Colgate University Libraries News and Events

The Special Collections department invites you to check out our Summer 2010 exhibit of early postcards of Colgate (on Level 2 at Case).
It's interesting to note that these are printed color images of Colgate, a technology that was not common to American postcard publishers until around 1930. All of the cards in this exhibit date from prior to or just after the First World War -- that is, prior to 1919. How is this possible? As it happened, German printers were far ahead of the rest of the printing world in their ability to print colored cards. The original images for each card were obviously made in Hamilton, then shipped to Germany to be transferred to linen cards.
The postcards depict a Colgate both familiar and foreign. Whitnall field has stood the test of time, but what happened to the old Gymnasium that used to stand next to it, where J.C.C. is now? Are those bushy things next to Taylor Lake the same towering willows we walk past today?
We hope you'll stop by and enjoy the exhibit, explore the images and find out what strikes you as the biggest change, and what has remained the same on our beautiful campus.