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Postcards: Postcards From The Past

By: Joseph Ould

Post card collectors or more formally deltiologists, generally collect post cards for the view, subject depicted, topic, artist, publisher, photographer or any of hundreds of reasons relating to the front view of the post card. They are very much intrigued by the uniqueness and the view of a much simpler time in history.

If you are lucky enough to have postcards sent or received by your ancestors you may learn unknown information about the family, gain handwriting samples and even find addresses to help you track family movements and history. Even if you aren't fortunate enough to have access to a family postcard collection, you can often find postcards depicting your ancestor's hometown, clothing styles of the time period, types of employment etc.

A good place to start is with the local historical society or library in the area in which your ancestor lived or at local antique stores. Many postcard collections are also beginning to spring up on the internet. Look to postcards as a wonderful alternative to photographs for illuminating the lives of your ancestors and of days gone by.

Turning yesterdays mail Into genealogy treasures is becoming a sought after collection!

How awesome would it be to find a hand written letter from a grandparent forty years after they have passed away. Think about the anticipation at your family reunion when you and all your relatives open the letters your ancestors wrote one hundred years earlier. That would be incredible information and exciting too.

Did your ancestor write down and pass on stories that were otherwise lost or distorted by failing memories and word-of-mouth recollections? The written word survives long beyond man's ability to recall.

The deltiologist will also use a postmark as a crossover especially when their collecting cards from Worlds Fair and Expositions. The postmark from these special post offices can add great value to a post card and prove that it was purchased at the sight of the fair or exposition. These are also sought after items for the postal historian. It makes no difference whether you collect post cards as a deltiologist, a postal historian or philatelist, the field is wide open.

You will be quite surprised at the amount of information you can find and postcards on line concerning your family history. Small towns your ancestors have come from or cities far away are just a click away. Get started with a new pastime of postcard collecting from the past and engage in the history of your ancestors.

Article Source: http://www.rightarticle.com

Information supplied and written by Joseph Ould is the owner of the web site about Postcards and A Quick Overview Of Postcard Collecting
This and other unique content Postcards articles are available with free reprint rights.





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