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CONDITION
Pre-owned antique postcard in visibly worn condition. The original postage stamp has been removed and is no longer present. The De Lamere, North Dakota postmark remains partially visible, although the complete date is faint and difficult to read. The card has substantial age and handling wear, including multiple creases and wrinkles, rounded and bumped corners, edge wear, surface rubbing, scattered stains, discoloration, spotting, and general soiling on both sides. There are several heavier diagonal and horizontal creases, along with wear and paper disturbance in and around the former stamp area. The colorful lithographic illustration remains attractive despite the wear. The handwritten message, address, town name, and much of the cancellation remain visible. This card is being offered primarily for its scarce De Lamere postal-history interest. Please examine all photographs carefully, as they are an important part of the condition description.
Offered here is an attractive and genuinely scarce piece of early North Dakota postal history: an antique divided-back postcard mailed from De Lamere in Sargent County, North Dakota.
The colorful face features three roses, green foliage, two bees, and a decorative blue-green border. Printed beside the flowers is a town-specific verse:
“From De Lamere, N.D., I write this line,
This town beats anything seen on the Rhine,
For here we are merry,
And never in a flurry,
So it’s De Lamere, N.D., for mine.”
The lower edge identifies the publisher as the St. Paul Souvenir Company, and the card carries design number 404. These locally named “write this line” cards were produced for residents and travelers to mail from small communities throughout the United States. This example is especially desirable because the community name appears prominently on the illustrated face and is supported by a genuine De Lamere postal cancellation on the reverse.
The card was mailed from De Lamere, North Dakota, during the community’s second period of postal service. Available postal-history records identify two periods of operation for the De Lamere post office: 1886–1895 and 1905–1965. The office has therefore been discontinued for more than sixty years.
The exact mailing year within the cancellation is weak and not entirely legible. Based upon the postcard format, artwork, handwriting, cancellation, and apparent handwritten date notation, the card appears to date from approximately 1908–1910. It should be considered an early twentieth-century usage rather than being assigned a definite year without qualification.
The reverse contains a lengthy handwritten personal message from a correspondent staying or working in De Lamere. The writer reports being in De Lamere, feeling well, and “working every day.” The card appears to have been addressed to a woman named Bertha in Havana, Illinois, although portions of the handwriting are difficult to interpret with complete certainty.
The original postage stamp has unfortunately been removed. However, a substantial portion of the circular De Lamere cancellation remains visible across the former stamp area and adjoining portion of the card. The town identification can still be recognized, making this a worthwhile postal-history example despite the missing stamp and considerable wear.
De Lamere is a very small unincorporated community in Sargent County in southeastern North Dakota. Established during the nineteenth-century settlement and railroad era, the community once supported a depot, post office, school, church, general store, bank, grain elevators, blacksmith shop, cream station, newspaper, and other local businesses. Today it is a tiny community, making surviving postal artifacts from De Lamere especially interesting to collectors of North Dakota towns, discontinued post offices, Sargent County history, and Great Plains postal history.
This card has considerable wear from age, mailing, and handling. It displays multiple creases and wrinkles, rounded and bumped corners, edge wear, surface rubbing, stains, spotting, discoloration, and general soiling. The stamp is absent, and the former stamp area shows paper disturbance and wear. Nevertheless, the bright rose design, printed De Lamere verse, handwritten message, and genuine town cancellation give the card strong historical and display interest.
This is an original antique postcard and not a modern reproduction. The item shown in the photographs is the exact card the buyer will receive. It will be packaged carefully for shipment.
A character-filled piece of early North Dakota postal history from a genuinely small community and now-discontinued post office.
ITEM SPECIFICS
Type: Printed Postcard
Postcard Type: Divided Back
Subject: De Lamere, North Dakota
Additional Subject: Roses, Flowers and Bees
Town: De Lamere
County: Sargent County
State: North Dakota
Country: United States
Era: Divided Back Era, approximately 1907–1915
Approximate Date: Circa 1908–1910
Postmark: De Lamere, North Dakota
Post Office Status: Discontinued Post Office / DPO
De Lamere Postal Operation: 1886–1895 and 1905–1965
Postal Usage: Mailed
Stamp Status: Original stamp removed and no longer present
Message: Handwritten personal correspondence
Destination: Apparently Havana, Illinois
Publisher: St. Paul Souvenir Company
Card Number: 404
Primary Theme: Postal History
Additional Themes: North Dakota History, Small-Town America, Flowers, Roses, Rural Communities and Great Plains History
Features: Town-specific printed verse
Material: Paper
Unit of Sale: Single Unit
Number of Items: 1
Condition: Pre-owned antique condition with substantial wear and missing stamp; please see the complete condition description and photographs.
