WINTER PARK — As a popular tourist spot, Central Florida has a lot to lure in visitors, from theme parks to community theaters, from museums and sports events. The region also has plenty of gift shops, and one of the most popular items in each one is the classic postcard.

The Winter Park History Museum is well aware that from the earliest days of Florida’s appeal as a vacation spot, postcards have been an option for visiting tourists.

The museum is now hosting Hello Sunshine: Selling Florida Through the Art of Postcards, an exhibit that “presents a color saturated, over-the-top, tropical paradise ‘view’ of both Winter Park and the burgeoning cities throughout Florida,” the museum notes. “It’s a fun exploration of the early development of our state.”

The History Museum, which works to research and preserve the city’s history, is now hosting this ongoing exhibit.

What is the Hello Sunshine Exhibit?

Originally known as visiting cards, the postcard dates back to 1777, when French engraver Demaison published in Paris a sheet of cards that had greetings on them.

“Tracing back the origins of the picture postcard is difficult because postcards were not simply invented — instead, they evolved,” noted the website World Postcard Day. “Their history is inevitably linked with the development of the postal service, but also features innovations in printing and photography.” “

The Winter Park History Museum decided to open this exhibit, which helps illustrate WInter Park History through scores of postcards, after a comprehensive collection of Winter Park postcards was donated to them by local resident Rick Frazee.

“The Frazee collection contains over 1,000 Winter Park postcards detailing town life during the 1900s – 1970s,” the museum notes. “It became the inspiration for the Hello Sunshine exhibit.”

As the museum notes, that history dates back to the turn of the century.

“In the early 1900s, men of wealth and vision invest in and design new Florida towns out of mangroves and swamps,” the museum notes. “They also plan elaborate and exaggerated marketing strategies enticing Americans to Florida. The postcard is the marketing tool of choice.”

Where Can I See the Hello Sunshine Exhibit?

The Winter Park History Museum is a block away at 200 W. New England Ave. The Museum is free to the public and open Tuesday–Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“Come see hundreds of these early Florida postcards on display now. The Museum also features a colorful Winter Park timeline, Florida promotions and ‘kitsch’ from early state-wide attractions,” the museum notes. “Bring the kids! A lively children’s area offers interactive activities including a junior roadside fruit stand, and postcards designed to color and mail.”

To learn more about this program or the museum itself, call 407-647-2330 or visit museum@wphistory.org.

The Winter Park History Museum works to research and preserve the history of Winter Park and its surrounding area, and tell the town’s unique story through free educational exhibits, lecture series and outreach programs.

Michael Freeman is an Orlando journalist, playwright, and author of the book A Christmas Eve Story. Contact him at Freelineorlando@gmail.com.

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