Antique & Vintage Postcards

Step back to 1905 and into the roaring bustle of Sullivan Square Elevated Station in Charlestown, Massachusetts — a cavernous iron-and-glass transit hall packed with commuters in greatcoats and long skirts, red elevated railway cars gleaming under a vaulted skylight, and a prominent "NOTICE" placard sternly reminding passengers that "running against others, pushing, or other disorderly conduct" is prohibited. This pre-linen era gem, published by the Metropolitan News Company of Boston (printed in Boston, Mass. & Germany), is one of the earliest known postcard views of Boston's elevated railway system, which opened its Sullivan Square terminal in 1901. The interior detail — destination signs reading "Highland Ave, Somerville," uniformed attendants at the gates, globe light fixtures, and the dramatic arched window wall — makes this an exceptional document of early American urban transit. The back is unused, undivided, confirming a ca. 1905 date, and bears the publisher's copyright notice.