Men and boy with a covered wagon advertising a homecoming, Wilber, Nebraska

A barefoot boy sits astride the canvas cover of a wagon, high above two harnessed horses, one light and one dark. Two men stand at the rear: one raises a bottle to his mouth, while the other holds a bottle beside the lowered tailgate. Long fly-net fringes hang from the horses’ harnesses. Leafy trees and wood-sided buildings line the unpaved street behind them.

The poster attached to the canvas advertises a “BIG HOME COMING” at “WILBER, NEBR.” on August 4, 5 and 6. Its smaller lettering appears to refer to a free street fair. Large painted lettering on the wagon also includes “WILBER.” The advertisement establishes the occasion being promoted, but no year is visible, and the people and background buildings remain unidentified.

This is a real photo postcard with a divided back and an AZO stamp box. A pencil identification along the upper edge reads “Wilber, NE”; a much fainter note at upper left appears to repeat the place. Neither inscription is dated. No photographer or publisher is credited in the visible areas, and there is no visible evidence of postal use.

Extensive black paper remnants adhere to the reverse, apparently from former album mounting, obscuring much of the postcard printing. Several dark spots appear in the right-hand background of the photograph; the principal scene remains clear and the card is otherwise sound.