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Antique Postcard
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Old Postcards - Part I
Two Philadelphians, J. P. Charlton and H. L. Limpan, came up
with a simple but great idea in 1861. Their "Lipman's Postal
Card" had a blank front for writing messages. The back was
inscribed with three lines-one with their patent mark, the
other two for addressing and stamping. They advertised their
product was great for sending rapid correspondence at half the
price of paper and envelopes. They claimed their invention
would be valuable for travelers, and boasted merchants could
use their stiff cards to send notices and circulars. The Post
Card, they deduced, would lighten mail, cheapen postage, and
surely make them rich. It did not. Good ideas alone do not
make one wealthy. It is reasonable to assume that the Lipman
Postal Card was flop, for only a few have been found, and its
inventors are all but forgotten.
History records that postcards originated in Austria in 1869.
A year later they were officially issued in Great Britain with
a halfpenny stamp printed in the corner. Public demand was so
great police were dispatched at post offices to control
crowds. By 1871, almost two million 3.5" by 4.5" post cards
were mailed in Europe each week. In 1894, mailing a card with
an adhesive stamp was allowed. In 1897 the card's width was
increased by an inch so that half the address side could be
used for correspondence. This left the face side free to be
decorated by photographs and early artistic prints called
"chromolithographs." Within three years, sending and
collecting "picture postcards" was the craze in England and
other parts of Europe. By 1905 card collecting had reached
comparable proportions in the United States. The glory years
of the picture post card continued until W.W.I. In recent
years, the hobby has returned stronger than ever.
Although US postal regulations first allowed postcards in
1872, most found today date after 1910. The amount of postage
can help date an American mailed card. Cards mailed from
1872-1958 cost 1 or 2 cents. In 1959, the rate went up to 3
cents, and continuing climbing thereafter. As with most
antique categories, age is only one factor in evaluating old
post cards. Other considerations are condition, artistic
quality, manufacturer, and probably most important of
all-subject matter.
Suppose you're one of the first ones in at a tag sale. You
have twenty-five dollars in your pocket. The place is all junk
except for a banana box with a sign on it reading, "Old Post
Cards-$5 Each!" You want to try your luck. Which ones should
you choose? My first suggestion is, forget value. Buy cards
that are interesting to you. Almost every town was pictured in
old postcards. A historic picture of your home town, or
something to do with your profession, or favorite
hobby-certainly, those wall hangers would be worth five bucks.
Besides something dear to you, select older cards, pre 1918 if
you can find them. Then, look for cards that fit within a hot
category. Christmas, Easter, Halloween and Valentines Day
cards are much sought after. Greeting cards are not as
valuable. An old card picturing the First Methodist Church of
Cochran, Georgia is worth about fifty cents, while a post card
advertising St. Andrews Golf Course might fetch a hundred
dollars. More than any other antique, postcards are collected
by category. Advertising, Movie Star, Aviation, Nudes, Signed
artist, Dogs, Fire, African American, Political-all these
subjects hold peoples' interest. Choose old graphic cards like
these, and you might just find a bargain in a banana box.
Part Two
CLICK HERE
by
AntiqueTalk.com
Reprinted with permission
Copyright by Wayne Mattox © |
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