Valentine’s Day Greetings for Marjorie

            I am many things, including a deltiologist (a collector of postcards).  I specialise in collecting faerie tale themed postcards from before the Second World War and now have one of the largest collections in the world going into the several thousands.  Usually, my purchases come from large auction houses or online businesses, but occasionally I am fortunate enough to acquire postcards from direct descendants of the original recipients, including the nephew of Miss Margorie Chambers, John Shackles, owner of Nonnykettle Books in Redditch.

In 2006, I bought a Cinderella postcard I had long been searching for from John through Nonnykettle Books, unaware that it was his maiden Aunt Marjorie’s postcard.  As Nonnykettle was a small business, I decided to ask John if he knew anything about the recipient.  When I received it, enclosed was a small note letting me know that the postcard was sent to Marjorie Chambers (pictured in the hand tinted photograph from the 1930s at centre in a blue bridesmaid’s dress) when she was seven a half years old and her sister Lucy.  Lucy is John’s late mother, the younger sister of Marjorie.  The two sisters lived in Rose Cottage in the Worcestershire village of Rowney Green, where they lived with their parents, where John’s father was born, and also where John’s father married Lucy.  The cottage still stands to this day.

Several months later I bought a Little Mermaid postcard from a specialist postcard dealer in Cincinnati with whom I had a long-standing friendship.  Imagine my surprise upon its arrival to find that it was addressed to the very same Marjorie Chambers of Rose Cottage, from a friend named Eileen and her mother.  I immediately contacted John and asked what he knew about Eileen.  We corresponded for a while, but John had no luck tracing the mysterious Eileen.  One day a large parcel arrived from John.  To my delight, enclosed was a letter from John, several photos and about a dozen cards and postcards all addressed to Marjorie from her parents, family and friends.  When Marjorie died in 1995, John was going through her personal effects and found her collection of cards and postcards that were given to her by her parents, family, and friends, that she had kept over the years.  It ran into the hundreds, as she had received one hundred cards alone on her twenty-first birthday in 1935!  Most of her family and her friends usually sent her one birthday card and one Valentine’s card for her every year.  John had slowly been selling items from her collection off piecemeal through his shop, although not the Little Mermaid card from my seller in Cincinnati which John had never seen, so it remains as much of a mystery as to how it got there as the elusive Eileen is.  John had sent me a selection of Marjorie’s cards, details about who sent them, and some photos of her over the years, so I would know what she looked like and perhaps get a sense of her.  

The woven “with love” card at the bottom left-hand corner of the photo came from Marjorie and Lucy’s favourite uncle, Uncle Tom, who died in Birmingham during the Second World War.  The Valentine’s Day card in the top left-hand of the photo came from Marjorie’s best friend Olive and her husband, Alfred.  The Valentine’s Day card at the bottom right came from Marjorie’s sister, Lucy, the Valentine’s Day card in the top middle came from Marjorie’s grandfather, and the Valentine’s Day card in the top right of the photo came from her parents.  

The theme for “Smile on Saturday” for the 10th of February is “words of love”, as a tribute to Saint Valentine’s Day.  When I saw it, I immediately thought of the treasure trove of Marjorie Chambers’ Valentine’s Day cards that I had.  I thought this would be a nice tribute to her memory, which lives on through me and my photography.  I hope that my arrangement of some of her cards and words of love pleases you and makes you smile.        

Dedicated to the memory of Miss Marjorie Chambers 1914 – 1995.

Taken on: January 28, 2024

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Camera: Canon DIGITAL IXUS 80 IS, f/2.8, 1/20 sec, 6.2mm, ISO 200 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon DIGITAL IXUS 80 IS
Aperture:	f/2.8
Exposure Time:	0.05 sec (1/20)
Focal Length:	6.2mm
ISO:	200
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
Show full info

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