This iconic linen-era postcard serves as both a souvenir and a functional guide to the "Weather Lights" of the John Hancock Building in Boston - now the Hancock Center. The graphic illustration explains the famous light code used by the beacon atop the tower to signal local weather forecasts. A staple of the Boston skyline since 1949, the tower's light patterns became part of city lore, often remembered by the local rhyme: "Steady blue, clear view; Flashing blue, clouds due; Steady red, rain ahead; Flashing red, snow instead."
Era: Linen (Circa 1950s)
City: Boston
State or Region: Massachusetts
Country: USA
Topic: Landmarks, Skyscrapers, Weather, City Folklore
Condition: Uncirculated
Address Side: Divided Back
Orientation: Horizontal (Landscape)
Artist / Photographer: Unknown
Publisher: A Colourpicture Publication, Boston 15, Mass., U. S. A.
Printer: Colourpicture
Print Type: Lithograph
This postcard is a "Colourpicture" publication, identified by the serial number K3293. The back features a descriptive blurb explaining how the "modern Bostonian looks to the new John Hancock Building Tower for his up-to-minute Weather report." This unposted card remains in excellent condition, preserving a unique piece of mid-century Bostonian culture where technology and weather prediction met high-altitude architecture.
