Turn of the Century Delawareana

Item set

Title: Turn of the Century Delawareana
Description: This collection consists of Delawarean postcards and ephemera from the early decades of the twentieth century.
Extent: 2 photographs; 1 digital scan
Rights: Used with permission by the University of Delaware Special Collections (Delaware Postcard Collection, Gordon A. Pfeiffer Delaware postcard and ephemera collection), the Winterthur Library, and the Delaware Public Archives (George & Irene Caley Postcard Collection) respectively.

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Cooch's Bridge Monument Postcard
A black and white postcard produced by E.B. Frazer and published by Raphael Tuck & Sons as part of their postcard series No. 2164 on Newark, Delaware. The postcard depicts a popular subject in early twentieth century Delawarean postcards, the 1901 monument commemorating the alleged first use of the American flag, referred to here by its colloquial name "The Stars and Stripes," during the September 3, 1777 Battle of Cooch's Bridge. An inscription from the postcard's sender reading "See what great things was done in Del" demonstrates an individual's desire to preserve and share the memory of a significant historic site in Delaware's Revolutionary War history via a commercial object.
Blue Hen's Chickens Christmas and New Year's Postcard
A message-face postcard produced and copyrighted by George A. Wolf in 1904. This Christmas and New Year's postcard has a decidedly Delawarean bend; not only is it attributed to the state via the title "State of Delaware Post Card," but it also features the state's seal and Blue Hen's chickens, Delaware's state bird. These are depicted alongside festive imagery, including an oval scene of children gathered around a fireplace with stockings and a Christmas placed within a silver bell.
"Ceasar Rodney Momument, signer Declaration Independence for Deleware."
A black and white postcard by Illustrated Post Card Company between 1901 and 1906 depicting the cenotaph for Caesar Rodney. The postcard features handwritten inscriptions on both sides, with a green Dover Trading Stamp Company stamp on its recto, or front, and a green Benjamin Franklin one cent postage stamp on its verso. The object serves parallel purposes as a mass-manufactured souvenir and as a vehicle for a personal interpretation of Delaware's history.