Overview of the Collection
Biographical Information:
Access Terms
Administrative Information
Arrangement of Materials:
Scope and Contents
Overview of the Collection
Collection Title: John and Jane Adams Postcard Collection
Dates: 1880-2007
Identification: MS-0008
Creator:
Adams Postcard Collection, 1892-2007
Physical Description: 282.00 boxes
Language of Materials:
English
French
Repository:
Special Collections & University Archives
5500 Campanile Dr. MC 8050
San Diego, CA, 92182-8050
URL: http://library.sdsu.edu/scua
Email: scref@rohan.sdsu.edu
Phone: 619-594-6791
Biographical Information:
Postcards began circulation as a convenient means of quick and often colorful communication in the mid-to-late 19th century.
Both American and European publishers took advantages of the postcard craze of the early 20th Century as millions of postcards
of a variety of subjects and topics were produced, circulated, and collected. The popularity of postcard collecting diminished
during World War I and postcards have never achieved quite the popularity they initially held, but postcards are still widely
produced, circulated, and collected worldwide for various reasons and occasions.
Access Terms
This collection is indexed under the following controlled access subject terms.
Genre/Form of Material:
Ephemera
Geographic Name:
Baja California (Mexico : Peninsula) -- Pictorial works
California -- Pictorial works
Mexican-American Border Region -- Pictorial works
San Diego (Calif.) -- Pictorial works
San Diego County (Calif.) -- Pictorial works
Tijuana (Baja California, Mexico) -- Pictorial works
United States -- Pictorial works
Personal Name:
Adams, Jane Ford -- Art collections
Adams, John R., 1900-1994 -- Art collections
Topical Term:
Cities and towns -- United States -- Pictorial works
Political postcards -- Private collections -- California -- San Diego
Political postcards -- Specimens
Postcards -- Private collections -- California -- San Diego
Postcards -- Specimens
Administrative Information
Custodial History:
The bulk of the collection consists of a gift from John R. and Jane Adams in 1989, and also includes donations from Russell
Raitt and Carol Wilson, as well as postcards previously in the Norland Collection. Postcard donations have also been accepted
from numerous donors and patrons.
Accruals:
1998, 1993, 2005
Conditions Governing Use:
The copyright interests in these materials have not been transferred to San Diego State University. Copyright resides with
the creators of materials contained in the collection or their heirs. The nature of historical archival and manuscript collections
is such that copyright status may be difficult or even impossible to determine. Requests for permission to publish must be
submitted to the Head of Special Collections, San Diego State University, Library and Information Access. When granted, permission
is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical item and is not intended to include or imply permission
of the copyright holder(s), which must also be obtained in order to publish. Materials from our collections are made available
for use in research, teaching, and private study. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including
but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials.
Conditions Governing Access:
This collection is open for research.
Preferred Citation:
Identification of item, folder title, box number, John and Jane Adams Postcard Collection, Special Collections and University
Archives, Library and Information Access, San Diego State University.
Arrangement of Materials:
I. San Diego (SD)
II. California (CA)
III. US Views (USV)
IV. Publisher (PB)
V. Foreign Views (FV)
VI. Topical (TOP)
VII. Card Types (CT)
VIII. Russell Raitt Donation (RR)
IX. Carol Wilson Donation (CW)
X. Souvenir Albums (SA)
XI. Research Materials (RM)
XII. Albums (ALB)
XIII. Oversized Materials (OV)
Scope and Contents
The
John and Jane Adams Postcard Collection consists of over 100 years of history and communication through postcards. The postcards are diverse in size, format, and
subject. The collection contains more than 4,500 postcards of San Diego County, and 8,500 postcards representing parts of
the state of California and the development of California. Individual states in the U.S. as well as other countries of the
world also have categories in the collection. Postcards are also arranged by publisher, type, and topic. Also included with
the collection are research materials related to postcard collections and collecting, albums of postcards, and a balsawood
postcard file box. The collection has been broken down into distinct categories, both topically and geographically. Each box
is identified with its category abbreviation and box number.
In the
Topical Series, there are 10 subseries. Subseries I:
Greetings encompasses general holiday, birthday, romantic, religious, and miscellaneous sentiments, as well as the popular European
"Gruss Aus" and its American descendant, the "Greetings From" type of card. Subseries 2:
Art includes reproduced paintings, drawings, sculptures, museum pieces, and other art. Subseries 3:
Comics includes comic postcards (usually drawn characters), including comic art involving early 20th century stereotypes of Germans,
African-Americans, and other minority groups. Subseries 4:
Places includes postcards from specific places such as monuments, but also many postcards from miscellaneous places around the world
intended to depict foreign costumes and ways of life. Subseries 5:
People includes famous people and performers, as well as general depictions. Subseries 6:
Events includes various world expositions, wars, and famous disasters. Subseries 7:
Nature includes postcards of various animals and plants. Subseries 8:
Politics includes promotional postcards for candidates in presidential and other elections, as well as promotional material for various
causes, such as temperance and suffrage. Subseries 9:
Sports includes depictions of a variety of international sports. Subseries 10:
Transportation depicts varied forms of transportation, with a significant strength in military transportation.