Postcards were a popular form of communication starting shortly before 1900 until after World War II. The “Golden Age of Postcards” was from c. 1907 to c. 1915 during which postcards albums were found in many homes, becoming a form of entertainment as well as a form of communication. Postcards are still produced today.
Cemeteries and grave markers can be found on postcards from the earliest period of postcard production right up to the present. This presentation will give a chronological look at cemeteries and gravemarkers on postcards as well as an analysis of what kinds of views were used. Because some of these postcards date to the early years of postcard production, they can be used, like the stereocard, for historical research and for comparisons with current status of the images shown. Not all of these postcards were created for souvenir or documentary purposes and some of these other uses will be explored.
About the presenterThomas E Graves
I have a Doctorate in Folklore and Folkife from the University of Pennsylvania. I have taught at Ursinus College, Pennsylvania State University, Capital Campus, and Ursinus University. I have written on ethnic groups, such as Gypsies and Pennsylvania Germans, hex signs, cemeteries and gravestones, folk belief and religion.