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Postcards help to preserve Exeter's past |
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| Margaret
and John Folkes |
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Exeter
Postcards has been a real labour of love for retired couple John and
Margaret Folkes from Exeter. It's their first ever book, and it will
go down well with Exonians with an interest in the history of their
city. |
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Old postcards
tell us a lot about our local history and the way we used to live
- and not just through the photos on the front. The messages on the
back can be equally revealing.
For example, once upon time, many moons ago, people would send cards
to friends in the morning with the message: "See you this evening".
And the cards would arrive in the afternoon! Ah, those were the days...
Some of the old cards in the amazing collection owned by John and
Margaret Folkes carry messages just like this.
John and Margaret, from Exeter, have been collecting postcards for
years, and some date back to the late 1800s.
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| Part
of the front cover of the book |
A selection
of their cards are featured in their first ever book - called Exeter
Postcards - which also has images from the collections of other members
of the Exeter Postcard Society.
The cards all have a little tale to tell, and reveal key moments of
Exeter's past.
The book is timed to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the society,
which boasts 55 members.
Margaret said that compiling the book was a major undertaking: "It
was quite daunting for us," she admitted. "But it has gone
really well."
Margaret added: "The amazing thing was that in the early days
of postcards, people's only idea of what places looked like came from
the pictures on postcards."
The book has more than 200 postcards, spanning a period of time between
1900 and 1960.
John
explained that 1902 was a big year for the development of postcards:
"That was the year when the divided back was introduced, so you
could put the address on one side and your message on the other.
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| The
trams in Fore Street, from a postcard in the 1920s. On the back
of the Number 23 is an advert for Exeter department store Colson
and Co, publicising their "dainty teas." |
"That
meant the whole of the front of the card could carry a picture."
The book has seven chapters, with cards showing the city's best loved
landmarks - some of which are now literally history, including the
old Exe Bridge, which was replaced by a new one in 1905.
There are also some fabulous images of the city's old trams.
The shops, river, and cathedral adorn many of the cards, and there
is also a section on sporting events.
The city's bad times are also recorded on some of the postcards -
including the two world wars, and the devastating floods of 1960.
Alongside each card is an in-depth explanation. John said: "It
took a year to research it.
"And the choice of which postcards to include was very difficult.
We wanted to go for something a little different."
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