Those interested in history, art, genealogy, architecture, antique cars, advertising, foreign travel, and anything in between, are invited to the newly renovated Nicholas Center at John Tyler Community College for the Old Dominion Postcard Club’s 42nd annual show and sale.
Show times are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at 13101 Jefferson Davis Highway in Chester.
A donation of $3 is requested, good for both days, with plenty of free parking.
The show will be one of the biggest on the East Coast. It is also one of the longest running annual shows in the United States, and has been featured on PBS TV’s “Virginia Currents.”
“This is our sixth year in Chester, and we are very happy to be one of the first events at the newly renovated facility at CCWA John Tyler,” said Mike Uzel, club president and the show’s promoter. “Collector attendance has grown every year, and the club members’ help in organizing the show plays a big part in its continued success.”
The public is invited to bring vintage postcards for evaluation by the experts in attendance.
If not familiar with antique postcards, the idea of collecting them may not sound too exciting, but once the collecting “bug” bites, there is much to be learned and enjoyed with this hobby. According to some sources, deltiology is the third most popular hobby in the world, behind collecting stamps and coins.
“My collection started with cards my grandmother had from the early 1900s, when my mother was one or two years old,” said Joni DuPriest, a collector and club member. “The beauty and art on those cards got me hooked, along with the family connection. I enjoy the show because members have so many different postcards on display in the exhibit area, with exhibit boards on many topics and innovative ways to show off their collections. Where else can you legally read other people’s mail?”
The public can vote on their favorite display boards during the show, with the “People’s Choice” awarded on Saturday.
In a special added exhibit this year, students from John Tyler will be exhibiting postcards they designed for the club.
Twenty-one dealers from as far away as Arizona and California are expected at this year’s show. Millions of postcards will be available for viewing and sale, priced from 25 cents to much more for truly rare cards. Several new vendors have been added this year.
From the early 1900s until the mid-1960s, postcards were the way people kept in touch with friends and family. Many have compared antique postcards to our present-day emails. Cards feature street scenes, views of long-gone buildings, beautiful artwork on holiday and greeting cards, as well as almost any other conceivable topic.
