Intro

Welcome to Answer Soon, which exhibits postcards from the Stanley I. Kaase Postcard Collection.

The collection includes cards sent to Stanley’s family members in eastern North Dakota and southeastern Minnesota, mostly from 1907-1915. Many of the people sending postcards lived in rural areas and had no phones or telegraphs. Postcards were a crucial way of keeping in touch with loved ones as they traveled between farms, towns, and cities.

The phrase “answer soon” appears over and over in these postcards. When I read the phrase, I imagined the excitement of getting a piece of news or the frustration of waiting for the mail. Working with this collection of postcards has given me a taste of what life was like for the recipients and senders, and how important communication was to them. I hope as you read through these narratives you also feel the joy, humor, and appreciation that I felt.