The Happy Invention: History and Significance of Picture Postcards

The Western Illinois Museum is pleased to welcome Katherine Hamilton-Smith to Our Front Porch for her presentation titled, The Happy Invention: History and Significance of Picture Postcards on Thursday, March 23rd at 7:00 pm. The one-hour presentation will be followed by a question and answer session. Refreshments will be served. There is a suggested $5 donation at the door. 

Katherine Hamilton-Smith is an Illinois Humanities Road Scholar who has presented to numerous audiences including NPR and Canadian Public Radio, the American Alliance of Museums, and the Society of American Archivists.  Her presentation examines the history and significance of postcards, starting with an early mention of postcards in the 1870 diary of a Welsh curate, who called them “a happy invention.” The postcard’s story continues as Hamilton-Smith shares how the first picture postcards were published for the 1889 Paris Exposition celebrating the completion of the Eiffel Tower. While in America, the first picture postcards were printed for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago —making Illinois the birthplace of the American picture postcard. Since those flowery Victorian originals, uncountable billions of postcards have depicted every aspect of life, from train stations and bandstands to street views and cartoons. Postcards may seem to be a curious form of social history but the presentation will reveal how they document a wide range of our turn-of-the-century culture that was both whimsical and dark, and everything in between. The Museum’s collection includes over 650 postcards, many sent locally, showing the popularity of the “happy invention” in west central Illinois.

This program is funded in part by a grant from the Illinois Humanities, with funds from the State of Illinois American Rescue Plan Act.

The Western Illinois Museum is located at 201 S. Lafayette Street, one block south of Macomb’s Courthouse Square. For more information, call the Museum at 309.837.2750, text 309.837.2613, or email info@wimuseum.org. More details and updates can be found on the Museum’s social media channels.

Katherine Hamilton-Smith

Katherine Hamilton-Smith is a museum and archives professional with 30+ years of experience in public history, historic site management, exhibitions, and interpretation, collections development and care, National Historic Landmarks, and fundraising.

Katherine is the founding curator of the Curt Teich Postcard Archives Collection—a core collection of the Newberry Library, Chicago. In 2016 what would become the world’s largest public collection of postcards and related materials was given to the Newberry Library by the Lake County Forest Preserve District. Her work with the Teich Archives gave her special expertise in the history and significance of picture postcards. She holds an MA in Art History from the University of Chicago and a BA in Art History from the University of Nebraska. She also studied art history and music history at St. Andrews University in Scotland, where she specialized in early medieval manuscript illumination and American Abstract Expressionism.

About Illinois Humanities

Illinois Humanities, the Illinois affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, is a statewide nonprofit organization that activates the humanities through free public programs, grants, and educational opportunities that foster reflection, spark conversation, build community, and strengthen civic engagement. We provide free, high-quality humanities experiences throughout Illinois, particularly for communities of color, individuals living on low incomes, counties and towns in rural areas, small arts and cultural organizations, and communities highly impacted by mass incarceration. Founded in 1974, Illinois Humanities is supported by state, federal, and private funds. Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn @ILHumanities.