april 11th 1947 Hilary to alan Griffith wardle and monica Gertrude wardle nee kenrick
north Lancashire to heswall, cheshire
85 miles (?)
the message
"Thursday
Dear Mon & Alan
Having super time, & out every day. Yesterday we went to Windermere, & it was a lovely day, too. Our first. But I believe there is going to be a batch of fine weather, so I have hopes. I can drive now & drive to Armholme & Whitington every time we go. We went to a wedding on Monday, but it was terribly windy. Well, cheerio! for now
Love from
Hilary"
the sender
It has not been possible to identify Hilary.
the recipient
Alan Griffith Wardle (1908-1991) was the son on Joseph Patterson Wardle (1877-1950) and Fannie Sarah Jones (1874-1926). Alan worked in insurance. Joseph was a ship owner and partner in Yeoward Brothers in Liverpool. Joseph and Fannie had another son, Eric Newton Wardle (1904-1989) who was an orthopaedic surgeon. He did not marry and lived in Manley near Frodsham in Cheshire. Joseph married again after Fannie died to Rebecca Topping Muirhead (1896-1955) with whom he had three children.
In 1935, Alan married Monica Gertrude Kenrick (1898-1973). Monica was the daughter of Edward Maurice Kenrick (1858-1931) and Amy Gertrude Meek (1867-1957). Edward was an accountant at a bank. Monica is also the niece of Annie Elizabeth Kendrick (1855-1934) who is featured in another postcard here
the places
Heswall, Cheshire (now Merseyside)
North Lancashire
Ullswater, Cumbria
what the card says to us
The picture shows a view of Ullswater in the Lake District. This might be a clue as to where the card was posted because the postmark is not clear except for the words "North Lancs".
You can't tell from the message whether this is Hilary's permanent residence or whether she is on holiday. There are references to Armholme and Whitington, but nothing to pinpoint where they are. Searches for Armholme don't show anything and it is possible this is the name of a property rather than a town or village.
The relationship between Hilary and the Wardles is not clear. There is talk of a wedding but not whose. Did they randomly go to a wedding? Was it someone Hilary knew but did not think the Wardle's would know? How close was Hilary to the Wardles? Close enough to send them a postcard, but not to share details of a wedding.
Hilary says "I can drive now". Does that mean she has just reached the age where driving is permissible in 1947. There were not many cars on the road then and the driving test had not long been in existence. To have access to a car says something about Hilary's social standing.