Civic Postcards

by Sean McGilloway

Civic postcards are some of the most popular forms of postcards. They can tell a lot about a city. These postcards show places and things that are usually owned and regulated by government. Civic postcards include pictures of statues, post offices, city halls, schools, hospitals, police stations, fire stations and libraries. These pictures can say a lot about the values of a city. Statues can represent the people who are important in a certain city, or area. Pictures of old city halls and post offices illustrate the historic value and character they can add to a city. Pictures of schools reflect the desire and organization of the community to educate its children. Postcards with pictures of schools can open interesting discussions of architecture. Postcards with pictures of fire stations, police stations and hospitals represent people’s desire to feel safe. New police or fire stations are often depicted through postcards. In the past, when good hospitals weren’t as accessible as they are today, cities that had more advanced hospitals would use postcards to depict them. Postcards of libraries are also very popular. These pictures can be a sign of the importance of literacy and education in a city.

In Beverly, there are several postcards that illustrate its many historical statues and monuments. The pictures show the people and events that have affected Beverly. One example is a postcard of the Soldiers monument on Abbott Street. This monument honors the many soldiers and sailors of Beverly and shows the impact of veterans in Beverly. The Beverly post office, on Rantoul St. is an important and beautiful addition to the city. It has a magnificent architectural design and is depicted in many historical Beverly postcards. Post offices can often be a sign of prosperous business in a city. They are also essential to the regulation of local business and communication. The City Hall in Beverly is another important and beautiful building. It was once the house of Senator George Cabot. City Hall is used in postcards because of its political importance. Postcards with pictures of City Hall are used to represent Beverly’s rich political history and can be a symbol of local democratic power. Many of Beverly’s postcards include pictures of schools. Beverly has had many schools from kindergarten all the way to college. The Beverly High School has an interesting history. This picture taken in 1906 shows the first real high school in Beverly. Although Beverly felt they didn’t need a high school, this one was finally built. This postcard shows that people in Beverly wanted their children to be educated. A new, larger high school was built. This picture of the new high school, taken in 1930, can represent an increase in high school students. Beverly also has many elementary schools, which are very important to the city. The Cove School was one of the first elementary schools built in Beverly. This postcard of the old Cove School can represent that children were becoming educated at a younger age. A picture like this can also be used to show the importance of public schools.

In 1888, the Beverly Hospital was first built. There are many postcards of Beverly Hospital because it has always been known to be a good hospital. The Beverly Hospital has been rebuilt and added upon several times. Today it is a very technologically advanced hospital. This picture can represent people’s need of doctors and hospitals.  Police and fire and fire stations are also important to the history of Beverly.

The North Beverly’s fire station was built in 1906 at two Dodge St. It was a state of the art fire station and held fire engines and teams of horses. This postcard represents peoples desire to feel safe. Beverly has two libraries which are often depicted in postcards. They are located downtown and in Beverly Farms. These postcards can be used to show the importance of literacy and education in Beverly.

Next chapter: Uses of Postcards