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Prospect St., illegible name, 1952(?)

This hopelessly worn stamp is on a driveway apron on the south side of Prospect Street between Virginia and Holmes. The only part that can be made out is the date, which I am inclined to say is 1952, especially since that’s the year the house was built. I had hoped that I would be able to make something of the contractor name by tweaking the photo, but no luck. The style of the date marking is unfamiliar – it’s larger than most – so I wonder if it is a contractor I haven’t covered in the blog yet. Sadly, I’ll never know.

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Rumsey Ave., illegible name, 1952

Here is a mystery from the west side of Rumsey Avenue between Jerome and Vine, in the Eastfield neighborhood. The name is illegible but the layout looks like it might be an arch. I don’t recognize the style as matching one of the usual suspects, and it’s also placed strangely, close to vertically centered, but off on the right side of the block.

Looking north on Rumsey, with the stamp bottom right.

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S. Clemens Ave., illegible name, 1952

This stamp on the east side of South Clemens Avenue between Michigan and Prospect is small and indistinct. I suppose that’s why I have evidently overlooked it many, many times; this is a block I walk often and yet I don’t remember noticing it before.

The date seems to be 1952, but the name is a puzzle. I am pretty confident it is _ _ G L _. I also think the first letter is R, or maybe B, and the second letter looks like an E. What do you think?

Looking south on Clemens. The stamp is on the far end of the nearest full slab, facing the other way.
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Jerome St., Paul Wright, 1952(?)

I took a late walk after a lousy day, so this is the best I can do. It’s a Paul Wright stamp on the south side of Jerome Street between Clemens and Fairview. My brain wants to fill in the mis-struck final digit to make a 3, but when I compare it with the other Paul Wright stamp I’ve collected from North Magnolia Avenue nearby, it looks like it matches the shape of the 2 from that one. I’m inclined to guess they’re both 1952.

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Shepard St., DPW, 1952

One of my goals (besides finding the earliest and latest stamps I can, and I may have peaked too early on the former) is to find a stamp from as many different decades as possible. So here is an otherwise not particularly distinguished one I saw on my walk today to represent the 1950s.

Another one from the Department of Public Works, 195…7? 2? I initially thought 7, but it looks too rounded. On the other hand, there’s definitely no bottom bar to make it a 2. It’s on the east side of Shepard between Kalamazoo and Stanley Ct. (a curiously tiny, glorified alley between Shepard and Leslie).

Update 2/27/21: Based on seeing several others like this, I am now sure it’s 1952.