The German zeppelin Hindenburg made sixty-three flights, including ten roundtrips to the United States in 1936. It met tragedy May 6, 1937. Attempting to land at Lakehurst, New Jersey, the giant airship burst into flames near the mooring mast. In only thirty-two seconds, the zeppelin was smoldering wreckage. Amazingly, nearly two-thirds of the passengers and crew survived (thirty-five people on board died plus one member of the ground crew; sixty-two survived). The zeppelin was 803’10” long—almost three football fields end-to-end. The cause of the disaster has never been determined. However, the prevailing theory is that a discharge of electricity from the storm that evening ignited some leaking hydrogen. Sabotage has been ruled out as a possibility due to lacking evidence of any kind.

This postcard was part of the mail salvaged from the wreckage. The U.S. Post Office Department enclosed the fragile, charred remains in a glassine envelope and officially sealed it before delivery to the addressee. This folded postcard, also known as an ‘economical folded business card’, allowed the sender to type the address and message without turning the card over. After typing, the address portion was folded to become part of the card face and then glued into place. This card, addressed to John Schoonbrod in New York City, has a typed message on the reverse in which Ernst wrote that he was sending greetings by air, asked why he had not heard from Hans for awhile, and suggested a reply on an upcoming return flight of the Hindenburg. The international postcard rate was 15Rpf and, therefore, the rate is overpaid by 10Rpf. Though 10 Rpf was the required rate for airmail service in the U.S., no airmail was needed for a New York City destination. Read more at The Smithsonian National Postal Museum