As anyone who’s read any other installments of this column would attest, I love amusement parks. But anyone who knows me well would say that I love collecting things even more. I think if I were to poll the readership here, most of us would confess to collecting something in our lifetime.

Since an early age, I have collected comics, models, books, records, laserdiscs, CD’s, DVD’s, toys, and more. These days I mainly collect postcards. Why postcards? First, when I got into amusement parks, I wanted to find something to collect related to them. Second, since they are a record of various rides and parks across the country, many defunct, they appeal to my love of history, especially the history of people’s entertainment. Third, they are relatively inexpensive collectibles, they don’t take up a load of room (important after nearly 40 years of collecting). Most cards are priced under $25, with the majority under $10. This great image of a Coney Island loop the loop coaster from 1910 cost me about $10.

Collecting postcards is known as deltiology. Postcards are considered to be the third most popular collectible following stamps and coins. Postcards throughout time have featured a myriad of subjects and almost anyone could find a subject, state, town, or even building that interests them. While there are many postcards for sale on eBay and other web sites, I prefer going to local postcard shows, where you can meet dealers and perhaps snag that hard to find card you’ve been looking for, usually at a lower price than auctions.  I urge you to seek out one of these shows in your area. I’m sure you’d be able to find something you’d find interesting, like this unusual Coney Island ride that was a combination roller coaster and flume, The Mountain Torrent.

Postcard collecting exploded in the late 1800’s as postal regulations allowed for postal cards with colorful images on one side that could be mailed for 1 cent, which was half the letter rate (which increased quickly by weight). One of the nice things about deltiology is that it is relatively easy to determine the age of a card. Prior to 1870 postcards were plain, pre-stamped cards, issued only by the US government. For a while, from 1870 to 1901, only these cards could be called postcards. Others were known as Private Mailing Cards, and are stamped on the back as such. The undivided back era was from 1901 to 1907. During this time, by law, only the address was allowed on the back of the card. No other writing was allowed. Sometimes space would be left for writing on the front, but usually a short message was written in the margin or on the image itself. Used cards from this era do not suffer any loss in value from having writing on the front, as that’s the only place a message was allowed. 

The early divided back age was from 1907 to 1915, which is the golden age of postcards and postcard collecting. At this time people were finally allowed to use one half of the postcard back for the address and the other half for a message. This  allowed the image side to remain free of writing. At this time almost 75% of all postcards bought and mailed in the US were coming from Europe, primarily Germany, as they had the finest printing presses. Close up views like this one of three ladies on a Steeplechase horse in 1912 are always desirable.

Official US Post Office figures show that there were nearly 700 million postcards mailed in 1908, a year when the total US population was approximately 90 million. However, in Europe, war was on the way, ending the influx of high quality German postcards into the US market. The war, coupled with the advent of the telephone, and a slew of inferior cards from US and British printers ended the golden age of postcard collecting. Never again would postcards be printed in such quantity. 

Thus starts the next age of postcards, The White Border Period from 1915 to1930.  After the war, Germany never recovered as a hub of quality postcard printing, and US printers had yet to equal the quality of the earlier European cards. To save on ink, the cards were printed with a white border, and are generally inferior to the earlier German cards.  They still have some great images, like this one of riders on the Hoop-La at Coney Island. A wooden ring on ropes, it used human power to spin around the center pole. 

Lack of public interest in the hobby caused many publishers to go out of business. During this period, real photo postcards, where a person ran off a few hundred photos of an image with postcard backs, was all the rage. The first real photo cards date back to 1906, and the beginnings of inexpensive photography, but this period is when they really took off. Due to the small number of cards of any image printed, real photo cards are usually some of the most rare and valuable postcards. The example here is from Old Orchard Beach, Maine, taken sometime from 1938 to1948, as that is how long the coaster was there. This card would appeal to aviation collectors as well.

From 1930 to 1945 is known as the linen era. During this time, better printing processes used a high rag content paper which allowed for brighter colors and a return to printing the image to the card edge. The cards have a distinct look that seems as if they are actually printed on linen. Using this inexpensive method, every hotel, motel, and tourist attraction from coast to coast used linen cards to advertise their businesses. One of the most popular styles of linen cards were slightly risqué cartoons, often military themed. I have about 30 of these risqué cartoon cards that are amusement park related. Linen cards began to fall out of favor in 1939 when the first chrome postcards were produced, but many manufacturers still produced linen cards into the 1950’s.

In 1939, the first modern style chrome style postcard appeared. Almost overnight, public interest in this style of card overwhelmed any interest in any type of card since the Golden Age ended in 1915. These cards, known by their brand names like “Plastichrome” and “Coulourpicture” reflected their age like all other postcards before them. A new age where bright photography replaced hand tinted black and white photography, or artwork.  Chrome cards, like white border, and linen before them, never reached the popularity of postcards from the Golden Age, but still have appeal to collectors, and can be quite rare, since they were printed in much smaller quantities than earlier cards. This view is of the roller coaster at the now defunct Whalom Park in Lunenberg, MA. 

Real photo postcards continued to be printed during this period, though there was a general lack of any type of postcards being published during the years around World War II. The final change that was made to postcards was during the 1970’s when the postcard size changed. Prior to the 1970’s all postcards were called standard size, which were approximately 3 ½ inches by 5 ½ inches. In the 70’s the cards became continental size, which is 4 x 6 inches or larger. By 1980 all postcards were continental size.

Historically, postcards capture a slice of life. From the picture on the front, to the messages written on them, they provide a look into our past. For nearly twenty years at the turn of the last century, postcard purchasing, mailing, and collecting were a national obsession. Apart from being a fun hobby, at that time it provided a great value. A one penny card, mailed for a second penny was the cheapest way one person could communicate with someone else anywhere in the country.  The myriad of subject matter made collecting them appealing to almost anyone, as you could easily find a subject of  interest.

Most of my collection is images, or views as they are known to collectors, of roller coasters, though I will collect any quality view that has some type of ride pictured. I even collect old tickets like this one for the Traver Circle Swing from an unknown park. In those days, your paid admission got you a colorful ticket which was on a string, hence the hole at the top of the ticket. Many of these tickets, especially Coney Island ones, are quite ornate, and command very high prices.

I have been able to find cards from all over the world, from parks that were near my home that I never knew, and some from where I spent my youth. I’ve been able to compile a visual history of a place and era I never visited.  And I’m able to hold in my hand a 100 year old or older piece of paper, and try to comprehend how it got to me all these years later. It’s a fascinating hobby, with as many subjects as you can imagine. There is a guy who I see at local shows all the time, and all he collects is deep sea diving postcards!  If you are looking for a hobby, and have a love of history, postcard collecting was made for you. All the images are from postcards in my personal collection. Thanks for reading, and see you soon in the queue line!