Who Were They?

This week’s Sepia Saturday prompt shows a rowdy group of fellows, soldiers, some in kilt, with drums and liquor bottles and smiles aplenty. They are just the kind of boys my dad would say partied all week and then late on Saturday night went to confession. Well that got me thinking that perhaps I shall give you the anti-prompt for Sepia Saturday this week. I give you….churches.

This postcard was purchased at Knott’s Berry Farm, Buena Park, CA (right near where I live) and was sent from Louella [Rudd] to Mr & Mrs R. L. Fields in Kingfisher, OK. The “Little Chapel by the Lake” was an attraction in the farm, built in 1941 specifically to house a painting of Christ called The Transfiguration by Paul von Klieben. Visitors entered the church and sat on benches. A brief recorded talk about what Christ might have looked like played and then, the painting revealed. Through the use of fluorescent paint and lighting, the painting looked like Christ opened His eyes. Sounds rather creepy to me! The chapel was eventually removed to put in a roller coaster, probably in the 1980s. Knott’s still owns the painting. Knott’s had a second church, called the Church of Reflection which also faced the lake and was in a lovely grove of trees. After the roller coaster was installed it was impossible to hear anything inside the church as it was directly underneath the track! That particular church was relocated in entirety across the street and is still in use today. Unfortunately for us, the postmark on this postcard shows it was mailed on August 5th, but the year is obscured. Louella was having a great visit and had called Aunt Vera.

This postcard was not mailed. I can only guess that perhaps the Rudd family in Oklahoma attended this church.

It’s April ’68 and Neil Rudd was stopping for a rest after driving 300 miles per day for 5 days. He was traveling through Mexico with Freddie, who was “full of zest and rarin’ to go!” The writing is spidery and difficult to read. Neil sent the above postcard to Floyd & Louella Rudd.

 

1970, and Henry & Pauline have visited Denver where it was cool, but it turned hot in Salt Lake City – 100 degrees! They were driving through to Yellowstone. The postcard was mailed to Louella Rudd.

If all this churchifying disrupted your weekend debauchery, click on over to Sepia Saturday to find what sort of carousing and goings on other folks have come up with. You will be happy you did!