Colchester - Old Siege House Prior to 1941. And Art Garfunkel.

            The Postcard

A postcard published by the Photochrom Co. Ltd. The image is a glossy real photograph.

The card was posted in Colchester, Essex on Wednesday the 5th. November 1941 to:

Anthony Hunt Esq.,
Riseholme,
Lincoln.

The pencilled message on the divided back was as follows:

"Colchester. Nov. 5/41.
Just waiting for Welsh
rarebit at the Robards.
So I'm sending you this
card to wish you Many
Happy Returns.
A day late I know.
I have sold Chandlers,
you must come and 
stay at my next house.
Love to all,
Aunt Helen".

The Photochrom Co. Ltd.

The Photochrom Co. Ltd. of  London and Royal Tunbridge Wells originally produced Christmas cards before becoming a major publisher and printer of tourist albums, guide books, and postcards.

These mainly captured worldwide views as real photos, or were printed in black & white, monochrome, and color. 

They also published many advertising, comic, silhouette, novelty, panoramic, and notable artist-signed cards in named series as well. The huge number of titles that Photochrom produced may well exceed 40,000.

In 1896 they took over Fussli’s London office established three years earlier, and began publishing similar photo-chromolithographic postcards after securing the exclusive English licence for the Swiss photochrom process. 

This technique was used to produce a great number of view-cards of both England and Europe. While they captured the same fine details as the Swiss prints, their colours were much softer and reduced.

Apart from their better known photochroms, they produced their Celesque series of view-cards printed in tricolor.

One of the largest unnamed series that Photochrom produced was of view-cards printed in brown rotogravure. Many of these cards were simply hand coloured with a dominant red and blue, which gives these cards a distinct appearance. They are similar to cards produced in their Photogravure and Velvet Finish Series.

Photochrom postcard series include:

-- Night Series - Line block halftone over a blue tint depicting London.
-- Carbofoto Series - Black & white real photo cards.
-- Sepiatone Series - Sepia real photo cards.
-- Grano Series - View-cards printed in black & white.
-- Exclusive Photo-Color Series - View-cards printed in colour.
-- Duotype Process Series - View-cards printed in two tones.

The Old Siege House

The Old Siege House is of early 16th. century construction with some outstanding timber work. It was extensively restored in 1905 after it had been acquired in 1902 by E. Marriage & Sons Ltd., owners of the adjoining mill property.

They had all the external plaster stripped, and this revealed many bullet holes in the timbers of the west side and south front, dating from the time of the Siege of Colchester in 1648.

Pearl Harbour

So what else happened on the day that Aunt Helen posted the card?

Well, on the 5th. November 1941, Isoroku Yamamoto issued Top Secret Order No. 1 to the Japanese Combined Fleet, detailing the plan for the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The Sinking of a Submarine

Also on that day, the Soviet submarine ShCh-324 was lost in the Baltic Sea off Tallinn, presumably to a naval mine.

'Blithe Spirit'

Also on the 5th. November 1941, the Noël Coward play 'Blithe Spirit' made its Broadway debut at the Morosco Theatre.

Art Garfunkel

The day also marked the birth in Queens, New York of Art Garfunkel, musician and actor.
   

Taken on: September 26, 2020

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