The “Golden Age of Postcards” took off in North America between 1905 and World War I as a cheap and easy way to send quick messages to loved ones without having to write out a full letter (think of them as paper text messages). It became a huge hobby with many people amassing great collections that they showed off in albums. Businesses and merchants caught on to the fad and started commissioning their own, showing off their storefronts or the Main Street hustle and bustle of their hometowns.
Fred Bassett, a senior librarian at the New York Public Library, points out that since newspaper rarely printed photos, the postcard was a cheap and effective way to capture local events, be they a disaster or celebration. And according to US Post Office figures, in the year ending June 30th, 1908, approximately 700 million postcards had been mailed in the country. By 1913, that number reached over 900 million.
Canada wasn’t immune to the postcard collecting craze and the Toronto Public Library’s digital archives feature thousands of picture postcards of small towns and big cities alike. Colourization was also popular during the postcard heyday with many monochrome pictures tinted, giving many of the postcards an otherworldly feel.
Here’s a look at some of our favourite century-old postcards of Toronto:
Yonge Street Dock, Toronto, 1910
Queen West, Parkdale, 1910
Kew Beach, Toronto, 1910
The Bank of Toronto, corner of King and Bay Streets, 1910
The Old Mill, Humber River, 1910
Fort York, 1910
The Waterfront, 1910
High Park, 1910
Allan Gardens, 1910
Sick Children’s Hospital on University Avenue, 1910
Mimico Asylum, Etobicoke (now Humber College), 1910
Canadian National Exhibition, 1910
Canadian National Exhibition, 1910
Toronto Street, 1910
Board of Trade Building, Financial District, 1910
East side of Yonge Street, looking south from Richmond Street, 1911
All images are from the Toronto Public Library.