A rare opportunity to see selections from the picture postcard collection of Village Historian Joe Markowski will be presented this year when the museum reopens in mid-May. The Way We Were: Sag Harbor in Postcards will provide residents and tourists alike with images of the village taken in days gone by, including many local landmarks and streetscapes whose appearance is surprisingly unchanged after all these years! To augment the exhibition, Mr. Markowski will provide guided tours and has offered to provide a two-part lecture series on his extensive collection, in which guests will see how the village evolved over the last century. The exhibition will remain up throughout the summer season.

Over thirty different images spanning half a century will be enlarged for the exhibition, enabling viewers to appreciate the attention to detail that is often captured in these early scenes. Selections from the museum’s own collection of postcards will augment the exhibition. Of particular interest are a series of cards that document the museum building itself during its ownership at the turn-of-the-century by Mrs. Russell Sage and after its acquisition in the 1920s by the Masonic Lodge. Known as Harbor Home during Mrs. Sage’s occupancy, the house and grounds remained remarkably well preserved, and included outbuildings that are no longer extant. Future preservation efforts will find these early views particularly valuable.

Joe Markowski’s collection of picture postcards, which has been growing for over 25 years, now numbers over 500 of Sag Harbor village and its environs. An inveterate collector, Joe’s interests range to other areas of collecting as well, including whales and historical objects of all sorts. Joe’s love of the village and its people, places and unique history is well known and his generous contribution of time and expertise to the museum’s summer exhibition is greatly appreciated.

A selection of 8 postcards is available from the Museum Store for purchase.