A black cat sits on the hearth tiles before a roaring stone fireplace, watching a kettle steam, while a table at right is laid with a roast turkey, a bowl of fruit, and a tall vase of chrysanthemums. The word "THANKSGIVING" is spelled out in the air across the deep red wall, as though written in the hearth smoke. Such illustrated holiday greetings were a staple of the early twentieth-century American postcard boom, when Thanksgiving cards rivaled Christmas cards in popularity.
Postcard Details
Message · English
Dear Ma, Pa & all
Will
write later. Glad you
could spend the day
here.
Lovingly
Florence
PostmarkedRutherford, NJ, November 23, 1908, 17:00
Gold-tan border with embossed accents; slight edge and corner wear.
Postmark: RUTHERFORD, N.J. NOV 23 5-PM 1908. Divided back; Tuck's "Thanksgiving Day Post Cards" Series No. 123, published by Raphael Tuck & Sons (Art Publishers to Their Majesties the King & Queen, By Appointment), printed in Saxony; light edge wear and toning.
Cite this card
Black cat by hearth, Thanksgiving table, Rutherford, NJ, 1908, postcard, c. 1908. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/black-cat-by-hearth-thanksgiving-table-rutherford-nj-1908. Accessed November 3, 2026.
