Delaware Postcards available Online

        The University of Delaware Library has created a web site which
provides digital images of the Library's collection of more than 2,000
Delaware postcards.  By digitizing the collections and making the
postcards available online, the University of  Delaware Library hopes to

enhance access to this collection and also to make searching for
specific
images and subjects easier and more fruitful.  The fronts and backs of
all
the cards have been scanned so that researchers can take full advantage
of
all the information that the postcards provide.  Much of the information

on the cards has also been entered into a searchable database which is
available to the public.

        The University of Delaware Library Postcard Collection comprises

over two thousand
separate views of Delaware and nearby areas.  The postcards in the
collection date mainly from the end of the nineteenth century to the
mid-twentieth century, although there are also postcards from throughout

the latter part of the twentieth century.  Most of the cards in the
collection were commercially produced and represent well-known Delaware
buildings, monuments, and views, such as the State Capitol in Dover,
Wilmington's downtown buildings and historic structures, and Rehoboth's
beaches and boardwalks.  A number of the cards document small-town life
in Delaware, including street scenes and domestic buildings.  In
addition to documenting the landscape of Delaware as it
existed during the last hundred years, some of these images represent
the
only extant views of buildings or businesses which have long since been
razed.

        The collection encompasses every geographic area in Delaware and

is particularly strong for New Castle County, especially Wilmington and
Newark.  Delaware's resort areas, notably Rehoboth Beach, are also well
represented.  Although the vast majority of the cards depict sights in
Delaware, the collection also contains images of  places outside the
State, for example, Longwood Gardens in nearby Kennett Square,
Pennsylvania.  A number of cards relate to Delaware in other contexts.
These include Delaware buildings built for fairs and expositions, the
battleship U.S.S. Delaware, and even depictions of Delaware soldiers
during the Mexican Campaign of 1916.

        Postcards are not only visual records.  Many of the postcards in

the collection were mailed, and contain written messages, stamps, and
postmarks.  The backs of the postcards were also printed with
information
about the publishers, captions describing the images, and ornaments.
The
printed text, along with the stamp and postmark, can help to date and
place the manufacture and use of the cards.  Additionally, the captions
and written messages contain a wealth of information that can be used to

learn about the postcard's image or to illuminate the attitudes and
interests of the past.

        The digital version of the University of Delaware Library
Postcard
Collection can be accessed via the Library's home page at the following
URL:

        http://www.lib.udel.edu/digital/dpc/

In order to provide a wide range of research opportunities, several
different searching strategies have been developed.  Users are able to
search categories such as City and Town, Description, Printer and
Publisher, Subject, County, State, Postmark, and Addressee.

A special browse feature has also been developed which will allow users
to
retrieve all of the postcards relating to any Delaware city or town in
the
collection.  Other search options are available, too, and information
about all of them is available in the extensive help section on the Web
site.  The Web site also includes details about the scope of the
collection and procedures for using it.

        The University of Delaware Library invites all researchers,
collectors, and enthusiasts of Delaware postcards to visit this
informative new site.   Susan Brynteson, the May Morris Director of
Libraries, stated "this is an exciting opportunity for all citizens of
Delaware and students of Delaware history to have access to a colorful
and
informative electronic resource.  I would like particularly to thank the

Unidel Foundation for its generous support of the University of Delaware

Library Postcard Project."



---

Timothy D. Murray                               Phone: (302) 831-6952
Head, Special Collections                       Fax: (302) 831-1046
University of Delaware Library                  e-mail: [log in to unmask]
181 South College Avenue
Newark, DE   19717-5267

--
Iris Snyder
Special Collections
University of Delaware Library
[log in to unmask]

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