If there was a heyday for Toronto postcards, it was surely the 1970s when the grittiness of the city was perfectly matched to the sepia-tones of the cheaply printed souvenirs.

There's a curious tension in these images between recognizable landmarks and the general lack of density. We see the outline of contemporary Toronto before everything was filled in.

Behold, what Toronto postcards looked like in the 1970s.

No condos in sight along the skyline in 1973.

The Yonge Street strip at the height of its pomp and seediness.

The foot of Roncesvalles in the early 1970s. The Gray Coach station is now a McDonalds.

St. James Park with the CN Tower under construction in the background.

Sparse, yellow-toned skyline in late 1970s.

A Yonge St. trifecta.

Looking down from the CN Tower at the new Harbourcastle hotel.

The Yorkville patio scene.

Eglinton and DVP cloverleaf.

A still-new looking City Hall.

Glory days at the CNE.

Yonge Street record store scene north of Gould St.

Looking across the Gardiner to the burgeoning skyline.

Ontario Place in all its glory.

Yorkdale was already a powerhouse mall a few years after opening.