Postcards of Northern Ireland

The Linen Hall library has a collection of thousands of postcards. These cover not only the six counties that make up Northern Ireland but Ireland as a whole. They date from the nineteenth century to the present day. Many are political in nature, referring, for example, to the Unionist campaign against Home Rule and the 1916 uprising in Dublin.

Not just a pictorial record of times and places long gone, the postcards also reveal the unique nature of the medium. In days before texts and emails, postcards were used to make arrangements, to stay in touch with family and friends, as reminders and as billets-doux.

The collection is available to view at the Linen Hall Library in Belfast.