This colorful linen era postcard depicts a domestic scene at the Borden exhibit at the New York 1939 World's Fair and stars Elsie the Cow and her family.
A few years prior to the fair Borden adopted a cartoon countenance as a mascot for their company. The NY World's Fair lent an opportunity for the company to actually select a cow from the small herd of Jersey cows that had been brought to the Borden exhibit to demonstrate hygienic milking equipment. Elsie became one of the most popular exhibits at the fair and her legacy as the Borden mascot was sealed.
The card shows what developed as the back story. Elsie is shown with her husband, Elmer, and is joined by her son, Beauregard. It appears that Elsie was a big hit with fair goers. Unfortunately, the original Elsie died after two years or so but was promptly replaced with another Elsie and through the years had been replaced more than a few times times.
We hope you enjoyed and join us next week for another installment of our postcard conversations. Bob's collection spans national and local history which highlights popular culture and innovation.
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