By Christine Lorraine Morgan ~ April 24, 2026

Postcards were the primary way for people to see what other places looked like prior to the birth of electronic media. Most people didn’t own cameras, TV wasn’t invented yet, and newspapers were local and rarely did an Erie newspaper make it beyond Erie.

With that in mind, it is easy to see why postcards were so heavily relied upon to convey dismal images of “news,” such as floods, accidents and other tragic events. Conversely, they were also used to distribute pictures of lively and colorful places that might be enticing enough for postcard recipients to wish to visit those places.

Here is a collection of Waldameer Park postcards which were accumulated over the years.

Rainbow Gardens present building was built in the 1920s after the first dance hall burned down. A contest was held to name the new building, and the name Rainbow Gardens won. Now you can see why.

The roller coaster “Figure Eight” at Waldameer in the early 20th Century was featured on this postcard. In today’s advertising world, it’s hard to imagine any sort of advertising in which debris is included in the picture as in the lower right of this image. ca. 1920s

Early 1900s

ca. 1940s

1940s

ca. 1905

Mid-20th century

Mid-20th century

Monkey Island – mid-20th century

early 20th centry

Mid-20th century – note the stork ride also

Kiddie Land with its own entrance and rides. And wooden ticket booth.

ca. 1910