Mumbai, Victoria Terminal Station

An interesting old postcard of the Victoria Terminal Station in Bombay, or Mumbai as it is now called. No date, but probably 1920s.

Amsterdam

A view of Waaggebouw in Amsterdam. No date for this postcard but probably the 1930s. If you would like to buy a copy, please visit Zazzle.

Leeds, Yorkshire - Boar Lane

This old postcard dates from the late 1920s and shows Boar Lane in Leeds, Yorkshire, with a couple of trams. Postcards of city centres were very popular at that time, and are much sought after today both by collectors and by local historians.

Evesham, Worcestershire

Evesham is a medium-sized market town which lies on the River Avon in the south-east of Worcestershire. It is the centre of the local fruit growing and market-garden industry, although this has declined in the last 50 years. When I was a lad, just after the second world war, we used to go to the Vale of Evesham to buy strawberries, gooseberries, cherries, redcurrants, blackcurrants and raspberries and more, come home and my mother would then prepare a huge bowl of summer fruit, gently stewed. Wish we could afford to do that today. This super old postcard, dating from 1937, shows Booth Hall in the town centre - and some great old motor cars !

Britain's Railways

I've recently received images of over 100 old postcards of Britain's steam railway trains, dating from the early 1900s to the 1960s. I'm slowly processing them and adding them to my web pages - you can see them at Postcards of the Past - follow this link. The postcard here is of the Southern Railways "Merchant Navy" Class engine no 35001, "Channel Packet".

Eastbourne

We've just spent a couple of nights in Eastbourne, a town I last visited about 30 years ago. I must say we were pleasantly surprised, and instead of finding a rather seedy and run-down English seaside resort we discovered a vibrant and well-cared for holiday destination. So here's an old postcard, dating from the 1920s.

The Corn Palace, Mitchell, South Dakota

Now here's an interesting building ! It was erected in 1892 to encourage people to settle in the area, although how it was supposed to do this I can't imagine ! It has since been rebuilt several times and is now a multi-purpose arena as well as a tourist attraction. The exterior of the building is covered with murals made from corn which are replaced and redesigned each year - no doubt at considerable expense - with a new theme. At the end of August each year there is a Corn Palace Festival in the town, and other annual events held in the building include the Corn Palace Stampede Rodeo and the Corn Palace Polka Festival, doubtless enjoyed by one and all but something I would avoid like the plague !
The postcard dates from the early 20th Century - can't date it with any precision. Follow this link for more postcards of Mitchell.

Can You Compose a Witty Caption ?

We have lots of vintage erotic postcards on our website at this link, and it occurred to us that some of the poses - like this one for example - are so ridiculous as to merit a comic caption. The magazine "Punch" - now, alas, defunct since 2002 - used to have a weekly competition for new captions to old cartoons. It gave prizes to the winners. We'd love to be able to do the same, but our finances do not permit such generosity, so instead, if you can come up with an hilarious (and not too rude !) caption for this card, or for any postcard on our web pages, we will construct a permanent memorial to you by adding your name to the caption (should you so wish of course) so that your fame will be spread far and wide - I was going to add "like this lady's legs" but perhaps not. So ignite the humorous side of your brain and show us what you can do !
The New Yorker has excellent cartoons, and you can see lots of old Punch cartoons on their super website - just follow the links !

Avebury, Wiltshire

If you have enjoyed a visit to Stonehenge, go to Avebury as I think you will enjoy it even more. The village is situated in amongst several large circles of prehistoric stones, many of which have been lost (the locals broke them up and built walls and houses from them !) but many of which are well preserved - and unlike Stonehenge, you can go right up to the stones and touch them. This postcard, which was issued by the old Ministry of Works, clearly shows the village and the stone circles. Nearby are Silbury Hill and West Kennet Long Barrow, and there are shops and a pub in Avebury.

Budapest, Hungary

This is a great old postcard of Klothild Palace in Budapest. It was mailed in 1909.

Krakow, The Cloth Hall

The Cloth Hall in Krakow may well be considered the world's oldest shopping mall. It's in the middle of Grand Square, and about 1300 a roof was erected over the market stalls where textiles were traded - hence the name. After a fire in 1555 it was rebuilt as a splendid Renaissance edifice to which various additions and alterations have been made so that today it is a big tourist attraction housing the Krakow National Museum plus stalls and shops selling mostly souvenirs. A Christmas market is held there each December. This postcard dates from around 1910.

Northampton - St Giles

This is a great old postcard from the 1950s and shows St Giles Street in Northampton and some contemporary motor vehicles. It's an excellent quality real photo postcard and will be valued by collectors.

Another Early 20th Century "Glamour" Postcard

Not a lot I can say about this one - looks as though it's from the 1920s or 30s, and a good quality photograph. More at this link.

The London Coliseum

The London Coliseum can be found just off Trafalgar Square, on St Martin's Lane. It is visible from a fair distance because of its famous globe on top of the theatre tower. The theatre opened on Christmas Eve 1904 but closed down two years later and lay dormant for another year. Since then, however, it has had a string of successes and now is home to the English National Opera. It is one of London's largest and most lavish theatres, larger even than Drury Lane, and with seats for an audience of around 2500. For lots more about this theatre, follow this link to an excellent website !

Niagara Falls

Probably the most visited tourist spot in the USA if not in the world. I've been a couple of times and it certainly is very spectacular, although very hot and steamy at the height of summer. It's also becoming more and more commercialized, but in the end nothing spoils the sheer grandeur of the falls when you are standing just a few feet away from this enormous cascade. This postcard was mailed in 1919.

Stratford-upon-Avon, The Fountain

This postcard from the early twentieth century shows a drinking fountain which was presented to Stratford-upon-Avon by a certain Mr George Childs from Philadelphia in the USA in 1887. It was intended not only to commemorate Shakespeare but also Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee, and provided drinking water for horses and humans alike. The Fountain is in Rother Street where a weekly market has been held for many years.

Hong Kong - the Kowloon Ferry

This is a rather fine old postcard of the Kowloon Ferry, Hong Kong. Unfortunately we can't put a date on it, but it appears to be quite early 20th Century. We've just created a page of old postcards of Hong Kong on our website - to see it, please follow this link.

Victoria Station, London

Victoria was originally two stations. The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway station opened in 1860, followed by the London, Chatham and Dover Railway in 1862. The two stations were merged in 1924, although even today there are two distinct internal areas. The Grosvenor Hotel was built above the station as can be seen in this postcard. It opened in 1861. The postcard is undated but appears to be from around 1910 or a little later.

Philadelphia - Aerial View

Postcards showing aerial views became very popular in the 1920s and 30s when aeroplanes became available to take the photographs. This one is of Philadelphia. The reverse of the postcard states "Air View showing the Benjamin Franklin Parkway leading straight from the center of the city toward the Art Museum and Fairmount Park". The postcard has not been through the mail, so we can't date it, but no doubt some of you Philly residents should be able to identify buildings and date it that way.

Sorry !!

For those few of you who have been following this blog, apologies for not posting anything for a month - not exactly daily !! Circumstances have made it difficult to keep up with this commitment. I can't promise that posts will be daily from now on, but I'll try !