'Wish you were here!': Vintage Sonoma County postcards

Early postcards tempted recipients with scenes of local beauty, from Russian River beaches to Sonoma's Buena Vista Castle.|
JANET BALICKI WEBER
FOR FOR THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

It's summer in Sonoma County -- time for picking blackberries, floating down the Russian River and camping in the redwoods. A time when happy travelers send postcards to their families near and far.

Souvenir postcards became popular in the United States in the late 1800s and early 1900s. These inexpensive forms of communication captured important events, places and people on cards that could be used for publicity or sold to tourists at local shops.

In 1903, Kodak's 3A camera made it possible to develop photos on standard postcard-sized paper. The process led to a flood in the market of “Real Photo” postcards made by professional and amateur photographers.

Interested in seeing more? Check out these souvenir postcards from the Sonoma County Library's collection.

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