Date of use : 1950 USA

Morgan & Lester Business Postcard – Photographic Publisher

This document represents a commercial postcard associated with the international circulation of photographic technical literature during the mid-twentieth century. According to the printed text on the reverse side, the sender was Morgan & Lester Publishers, a publishing house based in New York. The message refers to "Photo-Lab-Index Quarterly Supplement No. 45," a technical publication series related to photographic laboratory practices. The text explains that the material prepared for this issue overlaps with information scheduled for the following supplement. For this reason, the publishers decided that Supplements No. 45 and No. 46 would be issued together as a consolidated publication planned for release around December 1950.

Morgan & Lester was known as a publisher specializing in technical works related to photography, darkroom processes, and photographic laboratory techniques. The company was active particularly during the first half of the twentieth century and contributed to the dissemination of technical knowledge within the photographic industry. Its publications included manuals and reference works covering subjects such as photographic chemistry, printing techniques, and laboratory procedures. These materials served as practical guides for professional photographers and laboratory technicians. The Photo-Lab-Index series appears to have functioned as a regularly updated technical reference intended to provide subscribers with current information on photographic laboratory practice.

The postcard is addressed to John A. Hill, c/o Ilford Ltd., Ilford, Essex, England. Ilford Ltd. was one of the most prominent manufacturers in the photographic industry. Founded in the late nineteenth century in England, the company became internationally recognized for its production of photographic film, photographic paper, and darkroom materials. Ilford played an especially important role in the development of black-and-white photographic technology. Communication between a technical publisher such as Morgan & Lester and a major manufacturer like Ilford would therefore have been entirely natural within the professional networks of the photographic industry. The recipient, John A. Hill, was likely an employee, technical advisor, or editorial contact associated with Ilford, although this interpretation remains speculative due to the limited information available on the card itself.

The postal cancellation indicates New York – Grand Central Station, September 29, 1950. Grand Central Station served not only as a major railway terminal but also as an important postal distribution point handling a significant volume of commercial correspondence. The card bears a 1-cent United States postal stationery imprint featuring Thomas Jefferson, a design commonly used on American postal cards during the period. Such pre-printed postal cards were widely used by businesses to send brief notices, announcements, or confirmations.

The content of the postcard illustrates how technical knowledge in the field of photography was organized and distributed during the period around 1950. After the Second World War the photographic industry experienced rapid technological development. Advances in film emulsions, chemical processes, and printing techniques increased the demand for reliable technical information among professional laboratories. Technical reference publications therefore became an essential tool for practitioners working in photographic production. Publishers such as Morgan & Lester played a significant role in organizing and distributing this knowledge to an international audience.

From a philatelic perspective the card is notable both for its postal history and for its function as a piece of commercial communication. The Grand Central Station cancellation represents a characteristic marking associated with one of New York's major mail processing centers. At the same time, the card demonstrates how postal cards were widely used by commercial enterprises as an efficient method of distributing short informational messages to subscribers and professional partners.

From a collecting standpoint the item may be included in several thematic collections. It is particularly relevant to collections devoted to the history of photographic literature, technical publishing in photography, and darkroom technology. It may also be associated with collections focusing on Ilford Ltd., photographic industry correspondence, mid-twentieth-century postal communication, and technical information networks. The document provides evidence of communication between a technical publisher and a major photographic manufacturer, illustrating the exchange of information that supported professional photographic practice.

In conclusion, this postcard represents a small yet meaningful fragment of the international knowledge networks that shaped photographic technology in the mid-twentieth century. The communication between a New York technical publisher and a British photographic manufacturer illustrates how the photographic industry depended not only on manufacturing and trade but also on the systematic dissemination of technical knowledge through specialized publications. Documents of this type provide valuable insight into the intellectual infrastructure that supported the global development of photographic technology.

This item is documented as part of the Photography in Postal History research project.
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