Newport Mansions: Postcards of the Gilded Age

Newport, Rhode Island, nicknamed "the Queen of Resorts," has been celebrated in beautiful postcard portrayals for over a hundred years. Today, these vintage cards illuminate the glories of the Gilded Age, when huge mansions or "cottages" built by competing industrialists blossomed along Bellevue Avenue and the Cliff Walk, turning a once-quiet New England watering hole into the apex of nouveau riche destinations. This updated and expanded second edition features over 200 period images of the mansions, the beautiful beaches, and the shopping areas where the Newport Summer Colony gathered to do what they did best: spend money. See how Newport was forever changed by the prolific growth of "cottages" during the late nineteenth century. Today, many of these testaments to power and wealth are house museums, where thousands visit annually to see firsthand how the rich and famous lived. Includes a guide to postcard values and collector tips.