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Broken Bow, NE 'Only Town on the Map' novelty map, 1909

Subjects
AdvertisingMaps
Card type
Lithograph
Date
c. 1909 (Golden Age)
Front of Broken Bow, NE 'Only Town on the Map' novelty map, 1909, c. 1909 lithograph postcard
Front
Back of Broken Bow, NE 'Only Town on the Map' novelty map, 1909, c. 1909 lithograph postcard
Back

About this postcard

The card is a red-line outline map of the United States with a black arrow pointing to a circled dot at Broken Bow, Nebraska, under the printed caption 'THE ONLY TOWN ON THE MAP.' It is a promotional novelty: the map names no other place, so the town appears as the nation's sole settlement. Broken Bow, the seat of Custer County in central Nebraska, grew in the 1880s as a railroad and agricultural trade center. The boast fits an era when Plains towns used exaggerated advertising to draw settlers and business.

Postcard Details

Message · English, in pen

Why dont you write N.Y.

Translation

They don't [illegible] write [illegible] Christmas

Broken Bow THE ONLY TOWN ON THE MAP.
PostmarkedBroken Bow, NE
Stamp
Addressed to
Mrs Paul Hess

2701 Garfield Kansas City, MO

Postcard record

PostmarkedBroken Bow, NE
ConditionGood
Place addressedMrs Paul Hess, 2701 Garfield, Kansas City, MO
Place depictedBroken Bow, NE
Stamp1c Benjamin Franklin, green, issued 1902, perforated vertical sides only
Stamp1c Benjamin Franklin, green, perforated on all sides
NotesRed rule border; paper toned with foxing and edge wear; no publisher imprint visible. Postmark: BROKEN BOW, NEBR. 1909 (day and month obscured by the stamp/cancel). Divided-back card with ornate "Post Card" heading and "THIS SPACE FOR ADDRESS ONLY"; 1¢ green adhesive stamp; tan/orange stock, light corner and edge wear.

Cite this card

Broken Bow, NE 'Only Town on the Map' novelty map, 1909, postcard, c. 1909. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/broken-bow-ne-only-town-on-the-map-novelty-map-1909. Accessed November 2, 2026.