poorly documented and most information comes from oral records.
The fun house attraction was a common style of facility found at amusement parks and fun fairs of the time. There were indoor structures with wacky and whimsical atmospheres intended to surprise and entertain guests. They are typically self-guided, and feature various interactive elements, such as funhouse mirrors, physical and optical distortions, dark mazes, and obstacle courses.
Also going by Minnie Ha Ha, this audio-animatronic figure stood outside the attraction, and appears to have left a lasting impression in the minds of generations of visitors.
“’HA HA HA.’ It could be heard from a distance and children especially loved her and liked to imitate her laugh.” — Taty Alicea
“The cackling sound of the lady laughing was a big part of my Coney Island. You heard her laugh, and that was the whole key to Coney Island.” — Lenny Goodstein
The Laughing Lady was in-fact one of many similar animatronics that could be found throughout the country during this period. They were produced by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company (PTC), and this particular model was known as Laffing Sal. It was a 6ft, 10in papier-mâché figure of a woman on a 12in pedestal. It would wave its arms and lean forward at the waist. There was also a record player hidden within the pedestal, which played recording of a woman’s laugh on 78-rpm phonographs. The base model featured a set appearance of an artificial wig and missing tooth. The purchaser could customises them with their their own clothing and hats. In the images above, the first Laffing Sal image is the preserved version that was found at Coney Island, while the following two are of the model found at San Francisco’s Musée Mécanique.
If you want more in the topic, my full research notes on all topics are available for all $3+ Patreonpatrons!
Image Sources
Magic Carpet Fun House ticket, front | SRNY Collection Magic Carpet Fun House ticket, back | SRNY Collection Map, Geographica Maps via Forgotten-NY, 1938 | Source Magic Carpet Fun House building, front | Source Magic Carpet Fun House building, side, 1969 | Source Coney Island’s Laughing Lady / Minnie Ha Ha | Source Laffing Sal at the Musée Mécanique in San Francisco, close-up | Source Laffing Sal at the Musée Mécanique in San Francisco, full | Source Coney Island, Fun House interior, c.1970s | Source
This post comes to you thanks to Patreon supporters at the Ephemera Club level. Those subscribed in January 2022 will receive a genuine Magic Carpet Fun House ticket, and a fun 1940s arcade card. If you would also like to receive neat, period-appropriate items in the mail each month, you too can join the Ephemera Club for just $15. Spaces are limited!
[Support SRNY through PatreonandKo-Fi] And join us onDiscordfor fun conversation! I also have an Etsywith up-cycled nerdy crafts
These are real early-20th century recipes, taken from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, a local newspaper that would have been accessible to Steve, his mother, and Bucky during their time in Brooklyn.
Taketwo cups of prepared buckwheat flour,one and a half cups of milk, or a little more, sausages according to the number to be serves and a few slices of bacon. Prepare the batter, stirring until nice and smooth. Slit the sausages but do not cut through, flatten out and fry in bacon drippings. When cooked, pour the buckwheat batter over each sausage, just enough to cover them, fry a rich brown and serve piping hot, generously buttered, with slices of bacon on the side. Garnish withparsley.
Chunk Biscuit
2 cups sifted flour 2 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon dry ginger ½ cup sugar Mix dry ingredients together, work in shorteningandliquid all at once; beat in. Turn on floured board, knead a minute or so. Pat, shape and place in a greased deep dish and bake at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. Break into chunks. Serve hot with sweet butter.
Butterscotch Parfait
10 to 12 servings 2/3 cup brown sugar 2 tablespoons butter ½ cup water 4 egg yolks 1 pint whipping cream 1/16 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons vanilla Combine sugar and butter—heat till melted. Cook 1 minute, add water—cook until melted—add syrup slowly to beaten yolks. Cook in double boiler until light and fluffy. Chill, add whipping cream, salt, vanilla. Fill freezing trays—do not stir while freezing.
Criss-Cross Cranberry Pie
Pie crust 4 cups cranberries 1 ½ to 2 cups sugar 2 tablespoons flour 3 tablespoons water ¼ teaspoons salt 1 tablespoon melted butter Line a pie plate with pie crust. Chop cranberries; mix with other ingredients; fill pastry shell with this mixture. Place strips of pie crust over the top and bake in a moderate oven 25 to 35 minutes.
Johnny Cake
1 cup corn meal 1 cup flour ¼ cup granulated sugar 5 teaspoons baking powder ¾ teaspoon salt 1 cup milk 1 egg 2 tablespoons shortening Mix and sift dry ingredients, add milk, well beaten egg, shortening. Bake in shallow buttered pan in hot oven 425 degrees for 20 minutes.
Delicate Rice Pudding
½ cup rice ½ cup raisins ½ cup sugar 3 eggs 1 quart milk 2 tablespoons butter 1 quart milk ½ teaspoon salt A few gratings nutmeg Boil milk, raisins and rice very slowly in a double boiler about 1 ½ hours. Beat the yolks of the eggs with the sugar, stir it into the rice, add the butter, pour into a pudding dish, spread with the whites, which have been stiffly beaten with 2 tablespoons of sugar, over the top. Place in a very slow oven long enough to brown the meringue.
I’d love to hear if you try out any of these recipes! Take photos and I might post them on the blog.
While many of Steve’s neighbourhood would not have had the space for their own gardens, spaces existed around the neighbourhood where people could grow and collect produce.
These gardening spaces provided community members with a means of producing their own food, as well as feelings of usefulness, independence, and a boost in spirits during a time of struggle.
Sadly, come 1935, the government pulled their funding from these garden programs. They were seen as no longer being opportunities for success and life improvement — putting the onus back only communities and other non-governmental organisations to run such gardens. Other than the loss of funding, this withdrawal also changed the perception of these gardens and those using them. Their name went from ‘relief gardens’ to ‘welfare gardens’, presenting a much more negative connotation.
If you want more in the topic, my full research notes on all topics are available for all $3+ Patreonpatrons!
Images are scans from the SRNY Personal Collection.
This post series is thanks to my fantastic Patreon supports at the Ephemera Club level. For November 2021, the curated perks will be built around the theme of community gardens. The perk set will include TWO authentic seed packets for various vegetables and herbs, and a Brooklyn themed postcard. If you would like to receive these and other cool items like them each month, head over to the Patreon. Spaces are limited!
[Support SRNY through PatreonandKo-Fi] And join us onDiscordfor fun conversation! I also have an Etsywith up-cycled nerdy crafts
These are real early-20th century Hallowe’en themed recipes, taken from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, a local newspaper that would have been accessible to Steve, his mother, and Bucky during their time in Brooklyn.
½ refrigerator roll dough ½ cup butter ¾ cup brown sugar Nutmeats Roll dough one-half inch thick. Spread with a thin layer of melted or softened butter. Sprinkle with sugar. Roll as for jelly roll and cut into slices one inch thick. Mix remaining butter and brown sugar and spread over bottom of buttered pan, then sprinkle nuts over sugar. Brush sides of rolls with butter. Place close together on sugar, cut side down. Let rise until double in bulk and place in oven with dinner the last half hour of cooking.
Glorified Pumpkin Pie
1 ½ cups strained pumpkin 2/3 cup brown sugar 1 teaspoon cinnamon ½ cup shredded cocoanut ½ teaspoon nutmeg ½ teaspoon ginger ½ teaspoon salt 2 eggs 1 ½ cup milk ½ cup cream Mix all ingredients together in large bowl of electric mixer and pour into uncooked pie shell. Bake in preheated oven 400 deg. F 35 to 45 minutes. Before last 15 minutes of baking scatter ½ cup shredded cocoanut over top and complete baking. Serve with whipped cream.
Doughnuts
1 cup sugar 2 ½ tablespoons butter 3 eggs 1 cup milk 4 teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon cinnamon ¼ teaspoon nutmeg 1 ½ teaspoon salt Flour, 3 ½-4 cups Cream butter and add half the sugar. Add remaining sugar to egg and combine mixture. Add 3 ½ cups flour, mixed and sifted with baking powder, salt and spices; then add enough more flour to make dough stiff enough to roll. Shape and fry in deep fat fryer at 385 deg. F. Switch from low to high heat to keep up frying temperature.
Roast Duck
4 to 5 pounds duck Salt and pepper 3 cups bread crumbs 1 tablespoon onion, chopped 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning ¼ cup melted butter Hot water to moisten Prepare duck for roasting, rub with salt. Prepare dressing, using the remaining ingredients. Stuff duck and sew securely. Rub outside with soft butter and place in shallow pan.
Orange Sauce ¼ cup butter ¼ cup flour 1 1/3 cups stock ½ teaspoon salt Few grains of cayenne 2/3 cup orange juice Rind 1 orange cut in fancy shapes Brown butter, salt, flour and cayenne, and stir until well browned. Add stock gradually and cook until smooth and thickened, using low heat of surface unit. Just before serving add orange juice and rind. If desired, flavor with cooking sherry.
I’d love to hear if you try out any of these recipes! Take photos and I might post them on the blog.
These are real early-20th century recipes, taken from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, a local newspaper that would have been accessible to Steve, his mother, and Bucky during their time in Brooklyn.
This week’s recipes come from the Thursday 3 September, 1931 edition of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. For context, Steve would have been 11 (comics) / 13 (MCU) when this recipe was printed.
Pineapple and Cucumber Salad
Juice of 5 lemons 1 can pineapple—cut in pieces Pineapple juice ½ cupful sugar 1 large cucumber 1 envelope gelatine soaked in 1 cupful cold water Salt and pepper Bring lemon juice, pineapple juice and sugar to a boil and pour over the gelatine. When cool and slightly jellied add the pineapple and cucumbers, but into cubes. Mold and serve with mayonnaise.
Rolled Shoulder of Lamb
Have balde removed from shoulder and fill with the following mixture, the sew up or tie together. Mix a cupful of breadcrumbs,aquarter cupful of butter,two teaspoonfuls of chopped parsley,one tablespoonful chopped onion, the juice of half a lemon, a teaspoonful of salt,apinch of pepperandan egg, beaten, also a pinch of thyme. Place meat in a roasting pan with a little water and roast, allowing 15 minutes to the pound, basting often. When roast is done remove to platter, pour off grease from pan, adding a cupful of water in its place. Stir to blend the meat juices with the water and thicken paste to form a gravy. Celery or mushroom may be added to the stuffing, if desired.
Baked Fish Loaf
(Using uncooked fish.) 1 pound fish steak 1 cupful milk 1 cupful fish stock 2 cupfuls breadcrumbs—soft ¼ cupful butter 2 eggs, beaten separately 3 teaspoonfuls parsley—finely minced Lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste Skin and bone fish, then either chop and pound to a pulp or run it through the finest knife of food chipper. Soak the bread in the milk and stock, then cook into a pulp until mixture leaves the sides of pan, stirring occasionally. Mix with the fish pulp and add the butter and beaten eggs. Then add seasonings and parsley. Shape into a loaf, using fine crumbs on outside, sprinkle with oil and bake in hot oven for 30 minutes. This may be baked in individual ramekins, if desired. Serve with any sauce preferred.
Crab Croquettes
1 pound shredded crabmeat 1 teaspoon grated onion 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce Juice half lemon Cayenne pepper 2 tablespoons butter, fat or oil 3 tablespoons flour 1 cup milk 3 tablespoons chopped cucumber 1 cup mayonnaise Combine the crabmeat, grated onion, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice and cayenne pepper. Make a white sauce, using the fat, flour and milk as the basis. Season the white sauce to taste and add the crab mixture to this. Put in a pan to the depth of two inches and place in an icebox to stiffen. When ready to be used cut the mixture into two-inch squares, roll in cracker crumbs and saute until golden brown on all sides. Serve with the mayonnaise to which the chopped cucumber has been added, This makes an excellent entree. (Hot.)
Carrot Salad
Run peeled raw carrots through the fine knife of the food-chopper in sufficient quantity to provide one cupful when ground. Have ready one cupful celery, finely chopped, and one small green pepper, finely chopped, and mix these ingredients, tossing them together with a fork. Arrange on crisp lettuce leaves and top with mayonnaise. A bit of French dressing may be sprinkled over these materials before the mayonnaise is added.
Franconia Potatoes
Wash and peel potatoes and par-boil for ten minutes. Place in pan around roasting meat. Baste at same time as the meat and bake until brown. It requires about 40 minutes. If meat is done before potatoes, it may be removed and potatoes allowed to bake longer in the fat.
Grilled Tomatoes
10 slices tomatoes 6 teaspoonfuls butter—melted ¼ cupful cracker crumbs Salt and pepper to taste Mix the cracker crumbs with the melted butter. Slice the tomatoes about a half inch thick. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, dip in egg and then in cracker crumbs. Bake for a few minutes and then brown under the broiler.
Rib Roast of Beef
Either a rolled or standing roast of beef may be governed by the following directions: Wipe meat well, dredge withflourand place in a roasting pan. Place in a very hot oven for first 20 minutes and then reduce the heat a little. Allow from eight or ten minutes to a pound for a standing roast and from ten to twelve minutes for a rolled roast, if desired rare; more time depends on how well done the meat is preferred. If desired, a clove of garlic may be placed in the folds of the meat. Do not pierce the meat while cooking, as to do so causes loss of valuable juices. Season either after searing or at the end of the cooking period.
Quick Biscuits
2 cups prepared flour 2 tablespoons liquid shortening 1 cup milk Add shortening to milk and stir into the prepared flour. This makes a rather soft mixture, because I am saving time on rolling out and cutting the biscuits by dropping them into muffin tins. The biscuits will be very tender and delicate, really more on the muffing type. Drop by spoonfuls into the pans and bake at 450 degrees F. for 1-5 minutes. In preparing the dough it is wise to get it ready several hours in advance and keep it in the refrigerator until 15 minutes before dinner, when the biscuits can be popped into the oven and come out hot just in time for the meal.
Yorkshire Pudding
½ cupful flour 2 eggs 1 pint milk 1 teaspoonful baking powder ½ cupful drippings and fat ½ teaspoonful salt Sift the salt and flour into a mixing bowl. make a depression in the center and break the eggs into it. Add one cupful of milk, a little at a time, beating to form a thick batter. Beat the batter for ten minutes. Stir in the remainder of the milk and let stand an hour or two covered. Pour into a square tin as much of drippings from the roast as you can spare. Add extra drippings to form a thick coating on the bottom of the pan. Heat the drippings in the pan. Beat the batter and add on teaspoonful of baking powder. Pour into the hot tin and bake in a hot oven for ten minutes. Reduce to moderate and bake 20 minutes longer. Brown the top under the broiler if desired.
Peach Dumplings With Vienna Sauce
2 cupfuls flour 4 tablespoonfuls butter 4 tablespoonfuls lard ¾ teaspoonful salt Ice water 6 peaches Diced pineapple Butter, sugar and cinnamon Cut the shortening into the flour and salt sifted together. Add sufficient ice water to hold the paste together. Separate into six portions and roll each out on a floured board forming a 6-inch square. Remove the skins and stones from the peaches. Fill the centers of the peaches with a little diced pineapple, butter, sugar, and cinnamon. Place each on a square of pastry, bring up the corners and lightly press together. Place in a hot oven to glaze the pastry and then reduce the heat to moderate (375 degrees). Serve with Vienna cream sauce.
Vienna Cream Sauce 2 eggs 2 egg yolks ¾ cupful sugar ½ cupful butter (washed in ice [???] to free from salt) [?] tablespoonful nonalcoholic [sherry?] flavoring Beat the eggs and egg yolks until light and add the sugar gradually, beating all the time. Cook over gently boiling water, beating with a rotary beater until thick. Remove from the fire, set in a pan of cold water and beat until cold. Whip gradually into the butter that has been creamed and add the sherry flavoring.
Lemon Sponge
1 tablespoonful gelatin ¼ cupful cold water 1 cupful boiling water ¾ cupful sugar ¼ cupful lemon juice 2 egg whites Pinch of salt Soak the gelatin in cold water for five minutes and dissolve it in the boiling water. Add the sugar, stirring until it is dissolved, and the lemon juice. Place in the refrigerator and, when it begins to set, beat with a rotary egg beater until fluffy. Fold in the stiffly beaten egg whites, to which the salt has been added. Continue to beat until stiff enough to hold its shape. Pile into sherbert glasses and place in the refrigerator to chill thoroughly. Serve with soft custard sauce.
Soft Custard Sauce 1 pint milk—scalded ¼ cupful sugar 1 tablespoonful cornstarch 1/8 teaspoonful salt 2 egg yolks ½ teaspoonful vanilla Mix together the sugar, cornstarch and salt. Add the milk gradually, stirring all the time, Stir until thick and smooth. Place in a double boiler, cover and cook 20 minutes. Add to the slightly beaten egg yolks, return to the double boiler and cook one or two minutes. Strain, add the vanilla and chill.
I’d love to hear if you try out any of these recipes! Take photos and I might post them on the blog.