Vintage Postcards: Postcard Blog » RPPC

Happy April Fool’s Day from France

VintagePostcards — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 01:25:25 +0000

Happy April Fool’s Day! During the “golden era” of postcard collecting, from about 1901 to 1915, the French loved to send one another postcards celebrating this improbable holiday. April Fool’s Day postcards were quite fanciful and often featured fish, traditionally associated in France with memory improvement. This scarce c. 1915 to 1920s real-photo fantasy post card depicts a flying fish with airplane wings, who transports a young girl while holding a peppermint candy in his mouth.

(Thinking: Drugs? Who needs drugs, with an imagination like this?)

Read about a great Easter postcard, or see dozens of holiday post cards at our website. Visit the world’s largest postcard bookstore.

Pennsylvania Photography Studios Documented with Real-Photo Postcards

VintagePostcards — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:24:16 +0000

Postcards from named photography studios are somewhat uncommon, and we’ve got a trio of real-photo postcards to show you which were taken in early 20th century Pennsylvania photography studios. A c. 1904 to 1920s Cyko real-photo postcard depicting four young gentlemen was taken by a photographer named Lee whose studio was in Danville, Pennsylvania. A penciled notation on the reverse indicates that H. Lee Goyne was at left rear; the name “Sobey” is also written on the reverse. Such little gems are sometimes overlooked, but do document local businesses: in this case a Montour County, PA photography studio.

An unused Azo Square c. 1924 real-photo postcard of two ladies posing in an early car prop was taken in Pittsburgh, PA by the Colonial Studio, which was at 137 Sixth St.

Two sweet young York County girls in their finest, one with a bow as big as her head, pose for the camera in this charming c. 1904-1918 unused Azo Tri 1 real-photo postcard. The toddler in the chair has an almost porcelain doll appearance. The photograph was taken at the Penn Park Studio, which was at 25-29 W. College Ave. in York, PA, “near the York High School,” as the postcard describes it. All three of these postcards document Pennsylvania photographic history, in their own charming way.

Read more about determining locations of real-photo postcards. See some photography or real-photo postcards at our website. We also offer the world’s largest selection of postcard books.

Determining Locations of Real-Photo Postcards: Wadesville, VA

VintagePostcards — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 19:37:40 +0000

Sometimes, when location information isn’t inscribed into the negative of a real-photo postcard, the location can still be determined — or at least narrowed down — with information found on the back of the postcard. In this instance, there’s a penciled notation reading “Wadesville, Virginia” on the back of the unused c. 1904-1918 Azo Tri 1 real-photo postcard showing Opequon Creek bridge construction.

However, there’s also an Opequon Creek bridge in nearby Berkeley County, West Virginia. Based on our online research, we believe this postcard shows the Opequon bridge in Clarke County, Virginia. If you think this is actually the West Virginia bridge over Opequon Creek, let us know. While research into “mystery postcards” is fun, sometimes, only local collectors have the knowledge base required to recognize a local landmark which has inevitably changed over time. Postmarks are also helpful, especially if a postcard contains text referencing specific locations.

Read more about documenting postcards with Internet research, or see many more real-photo postcards at our website. We also offer the world’s largest selection of postcard books.

Summer Fun at the Boothbay Harbor, Maine Yacht Club

VintagePostcards — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 16:40:35 +0000

With summer coming on strong and the Fourth of July just around the corner, we’re sharing this photographic classic of summer fun in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, 100 years ago. This antique image, an unused Azo Tri 1 real-photo postcard, circa 1907-1918, depicts celebrants at the yacht club in Boothbay Harbor, Maine. Pennants and patriotic flags flutter amidst the crowds and waiting rowboats. The finely detailed and sharply focused Lincoln County image, which has great clarity, was photographed by McDougall & Keefe of Boothbay Harbor. It’s in near-mint condition.

See hundreds of real-photo postcards and sports postcards at our website, or read about a classic roadside Americana postcard and the splendid neon signs at the Bluebird Cafe in Logan, Utah.

Tall Tale or Exaggeration Postcards

VintagePostcards — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 19:19:07 +0000

Tall tale, or exaggeration, postcards were popular in the early 1900s. Their fanciful subject matter was limited only by the imagination of the photographer, and often included an element of local pride/bragging regarding the size of crops grown. This seldom-seen grasshopper exaggeration is a real-photo postcard (RPPC) by F. D. Conard of Garden City, Kansas. The larger-than-life grasshopper pushs mightily against a steam engine, in a scene entitled “The Train Hold-Up.”

A finely detailed and scarce 1907 exaggeration postcard, published by George B. Cornish of Arkansas City, Kansas, has a more typical agricultural “bragging rights” theme, with one railroad car from the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroad required just to hold one ear of locally grown corn. Both postcards are also of interest to collectors of railroad postcards.

You can see more examples of tall-tale postcards on our North Bay, Ontario and Sturgeon Falls “vintage postcards in history” pages.

Read a post about black American social history as portrayed in antique trade cards, or see more fantasy postcards.

Photo Conservation Video on Nebraska Public TV

VintagePostcards — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 15:26:09 +0000

Nebraska’s public television channel, NetNebraska.org, has a series on Saving Nebraska’s Treasures, including this paper conservation video, How to Care for Your Photos. It contains tips about storing old photographs, and some basic paper conservation principles.

These principles also apply to conserving old vintage postcards which have been stored in postcard albums. Enjoy!

See real-photo postcards and learn how they can help document family genealogy.

Happy Fourth of July!

VintagePostcards — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 23:40:57 +0000

The Fourth of July, or Independence Day, is always a favorite with postcard collectors, due to the bright, bold graphics used and the attendant theme of patriotism. These post cards are often awash in firecrackers and flags. Here’s one of our favorites: a 1908 antique postcard showing a little girl in a bright red dress, holding a tiny doll and waving a small flag as sailor boys pass by. Strangely, both of the flags shown are backwards. It’s small details such as these which often add to the charm of a vintage postcard.

Although not as bright and colorful, real photo postcards (RPPCs) depicting Uncle Sam are scarce and desirable. The more fanciful and detailed, the better. Here’s a classic Uncle Sam antique postcard, also from about 1908, which is all the more desirable as it shows a child dressed as Uncle Sam. His broad smile shows the pride he feels about being chosen to wear this costume.

Enjoy the selection of Fourth of July and patriotic postcards at our website. And Happy Fourth of July!

Read another blog post about July Fourth holiday postcards.

Curling and Hockey Postcards, Sports Collectibles

VintagePostcards — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 17:56:30 +0000

Winter’s here, with the first snows of the season and sub-zero temperatures. Hot chocolate and hockey. Watching wintry sunsets amidst the hush that falls when roads are covered in snow. Well, sort of…In all fairness, we must tell you that a forecast of one to two inches of snow produces a “winter storm warning” here. As if preparing for the Blitzkrieg, hordes of shoppers descend en masse on local grocery stores, stripping the shelves bare of staples such as milk, bread and eggs. School officials stay up until the wee hours, monitoring conditions and trying to decide whether the roads will be navigable for school buses. We’re not kidding.

We recently were fortunate enough to find our second curling postcard, which brought to mind the Canadian winters we miss. This c. 1940s real-photo postcard, or RPPC, is a beauty, depicting women curlers on one of the sheets at the Seigniory Club at Le Château Montebello in Montebello, Quebec. It’s now known as the Fairmont Le Chateau Montebello, but curling doesn’t appear to be offered anymore.

Another highly collectible genre of sports postcards is the hockey postcard: specifically, ice hockey. Here’s a recent find, a c. 1908 artist-signed F. Earl Christy hockey postcard showing a man with ice skates slung over his shoulder chatting with a woman who falls into the “pretty lady” or “glamour girl” category of art postcards. Sometimes, this card is seen with a caption reading: “Hockey is not the only game.”

Have fun browsing the sports postcards at our website. If you have any curling postcards or ice hockey postcards for sale, we’d love to hear from you!

Read more about winter sports postcards.