What can we learn from this postcard?

Front of Postcard Edited.jpeg

Above is an enlarged portion of the postcard which reveals the gender ideologies at the time.

This postcard presents a myriad of learning opportunities. The plethora of hotels lining the street shows how Pitlochry was a very tourist-driven area focused around temporary housing for shoppers, golfers, or general tourists. This postcard also gives some insight into the gender ideologies at the time. A woman can be seen wearing the typical long skirt and white shirt outfit while carrying a bucket. This gives the sense that women were cleaning or doing household work. The males in the image, on the other hand, are dressed in suits and coming in and out of cars as opposed to the walking female. Their clean and fancy attire demonstrates that the men in Pitlochry were generally wealthier and doing more business-like work rather than the household labour women were doing. This postcard also shows off the stunning architectural styling of Main Street. The street features elegant architecture with uniquely shaped buildings such as the tower at the corner of the street. Additionally, the roofs of the buildings all have protruding design elements that make them more appealing than even modern roofs today.

atholl-palace.png

Atholl Palace, illustrated above, is a famous hotel in Pitlochry known for its stunning looks and how it was turned into two schools during the World Wars. It was, and still is, a famous location for tourists to visit and stay. 

As mentioned in the previous section, this postcard demonstrates how postcards can be used to portray certain characteristics such as wealth. Main Street, Pitlochry is the centre of a very popular and fairly affluent area. Due to its many amenities and its proximity to Atholl Palace Hotel, Pitlochry was very a desirable place to go to. Due to this representation of affluence, someone sending a postcard from Main Street can be taken as boastful. Admittedly, there are many different interpretations of a postcard depending on perspective. This postcard could also be seen as commonplace if it was sent to a higher class individual or someone accustomed to the area. Another key value of this postcard is how it shows what daily life on a street was like in the early 1900s. This is something that someone at the time might think is insignificant but it allows current day viewers to get a better understanding of routine life in the past. Thus, the insight this postcard provides on the gender ideologies, daily life, and architecture of Scotland demonstrates the historical and research values a near monetarily worthless postcard can have. 

The library is committed to ensuring that members of our user community with disabilities have equal access to our services and resources and that their dignity and independence is always respected. If you encounter a barrier and/or need an alternate format, please fill out our Library Print and Multimedia Alternate-Format Request Form. Contact us if you’d like to provide feedback: lib.a11y@uoguelph.ca