According to Wikipedia, Sydney once had the largest tram system in Australia, the second largest in the Commonwealth (after London), and one of the largest in the world. It was extremely intensively worked, with about 1,600 cars in service at any one time during the 1930s. In 1945, the system provided 404 million rides.
As with most cities, Sydney started out with horse-drawn trams (or streetcars) in the late 1880s. These were replaced by steam-powered trams, which proved to be very popular, but by 1910 just about all of the trams were electric. The system was highly successful, despite competition from cars and buses. Still, the government was determined to shut it down. The system was shut down gradually, with the last streetcar making its final run in 1961.
If you want to know more about Sydney streetcars, there are lots of good resources. Dedicated individuals have put a lot of work into the Wikipedia reference for Sydney trams, so be sure to take a look. And don't miss this wonderful video, What Happened to Sydney's Trams:
You might also want to check out the Sydney Tramway Museum.
Oh, and here's the back of the postcard, just in case you want to see it.
I was minding my own business (well, as much as I ever do) at a postcard show/sale when I came across this card in the sale bin. I really had no intention of buying it, because it's pretty creepy, but they were staring back at me so intently from the photograph. I guess I felt compelled...or threatened. Now that I think back on it though - did I really buy the card? Or did I walk away without buying it, and then it showed up at my house in with the other cards anyway? I just don't know, but maybe you would like to adopt this family and they can come live with you. Just say the word and they'll be on their way to your house.
If you check out the Sepia Saturday Blog, you can see other sepia photos of people with normal good looking families.
A heartfelt thanks and farewell to my readers. My last post (the thousand and first!) will be on November 7, 2012. The blog will remain online, but there won't be any new posts as I need to make time for other things. There is a chance I'll be back, but if so it won't be for awhile. I hope you'll take the time to peruse the archives.
How To Find Things
There's treasure in the archives, so here's how to browse and find what you want:
1. Enter a search word or phrase in the box below - anything from Princess Grace to Prohibition or Graf Zeppelin.
2. Or, go down to the bottom of the page and browse the "Cloud of Tags". The number next to the tag indicates how many posts have that tag. Clicking on it will bring up all of them. (I realize now that it doesn't always bring up all of them. If there are a lot, then it will only bring up the most recent ones, but if you click on older posts at the bottom then it will bring up more.)
3. You can also go through the archives by date. Just click on the triangle next to the year or month to open the list.
I love antique postcards because they preserve evidence of everyday life as well as celebrations and sad events. Looking at an old postcard is like holding a single piece of a puzzle; we have to imagine the rest.
I will try to put up a postcard every day. If you have a special request for a particular city or place, let me know!