The Library of Congress offers thousands of historical images and maps that students can download and reuse for free. Most of the images and maps are found in these digital collections. Some of those images are arranged in collections on the LOC site in a section appropriately titled Free to Use and Reuse Sets. It’s in that section that I found this collection of vintage travel posters. 

The vintage travel posters set on the LOC’s website features twenty-one posters for destinations including national parks, New York City, Chicago, Bermuda, and Puerto Rico amongst other popular destinations. Most of the posters were produced in the 1930’s and 40’s. Clicking on a poster in the collection will reveal information about when it was produced and who created it. When you click on a poster you can download it in a variety of sizes and formats including JPEG and GIF. 

Applications for Education

When I first came across these vintage travel posters I immediately thought of using them in placemarks in Google Earth tours. I’d have students choose a few posters they liked then research a few activities that people liked to do in the areas featured in the posters. Then I’d have students put those posters into placemarks in Google Earth along with their writing about the popular activities in the area at the time the posters were produced.