Wish you were here

When the postcard debuted in the U.S. in the late 19th century, it revolutionized shortform communication, sort of like a primitive Facebook or Twitter. But unlike messages on modern social media, the penny postcard has become a major hobby, attracting millions of collectors nationwide. It’s highly doubtful anyone’s collecting tweets for a future museum display.

Williamston’s Stephen Terry is one of those collectors, called a deltiologist. He is a 1960 graduate of MSU and worked on campus for 32 years until his retirement in 1998. In that time he rose to the position of senior financial officer. Terry curated his specialized collection of postcards into ”Michigan Agricultural College: Campus Life 1900-1925,” a new book that will be discussed on Thursday at a meeting of the Historical Society of Greater Lansing.

Terry will take the audience on a postcard tour of the campus of Michigan Agriculture College, now Michigan State University. The postcards used from his collection showcase MSU’s early campus and buildings, showing a campus that no longer exists — most of the buildings he selected for the book have been lost to the wrecking ball or fire. Buildings included are the U.S. Weather Bureau, the Engineering Building, Abbot Hall, the Post Office and Trolley Station, College Hall and the more recent Women’s Building (Morrill Hall), which was razed last year.

“The book is much more than just a look back in time,” said Valerie Marvin, president of the Historical Society. “It is a tremendous cultural history told through postcards, many of them more than 100 years old. Some of our more treasured memories are recalled through an iconic postcard.”

Most of the postcards in the book are of the real photo variety, captured by amateur photographers using specialized cameras, such as the 1903 Kodak 3A Folding Pocket Camera that shot postcard-sized images. The postcards depict everything from static shots of early sports teams to spectacular photos of the original Engineering Building being engulfed in flames. One delightful shot shows two children playing in a faculty member’s pigsty. These real photo postcards are often one-of-a kind and difficult to find.

In one, a visitor, upon arriving in East Lansing in 1919, writes: “East Lansing is a beautiful city and I love it here.” Another, showing Wells Hall in 1911, has the cryptic message:

“Dear Miss C — Hope you had a good time at the ‘Creek.’” More obscure cards show scenes from the famous underground tunnels, Lovers Lane, the athletic field, the 1913 M.A.C. Band and the various smokestacks and bridges that once adorned campus. Terry has more than 1,000 postcards in his personal collection and also has added many of the verbatim stories on the reverse of the cards.

“When I first starting collecting postcards more than 30 years ago, I paid very little attention to the messages of the reverse side. I was focused on quality images,” he said. “Postcards which were a penny to mail were used to communicate, and most messages have very little to do with the image on the front.”

A notable exception is a 1916 real photo postcard of the Engineering Building fire, which has a message on the back that not only details the fire but also tells about another one that same night that burned down the local high school.

Terry said his favorite postcards detail the College’s Semi-Centennial Celebration in 1907, which brought President Theodore Roosevelt to campus where he delivered a speech called “The Man Who Works With His Hands.” One particular card shows President Roosevelt riding in a REO Motor Car with R.E. Olds at the wheel. True to form, the message on the reverse side has nothing to do with the image.

Terry said when he first started buying postcards, a real photo postcard would trade in the range of $4-$5. Those same postcards today are $75. In addition to Terry’s collection, the book is supplemented by postcards from local collectors Dennis Hansen and Jeffrey Kacos.

The book, published by Thunder Bay Press, will be available for sale at the event.

”Michigan Agricultural College: Campus Life 1900- 1925”

Book talk presented by the Historical Society of Greater Lansing 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23 Capital Area District Library 401 S. Capitol Ave. Lansing cadl.org