Ever Yours Exhibit

Event Information

Porter County Museum (PoCo Muse) welcomes the public to its newest exhibit, Ever Yours: Postcards From the Golden Age, opening May 12 in the museum’s Montague/Urschel Gallery. Featuring early twentieth-century postcards collected by local residents, the exhibit examines the history of the popular phenomenon that revolutionized personal communication and served as a precursor to the digital social networks of today. The show will run through October.

“Postcards from 1907 to 1915 that were donated to the museum provided the inspiration for the exhibit,” said Executive Director Kevin Pazour. “The postcard concept had its origins in Austria in 1869 as a simple unadorned card with space for address and a short message. The addition of a picture to one side opened floodgates of popularity and created a revolution in communication. It’s a fascinating story.”

“Many of the postcards in the PoCo Muse Collection focus on the scenery and attractions of this area at the turn of the twentieth century,” explained Jake Just, the museum’s Director of Exhibits and Publications. “They transport us back in time and offer a glimpse into how Porter County wanted to be perceived. There are lots of scenes of recreation on the lakes, impressive buildings in town, and the Valparaiso University campus. The proliferation of images established a narrative about Porter County as a grand, welcoming, and idyllic place.”
An interactive feature of the exhibit is the online project, Postcrossing, which allows people to send and receive real postcards from around the world. Exhibit visitors can participate in the program using postcards and postage provided by the museum. “Postcrossing is a free and easy way to widen personal global perspectives and make contact with people of different cultures,” added Pazour. “We hope that children will find this feature especially appealing.”

Porter County Museum, located at 20 Indiana Avenue, in downtown Valparaiso, is open six days a week, Tuesday-Sunday, from 11am to 4pm, with free admission. For more information, visit pocomuse.org or @pocomuse on social media.