1889 Paris Worlds Fair Exposition Universelle 1889 card Eiffel Tower 3rd Level

Description: Postal Card mailed from the Eiffel Tower at the Universelle Exhibition of 1889 with stamping at the third level and a cigar label affixed.The Exposition Universelle of 1889 in Paris, better known as the 1889 Paris Exposition or even more precisely - the 1889 Worlds Fair – was held from May 6 to October 31, 1889. It was the fifth of the ten major expositions held in the Paris between 1855 and 1937. The Exposition Universelle was held to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the storming of the Bastille, which marked the beginning of the French Revolution and was also seen as a way to stimulate the economy and pull France out of an economic recession. The Exposition attracted 61,722 official exhibitors, of whom twenty-five thousand were from outside of France. Two of the visitors were Edward W. Stitt and his brother, W. J. Stitt.. The most famous structure created for the exposition was the Eiffel Tower: La Tour Eiffel. Admission to the Exposition cost forty centimes at a time when the price of an "economy" plate of meat and vegetables at a Paris cafe was ten centimes. Visitors paid an additional price for several of the exposition's most popular attractions, including an especially, climbing the Eiffel Tower, which cost five Francs per person. One of the Stitts purchased several 10 centime postal cards from the French Post Office Station at the Exhibition. The Stitts took the postal cards with them as they climbed the Eiffel Tower on July 30th and when they reached the Third Level, known as the “3me Etage, Edwin wrote messages on the correspondence side of the cards: ”Eiffel Tower, July 30/89 Accept best wishes with the top of the morning to you! Yours sincerely, Edw. W. Stitt.” “W. J.” then signed at the left “Me too, W. J. Stitt.” They addressed the cards. One of the cards was addressed to “Miss Kate Tegtmeier, 629 South 16th Street, West Philadelphia, Pa. Etats-Unius.” And on this particular card – Edwin affixed a CIGAR LABEL from a cigar that he had just purchased at the Tobacco Shop at the Eiffel Tower. The label included an embossed image of the Eiffel Tower and the inscription “Débit de Tabac de La Tour Eiffel,” which translates to “"Tobacco Establishment of the Eiffel Tower."Certainly a unique Eiffel Tower item. The cards were taken back to the Exposition Universelle Postal Station and mailed – the postal station actually had a way to print uniformly-applied cancels – the postal clerk used the device to apply two strikes of a “EXPOSITION UNIVELLE 4E/30 JUIL 89” cancel for 4:00 p.m. July 30, 1889. They traveled to the United States and this postal card first was received in New York on August 10th. There is a handstamp “NEW YORK AUG 10 PAID 5 CTS.” Machine cancel partially-applied on the reverse. Somehow, then, this card was erroneously-routed to Chicago, surely by express train, where a “CHICAGO, ILL. REC’D AUG 12 11AM” was applied by a clerk at Station “22.” How it was routed to Chicago is unknown, perhaps a clerk along the way was confused by “Etats-Unis” in the address or the “W” for “West” in the address—which was later crossed out by blue crayon. In Chicago, they realized the mistake and routed the card to Philadelphia, again, surely by train, and it arrived there on August 13th – a Station “B” postal clerk in Philadelphia applied a “REC’D PHILA. AUG 13 89 6:30 P.M.” It was then delivered to the addressee: Miss Kate Tegtmeier at 629 South 16th Street.” What excites me about this item are a number of things, including the fact that the Philadelphia postal clerk applied his cancellation directly over the cigar label that Mr. Stitt affixed – this way you know it was applied as part of the card’s journey. Kate – short for Katherine and adapted from her given name of “Catherine” – Tegtmeier born in Philadelphia in 1865 was the middle child of Prussian immigrant August Tegtmeier (born in 1828 and listed in the 1870 Philadelphia Census as a “Veterinary Sergeant”) and Caroline Cook Tegtmeier (born in New Jersey in 1839), Her brother Christian was born in 1862 and her brother Charles in 1868. She became a music teacher and died on May 4, 1936 at age 71 of congestive heart failure, having never married. She’s buried in Philadelphia’s Greenmount Cemetery on North Front Street. When Edward and W. J. Stitt sent Kate the card from the Eiffel Tower in 1889, she was 24. Edward W. Stitt, Sr. born in 1863, came to the United States with his wife Janice, born in 1870, as Irish immigrants, according to the 1900 census. Their first son, Edward W. Stitt, Jr was born in 1894. Another son, William B. Stitt, was born in 1900. Edward Sr. became Superintendent of the New York City Public Schools by 1920. A now-closed Middle School (IS-164) would be named after him. First Son, Edward Jr. would become a prominent New York City Attorney, passing away in 1971, having graduated from City College of New York in 1913 and Columbia Law School in 1916. He served as a lieutenant in the Army in World War I. I’m still working to identify “W. J.” Stitt. Though I’m confident that I have the right “Stitt” in “Edward W. Stitt, Sr.,” I haven’t been able to find a legible census from the 1860s to 1900 with Edward W. Stitt, Sr’s identification of his parents or brothers. Though I’m confident that “W.J.” is not a son, I’m operating under the assumption that “W.J.” was Edward W. Stitt, Sr.’s brother. Complicating the Stitt identification in the census records has been the spelling of the surname: Stitt. It resembles another word, and, unfortunately, “W. J.” did not sign his full name. Looking at the handwriting, I believe that “W. J.” merely signed the cover. The address to Kate is definitely in Edward’s handwriting. But why Edward, living in New York as married in the 1900, be writing a single 24-year-old lady in Philadelphia? Though there’s a lot known about this item, there’s still work to be done. Free Domestic Shipping - Not a reproduction. This is an original item. You will receive the exact item pictured. It is an original item and not a reproduction. It's completely authentic. FREE United States of America Postal Service FIRST CLASS MAIL SHIPPING to the United States. Uninsured International, including Canada, shipments are $15.00. If you purchase multiple items and let me send the invoice, I will try to adjust shipping to a reasonable incremental level. I prefer eBay's Payment System. If you wish to pay by any other means, please message me before buying at and ask permission, which will not be unreasonably withheld. When I send an invoice after you have purchased the item, please immediately remind me that you will be paying by another means.Postal insurance and/or registered mail for loss and/or damage protection will be an extra charge and offered only if specifically requested. If this concerns you, please message me in advance of your purchase. Sometimes I will require this to protect us both. All international shipments that request registered mail (insurance generally unavailable) will be charged a flat additional $18 for this service. The United States Postal Service has an excellent record with my shipments. I have been a member of the American Philatelic Society since 1978 and have been selling on eBay for over 20 years. You will need to work through Sales Tax issues with eBay if for some reason you feel you should not be automatically charged sales tax. I cannot do anything about sales tax as eBay takes it and I never see it. 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Price: 1487.5 USD

Location: Richmond, Virginia

End Time: 2024-09-13T22:47:59.000Z

Shipping Cost: 0 USD