1920 Alvarado Hotel Albuquerque NM Postcard Fred Harvey House Mission Style

This unused postcard depicts the historic Alvarado Hotel in Albuquerque, Bernalillo County, New Mexico, a landmark Fred Harvey House hotel constructed by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. The structure exhibits the distinctive Mission Revival and Spanish Colonial architectural styles for which the Harvey House chain was renowned, featuring prominent arched porticos, a red-tiled roof, and a central domed tower. A smokestack emitting a plume of smoke in the background hints at the hotel’s operational scale and its intimate connection to the adjacent railroad tracks, which are subtly visible in the foreground. The card’s production in Germany, as indicated on the verso, is a common characteristic of high-quality color postcards from this era, utilizing the chromolithographic printing process to achieve its now slightly faded yet still evocative color palette. The Alvarado functioned as a primary gateway for travelers arriving by rail, offering a curated Southwestern experience that was integral to the cultural and economic development of the region.

The verso reveals this card was mailed on October 20, 1920, from Albuquerque, N. Mex., to Mr. Fred Pinert in Bowling Green, Wood County, Ohio. The handwritten message, penned by Ruth & Wine C., provides a charming glimpse into early 20th-century life and travel. The senders note they are very pleasantly located and boarding at a hotel, expressing a hope that the recipient’s health has much improved and encouraging him to join them. The correspondence includes a personal inquiry, How is Eng & the baby?, adding a layer of familial or social connection to this ephemeral artifact. The presence of a two-cent stamp and a clear circular date stamp cancellation completes the postal history of this piece, capturing a specific moment of communication and mobility in post-World War I America, a period of significant expansion for Southwestern tourism.