Deltiology …..... another story from Tony Goulding

I have recently become increasingly aware of just how much History can be revealed by the collection and studying of postcards otherwise, “deltiology”.(1)

Two postcards of East London of the Edwardian era

Margate Sands                           Great Yarmouth Pier    

The advance of literacy, a low cost and reliable postal service, with multiple collections and deliveries daily, combined with the yet very limited use of telephones led to the Edwardian era being the heyday of postcard sending

A collection of correspondence of this era between two or more addresses can reveal intimate minutiae of a family’s life.

A card recently received from a friend on holiday in Ireland

A second great source of postcards are those sent from seaside resorts and other holiday destinations., 

These “wish you here” type postcards began in 1894 after a change in Post Office Regulations, increased with the greater availability of leisure time and continue even in this day of E-mails and text messages. 

Other than some bills and “junk” mail, postcards are the only mail I receive regularly apart from Christmas. 

A sub-genre of these “seaside” cards are the saucy postcards produced in their millions from the early 1930s. 

It is interesting how these cards reflect social mores. 

Increasingly popular from the 1930s until changes in attitudes to sexual stereotyping in the 1970s led to their decline. Sales of this type of card dipped significantly during the early 1950s. 

Two Donald McGill “Saucy” postcards.

Several local councils, notably Cleethorpes in Lincolnshire, (2) deemed some of the cards obscene, seized them and had them destroyed. 

Encouraged by the government of the day who were concerned about declining standards, Donald McGill, a leading designer with over 12,000 card designs was prosecuted under the Obscene Publications Act (1857). 

After a trial in Lincoln in1954, he was found guilty and fined £50 with £25 costs. This resulted in a purge of these cards nationally. 

The 1857 Act was repealed and replaced in 1959 by a more liberal one with Donald McGill giving evidence before the House of Commons Select Committee charged with forming proposals for the new legislation. This and the advent of the “swinging sixties” led to a resurgence in the “saucy” cards.

“Paddy The Next Best Thing”, 1924

Postcards have also a long history of being used as a mode of advertising. Here is a typical example from the 1920s with The County Theatre, Reading, advertising the forthcoming production: “Paddy The Next Best Thing” week commencing Monday 11th February 1924 (3)

Hotels and restaurants have even offered to pay for the postage on such advertising cards.

The reverse side of postcards can also be of historical interest. Here are a couple of informative squares I have found recently in the "stamp" corner of two cards.

The U.S. Postage rates are of particular interest in that this is surely dated before the Cuban Revolution of 1st January 1959 after which relations between the United States and Cuba remained strained for more than five decades.

Finally, in closing this look at postcards it would be remiss of me not to give a nod to my maternal grandfather Arthur Harold Clarke who as a professional photographer during the inter-war years made his living by producing a series of Picture Postcards of the Chorlton-cum-Hardy area, examples of which regularly appear on this Blog.

Pictures; All from the collection of Tony Goulding.

Notes: - 

1) “Deltiology” derived from the Greek words “deliton” meaning a small, illustrated tablet or card and “logos” meaning a word, speech, discourse, or reason.

2)  There is a full report of this case in the Grimsby Daily Telegraph of 12th December 1951.

3) Details from the Reading Standard, Saturday 9th February edition.