Lloyd Tate collection
Scope and Content of the collection
The Lloyd Tate collection represents postcards collected by Tate over the course of his life and travels. The collection contains primarily photographic, and some linen, postcards dated between 1900 and 2010.
Collection contents cover historical images of approximately 190 countries and geographic areas worldwide, oftentimes documenting settings that no longer exist due to war, political changes, natural disasters, and urban development. Most images show city aerial shots, landscapes, buildings, natural environments, animals, some interiors, and people.
Series A: Postcards reflects the bulk of this collection and was compiled over the course of Tate's own travels, those of his peers, whom he commissioned to bring postcards back for him, and those of Mrs. Leighley, Tate's childhood neighbor who began his interest in postcards. This series contains over 50,000 photographic and linen postcards. Some of these postcards were written and sent prior to Tate's collection. Some postcards may represent languages other than English. Records are arranged alphabetically by country or geographic area, and then alphabetically by province or state, followed by city, landmark, or subject. Only the top two categories (country and province) are recorded on the inventory below.
Series B: Unprocessed Postcards includes groups of postcards that are likely Tate's new accessions and other cards that need to be interfiled.
Labels and descriptions included in this collection were applied by the original collector. Some may find these descriptions harmful, offensive, or outdated. These descriptions include names of countries and geographic areas and may reflect different geographical ideas.
Dates
- Creation: 1900-2010
Policies Governing Use and Access
This collection is open for research. Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using archival materials. As all or portions of this collection may be housed off-site, advance notice of at least three working days is required for retrieval. Certain items may require additional time for flattening or humidifying before they can be viewed. Access is by appointment only. Please contact the archives’ reference staff for further information.
Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasions of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual’s private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person).
The Alexander Architectural Archives operate in accordance with applicable federal or state laws and regulations, providing unrestricted access to university records not covered by state and federal right to privacy acts.
The Alexander Architectural Archives, The University of Texas Libraries, and The University of Texas at Austin, assume no responsibility for infringement of literary property rights and copyright or for liability to any person for defamation or invasion of privacy that results from a researcher’s use of collections.
Researchers agree to indemnify and hold harmless The University of Texas at Austin, and their officers, employees, and agents from and against all suits, claims, actions, and expenses arising out of use of collections held by the libraries. Please alert staff if anything inappropriate is found during research.
Copyright interests in this collection may not have been transferred to the University of Texas. Researchers assume full responsibility for observing all copyright, property, and libel laws as they apply. Additionally, the public use of material must be cited. See citation information below.
Biographical Sketch
Lloyd Arthur Tate was born April 23, 1940 in Princeton, Indiana. Tate's interest in postcards began at the age of 10 when his neighbor, Mrs. Leighley, gifted him a small collection of postcards she collected on her travels through Europe in the early decades of the 20th century. Interactions with Mrs. Leighley introduced Tate to postcards and sparked what would become a lifelong passion for the medium. In 1952, at the age of 12, Tate traveled with his family in the Grand Canyon and the American Southwest, where he began to collect postcards of his own. During his summers after high school, he continued to travel and collect postcards. In 1961 alone, he brought back approximately 2,000 postcards from Europe. After high school, Tate earned both undergraduate (1963) and graduate degrees (1966) from Indiana University in Music and European History. He later went on to complete his doctoral research (ABD) at a Public Records Office in London, England.
Over the course of his career, Tate worked at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Michigan (1969-1970) as an Off Campus Education Administrator. In 1971, he went on to work as an Instructor in History at Southwest Texas State University (now Texas State University) in San Marcos, Texas, where he taught Medieval European History (1971-1975). He then became Director of Personnel Relations at the Texas Association of School Boards (1976-1983). In 1983 he became Director of Professional Excellence at the Texas Classroom Teachers Association. In 1997, Tate retired to Seguin, Texas with his wife, Kathryn Edwards, and their dogs. Throughout this time, he and Edwards continued to travel the world, collecting postcards and taking photographs. Over the course of his life, Tate traveled to approximately 66 countries. In addition to the postcards Tate collected, he commissioned friends to bring back postcards for him on their travels. Tate is also an avid mineral collector.
References:
"Tate, Lloyd (1940- ) Archives." n.d. Mineralogical Record. Accessed September 4, 2025. https://mineralogicalrecord.com/biographies_labels/tatelloyd/.
Partial Extent
50000 postcards
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Lloyd Tate (1940-) is an avid postcard collector, having collected postcards from approximately 190 countries and geographic areas. This collection includes approximately 50,000 postcards, the majority of which are photographic, collected over the course of his life. These photographs include aerial images of cities and photos of landmarks, buildings, landscapes, animals, interiors, and people. Record types include photographic postcards.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged into two series: Series A: Postcards and Series B: Unprocessed Postcards. Records are arranged alphabetically by country or geographic area, and then alphabetically by province or state. Records retain the original order in which they were received from Lloyd Tate.
Collection Processors
Processed by: Zoe Grout, 2025
Genre / Form
Geographic
Topical
- Title
- Lloyd Tate collection
- Author
- Inventory prepared by Zoe Grout, 2025
- Date
- 2025
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Alexander Architectural Archives Repository
University of Texas Libraries
101 E. 21st Street
Austin Texas 78712 United States
(512) 495-4621
apl-aaa@lib.utexas.edu