I came across an old picture postcard from Norton, Kansas, that had me giving it a second look. The photo on the front of the card shows the largest assemblage of horse-drawn buggies that I’ve ever seen. Today, one might think it’s a meeting of the Amish or Mennonites, or perhaps an early Amway convention.
Norton, Kansas, was founded in 1872 by a man named N.H. Billings. The town name came from Captain Orloff Norton, who was in Company L – 15th Regiment- Kansas Volunteer Cavalry. Captain Norton was killed at Cave Hill, Arkansas, in 1864. Today, it is a laid-back community of approximately 1,700 residents.
The only explanation for the mass group of carriages is a printed caption on the front, which reads: “A busy day, Norton, KS, photo by Reed.” That information tells me little. After conducting some research based on the sender of the card, I concluded that it was a religious gathering of a large proportion, as Amway wasn’t founded until 1959.
What’s even more intriguing is that both sides of the postcard were written on with double postmarks, one from Herndon, Kansas, and the other from Clay Center.
Backside of the card is addressed to:
Miss Geneva Alquist
Clay Center Kansas
The Clay Center postmark is 12 AM, May 12, 1907, while the Clay Center is 4 PM, May 17 of the same year. The correspondence section of the card reads without grammar correction:
“I have a chance to go to Atwood 20 miles west next Tuesday + I think I shall improve it. Hope to have some Atwood view cards to send you there. If I go it will be with brother A Alson who is going in his buggy. Greet your folks. Your friend J.P.E.
The front reads as follows, on top of the photograph, with the handwriting being the same as the flipside:
“Dear friend, Your card received. Thanks. I was very much pleased with the papers. I appreciate your thoughtfulness. I’ve been out for an eight mile drive this afternoon to see a very sick man. He is not a Baptist but said that he is prepared to die. I thank god for this. Have now been here a week and haven’t had a touch of lonesomeness yet. That’s doing fine isn’t it?”
Carla Geneva Alquist was born in Kansas on September 13, 1882. Her parents had come to the area from Sweden, belonging to the Swedish Baptist Church, as did their daughter and three sons. The family owned Alquist’s Grocery in Clay Center; thus, they were well-to-do. Two of the sons were businessmen, while another became a dentist.
Miss Geneva Alquist was heavily involved in the ministry at an early age, with newspaper reports of her attending youth church meetings in towns throughout Kansas. There are 1,559 newspaper entries for her from 1891 all the way up until she died in 1965. She was a church women’s organizer while also holding down various bookkeeping jobs for various firms.
Geneva Alquist was a staunch supporter of the American Women’s League and undoubtedly suffered much flak from the opposite sex for doing so. That may be a good reason she never married. There are other valid explanations why, yet this one seems most plausible to me.
The American Women’s League pushed for areas of equality for women, especially where women’s suffrage was concerned, as well as having a strong political voice. Miss Alquist attended quite a few political meetings, judging by the many newspaper accounts of such with her name attached.
Records show that she lived with her parents until their deaths, with some folks undoubtedly negatively calling her a spinster behind her back. Was she actually a spinster or a soft-spoken Carrie Nation?
After reading about her involvement in religious, community, and national policies, I believe she was a woman of independence, with strong opinions and a calling from God. She seems to have had a drive for her cause much on the same level as Mother Theresa.
I found no plaque or statue in Clay Center for Miss Geneva Alquist’s contributions to the city, yet she wouldn’t have expected this. Geneva was justly rewarded when she got to Heaven in 1965, having spent 83 years as a voice for women in Clay Center.
So who was the mystery writer of the card, a person with the initials J.P.E.? They made absolutely sure that they acknowledged Miss Alquist in a friendly, yet serious, religious tone.
After much research, I came to the conclusion it could have only been Reverend John P. Endacott Jr. He’d come to Clay Center during this time as a minister with his wife, Ellen, both from England, preaching at other churches throughout the state until retiring and then passing away in 1934 at age 69. Mystery solved!
I like to write junk... 