Vintage Tea Room Matchbook Covers No. 2
From Mystic Tea Room
In this installment of "From the Land of Tea," we take a look at a web page that was funded by my Patreon supporters, who had access to it one full year before the public.
- Patreon Release Date: July 28th, 2021.
- Public Release Date: July 28th, 2022.
- Patreon Release Date: May 7th, 2024.
- Public Release Date: May 7th, 2025.
Please consider subscribing to my Patreon stream for as little as $2.00 per week:
Patrons: To discuss this and other Patreon pprojects with me, please join my private Patreon Forum:
Support From the Land of Tea
All of the material you have access to here -- the fabulous tea cups, the instructive booklets, the nostalgic postcards, the boldly graphic matchbook covers, and all of the historical information researched and shared from the mind of the woman who is making it all happen -- can easily fit into one 8 x 10 foot room in an old Victorian farmhouse, but you would never see it without the investment of the time it takes to produce such a site and the caloric input such a site requires in the form of food for the writer, graphic designer, and database manager, as well as the US currency needed to pay for the computers, software applications, scanners, electricity, and internet connectivity that bring it out of that little room and into the world. So, as you can see, this site is the darling of many, and it is growing at a rapid rate ... but although it is "free," there also is a cost. Your financial support underwrites this cost.
Each new web page or sample pdf is circulated to Patrons as an unpublished galley proof or advance copy. After one year access for Patrons, each web page will be released to the public, while book pages will be available to the public as printed books, and copies will be sent to Patrons who subscribe at the upper two tiers.
Patrons have access to a Private Patreon sub-forum within the Lucky Mojo Forum, and will be accorded special Red Star Avatar badges at the Forum.
Advertising Tea Rooms with Matchbook Art
This page hosts vintage Tea Room matchbook covers. Some offer a free or paid reading with every meal and some merely present as public tea rooms. They are listed on one page. Some of these tea rooms may also appear in the following sets of images:
- Vintage Tea Room Postcards: These are sorted by state or nation; one page per state or non-USA nation.
- Vintage Tea Room Menus: These are listed on one page, alphabetical, first by state and then by tea room name.
- Vintage Tea Room Business Cards: These are listed on one page, alphabetical, first by state and then by tea room name
- Vintage Tea Room Matchbook Covers No. 1: There are 22 matchbook covers listed on this page, for now by colour layout, but eventually alphabetical, first by state and then by tea room name.
- Vintage Tea Room Matchbook Covers No. 2: Open to Patrons on May 7th, 2024; open to the public on May 7th, 2025; there are XX matchbook covers listed on this page, for now by colour layout, but eventually alphabetical, first by state and then by tea room name, and they will be integrated into the original page.
You can use the site's search function (at left, in the directory bar, to search for tea room (and tea cup) names.
Tea Rooms have utilized many forms of advertising, including postcards, sugar cubes, ashtrays, business cards, and matchbooks. The last-named of these, known as matchbooks or matchcovers, and, after they are empty, as matchbook covers, are small folded rectangles of grey or tan chipboard, printed on the outside in one to four colours, and bearing a dark-grey striking surface for the chipboard matches stapled inside. As a surface which to embellish with art and information, they date back to the era when smoking was permitted in restaurants. A bowl of matchbooks sat next to the cash register, and there was often a cigarette vending machine on the wall near the door. Since smoking has been outlawed in eating establishments, matchbooks have pretty much disappeared, and most smokers carry their own petroleum-fueled lighters.
 The Bon Ton Department Store's Balcony Tea Room, York, Pennsylvania, circa 1930s. |
 Mezzanine or balcony tea rooms were added to many department stores during the 1920s. |
 Cactus Tea Room, La Posada Hotel, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 1930s; "Good Food, Attractively Served." |
 The Cactus Tea Room; "Just the Place to Rest and Play in Santa Fe, New Mexico.". |
 The Carolina Tea Room, Neptune, New Jersey, circa 1940s; Helen Flick-Jewel White, proprietor. |
 "Famous Throughout New Jerseyfor Southern Home Cooking.". |
 The Castle Tea Room, Lawrence, Kansas, "Our Specialty... Pleasing You," LIBUSE KRIZ, 1301-11 Mass. St., Lawrence, Kansas. |
 The Castle Tea Room, 13th and Massachusetts, Lawrence, Kansas, a victorian manor? |
 Cooley's Cupboards - Three Tea Rooms, all located in Evanston, Illinois, circa 1930s. |
 Cooley's Cupboards; Original Cupboard, 1629 Orrington; Picardy Room, 1511 Chicao; Rendezvous Moderne, 505 Main. |
 Fowler's Department Store Tea Room, "Where Every Meal Is a Pleasant Memory" |
 Fowler's Smart Styles for Men; the matches were made by Merchants Industries, Inc., Bellefontaine, Ohio, but Fowler's, which originated in Binghampton, New York, was a large Eastern chain with many locations. |
 Frank and Seder Department Store Tea Room and Soda Fountain Service On the Balcony, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. |
 Frank and Seder Department Store Tea Room and Soda Fountain Service On the Balcony, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Universal Match Corp, St. Louis, Made in America |
 The Green Lantern Tea Room, 40 N. Potomac St., Hagerstown, Maryland. |
 The Green Lantern Tea Room, Maryland Match Co., Baltimore, Maryland |
 Helen's Tea Room, 813 Front Street, Cresson, PA., Bell Tel. 233J, Home Cooking, Bring the Family. |
 Helen's Tea Room, "If your wife can't cook, don't divorce her - keep her for a pet and EAT at our place," Match Corp. of America, Chicago. Made in U.S.A. |
 Louvre Tea Room, Soda Light Lunch, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Ouvert Jour & Nuit [Open Day and Night], A. Rivest, Proprietor, 13 Papineau. |
 Louvre Tea Room, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Repas Leger [Light Meals]; Cie. D'Allumettes Eddy, Quebec, Canada. |
 The Old Mill Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Excise Tax Paid 1/5ยข, [Telephone] LY. 3127. |
 The Old Mill Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Amidst Unique Surroundings, Luncheons, Afternoon Teas, Dinners, Supper, Dancing, Facilities for Banquets and Large Parties, Open Every Day of the Year; Eddy Match Co. Limited, Canada B. |
 Pomeroy's Balcony Tea Room, 4th & Market Harrisburg, PA. |
 Meet Your Friends at Pomeroy's Balcony Tea Room, Fourth & Market Sts. Harrisburg, PA. Universal Match Corp. New York |
 Ye Olde Manse Tea Room, Arlington Heights, Illinois; Phone Arlington Hights 1481; Take Milwaukee Ave. To Wheeling; At The Bank In Wheeling, Turn West On Dundee Road Road; Go West Five Miles To Ye Olde Manse Tea Room, Corner Dundee & Wilkie Rds.; Union Quality; Union Match Co. Hudson, N.Y. |
 Ye Olde Manse Tea Room, Arlington Heights, Illinois; Fresh Wholesome Food - Well prepared. |
 The Yellow Bowl Tea Room, Down Among the Lobstermen at Rockport [Massachusetts]; Delicious Lobster; Lion Match Co. New York. |
 The Yellow Bowl Tea Room -- Down Among the Fishing Boats at Gloucester [Massachusetts]. |
catherine yronwode
curator, historian, and docent
The Mystic Tea Room
Special thanks to my dear husband and creative partner nagasiva yronwode for illustrations, scans, and clean-ups.
