About the Collection
From hand colored images of Mount Rainier to the historic streets of early Moscow, Idaho, the Northwest Historical Postcards Collection displays unique and engaging images of people and places in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century Northwest. Portraying locations in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, British Columbia and Alberta, the collection offers a glimpse at the historical and cultural development of the western states, with rare depictions of turn-of-the-century buildings, thriving mining towns that later became ghost towns, and Mount St. Helens before the eruption.
This digital collection of over 800 postcards comes from the historical photograph collections of the University of Idaho Library's Special Collections & Archives. The postcards range in date from the 1890s to the 1980s and were given to the library by a wide variety of donors. The postcards were digitized and described by Annie Gaines in 2012-2013.
A Note on the History of Postcards
Postcards originated in Europe in the late nineteenth century as an inexpensive means of communication, and the cards quickly became popular in America. In the early twentieth century, the U.S. Post Office permitted the use of a divided back card, allowing for both a message and mailing address to be on one side making it possible for the entire front of the card to be used for an image. Since then, millions of color and black and white postcards have been mailed to family and friends across the country.
For More Information on Postcards
Broyles, Duane, Howard Ness, Suzanne Bamonte, and Tony Bamonte. Vintage Postcards from Old Spokane. Spokane, WA: Tornado Creek Publications, 2005.
Hathaway, William. Idaho Falls: 15 Historic Postcards. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Pub, 2008.
Lear, B. A. (January 31, 2008). Wishing They Were There: Old Postcards and Library History. Libraries & the Cultural Record, 43, 1, 77-100.
Prochaska, David, and Jordana Mendelson. Postcards: Ephemeral Histories of Modernity. University Park, Pa: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2010.
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----States------
Idaho
Washington
Oregon
Montana
Wyoming
Alberta
British Columbia
----Places------
Ahsahka
Alger
Alturas Lake
American Falls
American Falls Dam
Anacortes
Anderson Ranch Dam
Arch Cape
Arco
Ashland
Ashton
Astoria
Astoria Column
Athol
Avery
Baker City
Banks
Baron Lakes
Bellingham
Bellingham City Hall
Bend
Billings
Bitterroot Mountains
Black Canyon Dam
Boise
Boise Art Museum
Bonners Ferry
Bozeman
Bremerton
Broken Top
Brookings
Browning
Brownlee
Brownlee Dam
Brundage Mountain Resort
Burke
Burley
Butte
Cannon Beach
Cascades
Cataldo
Chatcolet Lake
Chelan
Chinook
Clark County Courthouse
Clark Fork
Clarkston
Clearwater River
Coeur d'Alene
Colfax
Collins
Colombia River Highway
Columbia River
Columbia River Highway
Columbia River Highway, Portland
Colville
Conde McCullough Memorial Bridge
Coos Bay
Coquille
Corbett
Corvallis
Cottonwood
Council
Council?
Coupeville
Cowlitz County Courthouse
Crater Lake
Craters of the Moon National Monument
Crow Agency
Crown Point Vista House
Culdesac
Cuprum
Custer
Dallas
Davenport Hotel
Dayton
Dewey Lake
Dixie
Dubois
Duncan
Dworshak Dam
Ecola State Park
Elk City
Emmett
Ennis
Enterprise
Eugene
Everett
Flavel House Museum
Florence
Fort Casey State Park
Fort Hall
Fort Lewis
Fort Stevens State Park
Genesee
Geneva
Gooding
Goodpasture Bridge
Grand Coulee
Grand Coulee Dam
Grand Teton National Park
Grangeville
Grants Pass
Grays River
Greys Harbor
Hagerman
Harding Mountain
Harris Beach State Park
Hells Canyon
Helmer
Highway 90
Highway 99
Hood River
Idaho City
Idaho Falls
Idaho State Historical Museum
Ilwaco
Island Park
Jerome
Joseph
Julia Davis Park
Juliaetta
Kamiah
Kellogg
Kelso
Ketchum
King County Courthouse
Klamath Falls
Kooskia
Lacey V. Murrow Memorial Bridge
Lake Chelan
Lake Coeru d'Alene
Lake Keechelus
Lake Pend Oreille
Lake Washington
Lakeview
Landore
Lane County Courthouse
Lapwai
Lava Hot Springs
Lewis and Clark National Historical Park
Lewis-Clark Canoe Camp State Park
Lewiston
Lolo Trail
Longview
Lookout Pass
Mace
Mackay
Marhill Museum of Art
Marysville School
McCall
McGowan
Middle Fork Clearwater Wild and Scenic River
Milton-Freewater
Minidoka Dam
Monroe
Moscow
Mount Adams
Mount Baker
Mount Baker National Forest
Mount Hood
Mount Rainier
Mount Si
Mount St. Helens
Mountain Home
Moxee
Moyie Dam
Moyie River Canyon Bridge
Mt Hood
Mt Hood Parkdale
Mt Rainier
Mt. Baldy
Mt. Borah
Mt. Hood
Mt. Rainier
Mukilteo
Mullan
Multnomah Falls
Murray
Nehalem
Nevada City
New Meadows
Newberg
North Bend
North Head Lighthouse
Northport
Northwest Christian University
Oceanside
Olympia
Oregon City
Oregon State University
Orofino
Orogrande
Osburn
Oxbow
Oxbow Dam
Palisades Dam
Palouse Falls State Park
Paradise Inn
Paradise Valley
Payette Lake
Payette River
Pe Ell
Pendleton
Perrine Memorial Bridge
Pete Lake
Picabo
Pierce County
Plummer
Pocatello
Point Grenville
Port Orford
Port Townsend
Portland
Post Falls
Priest River
Pullman
Rainier National Park
Redfish Lake
Redmond
Ridpath Hotel
Riggins
Rimrock Lake
Roche Harbor
Salem
Salmon
Sandpoint
Sawtooth Mountains
Sawtooth Moutnains
Sawtooth National Forest
Sea Lion Caves
Seaside
Seattle
Seven Devils
Shepperd's Dell State Park
Silver City
Smiley
Smith's Ferry
Snake River
Snoqualmie Pass
South Bend
Southern Oregon University
Spirit Lake
Spokane
Spokane County Courthouse
St. Ignatius
St. Joe
St. Joe River
St. Maries
Stadium High School
Stanley
Stanley Lake
Stanley Lake and Peaks
Sun Valley
Sunny Valley
Tacoma
Tanner
Thomas Creek Bridge
Thousand Springs
Tillamook
Tillamook Rock Light
Timberline Lodge
Tipsoo Lake
Trail
Troy
Twin Falls
U.S. Highway 93
Umpqua Lighthouse
Umpqua State Park
University of Oregon
University of Washington
Upper Mesa Falls
Vancouver
Victoria
Vida
Virginia City
Waldport
Walla Walla
Wallace
Wapato
Waptus Lake
Warm Lake
Warrenton
Washington State Capitol
Washington State Penitentiary
Washington State University
Wenatchee National Forest
Western Washington
Westport
Whatcom County Courthouse
Whatcom Falls Park
White Bird
White Bird Hill
Whitebird
Whitehall
Winchester Bay
Wisdom
Woodburn
Yakima
Yakima County Courthouse
Yellowstone National Park
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aerial photographs
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chairs
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chandeliers (hanging lights)
chapels (rooms or structures)
cheese making
cheese molds
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children's hospitals
Christmas trees
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
churches
churches (buildings)
cities
city halls
clams
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clock towers
clock towers (towers)
clocks
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coastlines
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combines
community parks
community schools (institutions)
convents (nunneries)
county courthouses
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crater lakes
craters
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Crow (Native American style)
dams
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dancing
desks
diners (restaurants)
dining
dining tables
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donkeys
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drawings
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driftwood
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ducks
ducks (birds)
dunes
earth dams
eating
elementary schools (buildings)
ensembles (musical groups)
Equus caballus (species)
Equus caballus (species): horse-drawn vehicles
events
excursion boats
exhibition buildings
exhibitions (events)
extrusive rock
families
fences
ferries
field sports
fields
fields (land
fields (land)
fish
fishermen (people)
fishing
fishing rods
flag
flagpoles
flags
floats (vehicles)
floods (natural events)
flora (plants)
flowers
flowers (plants)
football
football (sports)
football fields
football stadiums
formations
forts
fountains
fraternal lodges
fraternity houses
freight cars
freight trains
games
gardens
gems (object genres)
general stores
geysers
ghost towns
golf course communities
golf courses
grandstands
graves
gravity dams
groups of people
guns
gymnasiums
hard hats
harnesses
headdresses
headstones (tombstones)
high schools (buildings)
highways
hiking
hills
historic buildings
historic towns
historical markers
historical society museums (buildings)
homesteads
horse drawn vehicles
horse trappings
horse-drawn vehicles
horseback riding
horses
hospitals
hospitals (buildings for health facility)
hot springs
hotels
hotels (public accommodations)
houses
howitzers
hunting trophies
hydroelectric dams
ice
ice skating
ice skating rinks
indoor photography
indoor swimming pools
infants
inns
institutes (buildings)
instruments
interior views
islands
jails (buildings)
lakes
lamps
lava
libraries
lighthouses
livestock
livestock breeders
lobbies
lodges
lodges (public accommodations)
log (wood)
logging
logging towns
logs
lookouts
lumber
lumber camp
lumber camps
lumber towns
main streets
mannequins (costume equipment)
markers (monuments)
meadows
meals (eating, event)
memorials
men
military buildings
millraces
mills (buildings)
mine buildings
mines (extracting complexes)
mining
mining towns
mirrors
mission churches (buildings)
missions (settlements)
motels
mountains
mountians
museums
musical instruments
Myrtus communis (species)
national monuments
national parks
natural disasters
Nez Perc�
night photography
novelties
novelty shops
objects: cultural artifacts
oceans
orchards
Otariidae (family)
outhouses
overlooks
Ovis (genus)
paper mills
parades
parks
parks (recreation areas)
parliament buildings
passenger trains
Pavo (genus)
peelers
penitentiaries (institutions). penitentiaries (buildings)
perennials
photocollages (photographic compositions)
photogaphic postcards
photographic postcards
pianos
picture postcard
picture postcards
piggyback
pole lamps
ponds
ponds (water)
pontoon bridges
pools (bodies of water)
portraits
prizes
public aquariums (aquariums)
public buildings
public libraries (buildings)
public libraries (institutions)
rafting
rafts
railroad bridges
railroad stations
railroads
rainbows
ranches (agricultural complexes)
reflections (perceived properties)
religious buildings
reservoirs
restaurants
retirement communities
rivers
roads
rock gardens
rock-fill dams
rocks
rodeos
Rosa (genus)
Rosaceae (family)
rose gardens
sailboats
sand
scenic byways
scenic highways
schools
senior centers
shops
shores (landforms)
Shoshone
shrubs
signs
sinkholes
ski resorts
ski runs
skiing
smelters (metalworking plants)
snow
snow (precipitation)
sorority houses
spectators (event observers)
spillways
sports uniforms
spring (season)
stadiums
state parks
statues
steamboats
stern-wheelers
storefronts
stores
streams
street lighting luminaires
street lighting units
street signs
streetcars
streetlights
streets
student housing
student unions
students
sunset
swimming pools
tables
taverns
taxidermy
televisions
tents (portable buildings)
tipis
tombstones (sepulchral monuments)
towers
towns
toys
tracks (transit system elements)
trains
trains (vehicle groupings)
trees
trees picture postcards
trestles
trestles (bridges)
trolley cars
trucks
truss bridges
tugboats
tunnels
umbrellas
universities (buildings
universities (buildings)
universities (institutions)
university towns
Ursidae (family)
utility poles
valleys
viewpoint
volcanic eruptions
volcanoes
wagons
wagons (cargo vehicles)
war memorials
water
water towers
waterfalls
waterfalls (natural bodies of water)
waterskiing
waves
wheels
windows
winter
women
Yakima