Postcards are valuable historical snapshots that offer insights into the communications, cultures and the lives of people from our past. ​​​Postcards also provide a unique visual record of events, people and places of a particular time period. They assist in the understanding of cultural values, beliefs and personal experiences of people from all walks of life and can bridge gaps between the past and the present. 

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Academics, Genealogists and Historians use postcards as primary source materials for studying various topics  including architecture, changing environments, cityscapes, cultural trends, communication methods, social history, street scenes and the evolution of modern transportation.

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​​The study and collection of postcards is known as Deltiology. Professor Rendell Rhodes and several of his colleagues at Ohio State University coined the word "Deltiology" in 1945. Many postcards are now valuable historic artifacts as they are sometimes the only image of an event, landscape, person, building, street scene, cityscape or manmade object in existence. Since most postcards are fairly affordable their collection is among the most popular hobbies.​​​​​