Postcards from Joseph Lyons

Three postcards written by Joe Lyons,  addressed to his children Barry and Brendan and sent during the overseas trip of 1935. The party that travelled to Europe for the jubilee celebrations of King George V departed from Fremantle in February of 1935, and Joe and Enid spent a total of 7 months overseas touring Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Joe and Enid remained in contact with family back home throughout this trip with frequent phone calls and letters. Brendan Lyons recounts in his memoir of his father that there were two particularly memorable occasions when Joe wrote to each of his eleven children; the first being an overnight stay at Windsor Castle on the 9th April, the second being a stay at the White House in Washington on the 9th July. Brendan notes that these messages were particularly treasured by his siblings and kept as mementoes, as evidenced by the examples held at Home Hill.

The two postcards from Windsor Castle are addressed to Barry and Brendan Lyons, and are dated the 9th April 1935. The postcard to Barry reads:

Dear Barry,

It was lovely at the Castle – we looked at the Queen ‘like a pussy cat’. That’s what Peter said we would do.

The Grenadier Guards Band played and we watched them from a window.

Love

Mum and Dad

The postcard to Brendan reads:

Dear Brendan,

This is a card from Lancaster Tower in Windsor Castle, the palace of the King and Queen. We stayed there last night.

Love from

Mum and Dad

The third note was written by Joe Lyons when staying at the White House as a guest of President Roosevelt on the 9th July 1935. It is addressed to Barry Lyons and reads:

Dear Barry

This is a message from the house of the President of America, who is like a king in his country.

Love

Dad