Bob Stonehill collection of New York City postcards
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Abstract
Approximately 32,000 postcards documenting virtually every neighborhood in the five boroughs of New York City during the first half of the twentieth century, when some areas outside developed Manhattan were still semi-rural communities on the cusp of urbanization. The collection, assembled over forty years by noted deltiologist Bob Stonehill (1940–2022), includes postcards in every format, from the earliest souvenir and private mailing cards of the 1890s through the linen and chrome eras of the 1930s and 1940s. It is especially strong in real photo postcards, many of which are unique or survive in very small quantities. The imagery encompasses both the familiar landmarks of New York, and the lesser-known public buildings, schools, hotels, churches, department stores, modes of transportation, and amusement parks that once filled the city.
Biographical Note
Robert "Bob" Stonehill (1940–2022), a native of Queens who worked as a garment industry executive, started collecting historical postcards in 1980 after seeing a television news story about the Metropolitan Postcard Club of New York City. Like many beginners, he was drawn to collect images of the neighborhood where he grew up—in his case, Sunnyside—then expanded to include the bordering areas of Astoria, Long Island City, and Elmhurst. His scope eventually encompassed the whole borough, and next extended to Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island. After forty-odd years of seeking out what he called "better New York City postcards" at local, national, and international shows (often planning vacations to coincide with these events), Stonehill amassed what he and the collecting community believed was "the finest and most extensive array of rare postcards of every locale" within the five boroughs. He arranged the collection of about 32,000 views in albums that were housed in custom-built cabinetry at his residence in Cortlandt Manor, New York. Stonehill generously opened the collection to curators and authors, who used his rare cards to illustrate their exhibitions and books. In 2002 he coauthored with Brian Merlis Staten Island in Old Post Cards, with images drawn from his own albums. Stonehill sold postcards, too, both privately and through his eBay store "Bob's New York Postcards," where he offered duplicates of cards he had upgraded for examples in higher condition. He often brought an album to meetings of the Metropolitan Postcard Club for other members to enjoy. He was such a frequent winner of the club's annual competition that it was renamed the "Bob Stonehill Postcard Album Competition" in his memory. His final, first-place entry, for October 2022 (he died in November), was "The History of Madison Square Garden, 1879–1968: From the Site of the Train Terminal to the 72,000-Seat Open-Air Stadium in Queens."
Arrangement
The postcards remain in their original albums, in the order in which they were assembled by the collector, whose idiosyncratic naming and numbering systems have been recorded in this finding aid. The handwritten tables of contents affixed to the covers of most albums have been transcribed as precisely as possible, but these lists are sometimes inaccurate since Stonehill rearranged and recategorized his ever-expanding collection over time. The albums are organized in six series devised by the processing archivist:
- Series I.
- Bronx postcard albums (boxes 1–6)
- Series II.
- Brooklyn postcard albums (boxes 6–25)
- Series III.
- Manhattan postcard albums (boxes 23, 25–55)
- Series IV.
- Queens postcard albums (boxes 25, 55–73)
- Series V.
- Staten Island postcard albums (boxes 74–77)
- Series VI.
- Miscellaneous postcards (box 78)
Scope and Contents
The Bob Stonehill Collection of New York City Postcards (PR 472) exemplifies the adage that "if it exists, it's on a postcard." Beyond capturing virtually every section of the five boroughs during the first half of the twentieth century, when many areas outside Manhattan were evolving from farmland to suburban developments to city neighborhoods (see the container list for their myriad placenames), the collection offers a slice of life of everyday people among the familiar and forgotten landmarks of New York. The collection features street scenes, building exteriors and rare interiors, waterfront views, restaurants, parks, hotels, theaters, department stores, hospitals, schools—the subject matter really is endless.
Although it includes every format of postcard, from linens to chromes and artist-signed cards; from mechanical cards to cards on silk and hold-to-lights (views with building windows or celestial features designed to glow when backlit), the collection is especially strong in real photo postcards (RPPCs), many of which are unique or were issued in such small quantities as to make them highly sought after. There are an astounding number of RPPCs—over 400—by Thaddeus Wilkerson (1871–1943) alone, whose crisp views document most of the apartment houses, churches, monuments, and public buildings of Manhattan.
Important publishers represented by sets of cards include the American Souvenir Card Co., Ess & Ess Photo Co., H. Hagemeister Co., Franz Huld, Joseph Koehler, Theodore C. F. Kreh, Arthur Livingston, Edward Lowey, H. A. Rost Printing & Publishing Co., Ernst Rost, M. Seckel, Arthur Strauss, Inc., and Underwood & Underwood.
Throughout the collection are groupings by topical focus, such as advertisements and promotions, entertainment, firefighting, parades and commemorative events. Of note are the cards depicting lost amusement areas, from well-known venues on Coney Island (Dreamland, Luna Park, and Steeplechase), to dimly-remembered places like Golden City (Canarsie, Brooklyn), Starlight Amusement Park (Bronx), Fort George Amusement Park (Manhattan), North Beach Amusement Park (on the site of LaGuardia Airport, Queens), and Midland Beach (Staten Island). There are rare cards of vanished sports arenas, too, such as the American League Ball Park and the Polo Grounds (Upper Manhattan), Ebbets Field (Brooklyn), and the original Yankee Stadium (Bronx).
Beginning in 1873 the United States authorized the production of postal cards strictly for sending business advertisements or public notices. These utilitarian cards had pre-printed postage with portraits of presidents Jefferson or Grant, and usually had pre-printed text. The Stonehill Collection includes a large selection of these, as well as scattered advertising ephemera and trade cards documenting specific neighborhood businesses.
Picture postcards as we know them, printed with scenes of popular attractions or notable buildings, were first offered for sale in major quantities at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in May 1893. Collectors recognize the following general eras of postcard production that serve as a guide, when a postmark is lacking, to determining the date of a particular view:
Pioneer Era (1893–1898): Commonly titled "Souvenir Card" or "Mail Card," these postcards typically have multiple views from larger eastern U.S. cities on the front, with undivided backs.
Private Mailing Card Era (1898–1901): The U.S. Post Office Department authorized private printers to issue postcards on May 19, 1898. Many pioneer era cards were reissued during this time with the additional phrase "Private Mailing Card" (PMC).
Undivided Back Era (1901–1907): The Post Office granted permission on December 24, 1901 for the backs of privately printed cards to carry the words "Post Card." During this period, messages could only be written on the image side of a card; the back was reserved strictly for the address.
Divided Back Era (1907–1915): On March 1, 1907, the Post Office Department allowed the backs of postcards to be divided by a vertical line, with one half (left) used for the message, and the other (right) for the address, thereby freeing the image from marring.
White Border Era (1915–1930): Images on cards of this era are typically framed by a white border. Many white border postcards were simply poorer quality reissues from the divided back era: as imports from Germany ended with the First World War, U.S. publishers struggled to match their high standards.
Linen Era (1930–1945): Postcards of this period were printed on paper with a high rag content and a woven, linen-like texture. Their imagery, often printed in bright colors, tends towards advertisements, tourist attractions, and "Greetings From . . . ."
Photochrome Era (1939–present): Postcards of this era take their name from Eastman-Kodak's "Kodachrome" film, which was developed into glossy, color prints. Publishers of these attractive cards—now known as "modern chromes"—include Curt Teich and Plastichrome.
Real Photo Postcards (1900–present): Real photo postcards (RPPCs) have existed since the dawn of modern postcard production. They were issued by local (often amateur) photographers or neighborhood shops by transferring a camera negative to postcard stock with a photosensitive surface. They are often unique or exist in very small quantities, making them highly collectible.
[For more, see Q. David Bowers and Mary L. Martin, A Guide Book of Collectible Postcards (Whitman Publishing, 2020).]
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Access Restrictions
This collection may be stored offsite. To arrange to consult it, please go to www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.
NOTE: Researchers may consult only one album at a time, and may not remove postcards from their pages.
Use Restrictions
Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org.
Preferred Citation
The collection should be cited as the "Bob Stonehill Collection of New York City Postcards, PR 472, Department of Prints, Photographs, and Architectural Collections, New-York Historical Society."
Credit line for exhibitions: "Bob Stonehill Collection of New York City Postcards. Partial Gift of Helene Stonehill. Partial Purchase with funds provided by Leonard A. Lauder."
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Partial gift of Helene Stonehill, and partial purchase with funds provided by Leonard A. Lauder, August 2024.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Archivist Joseph Ditta arranged and described this collection in August-October 2024. Archivist Marybeth Kavanagh helped transfer the collection to custom-made archival boxes.