Postcards Printing

Postcard printing began as envelopes with pictures printed on them. These envelope postcards came into their own during the Civil War when patriotic pictures were circulated. But the first real postcard, as we know them today, appeared in 1869 in the country of Hungary. The first use of the postcard as a souvenir seems to date from the Interstate Industry Exposition held in Chicago in 1873. Advertising on postcards first appeared in Great Britain in 1872. The first German advertising card appeared two years later, and cards featuring the Eiffel Tower appeared in 1889 in 1890. The first multicolor card was printed in 1889 on the German Island of Helgoland.

Initially most postcards were printed in Germany because the technology of the time was the most advanced in that country. Until 1901 writing was not allowed on the back side of the card but in this year the U.S. government began to allow the word “postcard” to be printed on the back. The divided back, as we know it today, soon followed. This allowed messages to be written on the back of the card, leaving the front for pictures.