Did you run to the mailbox to get your family's mail? I did. I looked for letters and postcards from people we knew. Someone would send a postcard from their travels. A relative in another state would write a newsy letter about their family and the events in their town. Looking at the postcard photos, I wanted to know more about the places they visited. I checked their town on a map to see what else was around them. I wondered why two former placer mining towns were named Igo and Ono, both of which housed Chinese migrant miners.
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| Postcards by artists from all over the U.S. & other countries |
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Before the 2020 election, I signed up to write postcards to people all over the United States, including Pennsylvania, West Virginia, California, Georgia, Texas, Arizona, and Wisconsin. I'm writing my latest batch this week to remind people to vote in the June primaries. As I copy the addresses from my list, I think about the towns scattered across the United States and wonder how they came to be.
Although I was born in California, I haven't visited every town in the state. I've uncovered the histories of some of those towns by looking at a state map that showed me more than just the towns listed on my sheet of names. I found that Temecula is a Spanish translation of a Luiseno tribe's word, temecunga, which means "a place in the sun." Once I looked for one place, I wanted to know more about the towns in the area. I had been to Temecula, but that led me to a map where I found Dutch Village nearby, which was settled by French-speaking Dutch who erected windmills and buildings that reminded them of the Netherlands. Wynola, a small unincorporated village near San Diego, grew from a settlement of gold miners, ranchers, and orchards. Near Fresno, I discovered Weedpatch Camp, created during the Dust Bowl era, to house migrants from the Southwest Great Plains who came to California looking for work. Weedpatch appeared in John Steinbeck's story, Grapes of Wrath. The camp on a smaller scale still operates for migrant workers.
I hope the postcards that I write will encourage people to vote thoughtfully. At the same time, the postcards have tweaked my interest in other places in the United States. The more I write, the more I want to know about the towns spread across a very large and diverse country.
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| Remember to vote for your life! |
https://westernmininghistory.com/library/433/page1/
From TS by email: I’ve been enjoying your weekly postcards!
ReplyDeleteAs your fellow writing volunteer, I just wanted to salute you today for all your efforts to write postcard encouraging people to vote. I haven’t done nearly as much as you have, but am now gearing up for the fall midterm elections.
We used to help with phone banks, but got really discouraged by the fact most people are doing what we do with our cell phones - mute calls from unknown numbers.
So we figured the recipients of postcards would at least look at them.
Let’s keep writing while we can also enjoy the summer days…..
So glad to hear about the efforts of others to get out the vote. So important!! And also important to have some fun.
ReplyDeleteFrom Tina by email: Loved your latest blog, but I always love your thoughts, your artwork, your sharing of others’ creativity. And this week, I loved how you prodded us to get out and vote!
ReplyDeleteThank you, thank you, Tina. This year our votes count more than ever.
DeleteFrom Mary by email: Your blog was perfectly timed, I just mailed my ballot. Thanks so much for getting the word out there, not only through your blog but by writing letters. I do think it makes a difference.
ReplyDeleteWe got ours in the mail today. I agree, our letters/postcards have an impact.
DeleteHi Martha, I've just found your blog. I love your watercolors! Can you tell me where you sign up to send out postcards encouraging people to vote? Thanks, Sharon
ReplyDeleteHi Sharon, Thanks for asking about sending out postcards. Here's the website: https://www.committoflipblue.com/postcard_program And also, for finding my blog.
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