This vintage real photo postcard features a father and his young son outside for a bicyclc ride. The pair are posed in front of a large tree. Father is well dressed and wearing a cap. The little boy is also well dressed and he is wearing a straw hat. The postcard appears to be of French origin and is a rare find.
POSTCARD 1 (SOLD)
POSTCARD 2
The pretty woman featured in this vintage real photo postcard is Miss Jose Collins (1887-1958). The name “Jose” was a shortening of her given name “Josephine”. She was an English actress and singer known for her appearances in musical comedies and early movies. She was born in London. Her mother was a music hall performer and comedian named Lottie Collins. Interestingly, she was the singer who popularized the song “Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay”. Jose Collins father was Stephen Patrick Cooney, her mother’s music coach. Collins began as a child actress and as a teenager had already appeared in both pantomine and music hall performances as a singer and actress. Her debut performance in the West End was a major role in “The Antelope” (1908). She also appeared on Broadway in the production of “Vera Violetta (1911), “The Merry Countess (1912), “The Whirl of Society” (1912), and other shows. In the later production, she sang a duet with Al Jolson. She also appeared in the Ziegfeld Follies (1913). In 1917 she appeared in the hit musical “The Maid of the Mountains”, a role for which she received much acclaim. She actually earned a nickname from the show; she was known as “The Maid of the Mountains”. She appeared in a number of shows through 1925. One of these productions was “A Southern Maid” (at Daly’s Theatre) and this postcard portrait captures her in that role. The show was an operetta and her costar was Bertram Wallis. The production ran for 306 performances. The remainder of her career was spent acting in revues, variety and non-musical roles. She also appeared in films. The IMDB reports that she appeared in thirteen movies between 1915 and 1933. Miss Collins was married three times and these unions produced no children. The link below will take you to a Ziegfeld Follies performance by Jose Collins. She is singing “Just You and I and the Moon” (1913). This postcard was published by J. Beagles & Co. of London, England. The postcard is part of a series (no. 222 U). The photograph of Miss Collins is by Reville Studios.
The second vintage real photo postcard presents Miss Collins in a relatively short frilly dress. She looks very pretty as she flashes a nice smile. The postcard was produced by Rotary Photo and is part of the Rotary Photographic Series (no. 4004 D)
POSTCARD 1
POSTCARD 2
This vintage post cabinet card era photograph is charming. A little boy in a sailor suit stands beside his baby sibling who is sitting in a wagon. The baby is wearing a gown and bonnet. Big brother is holding the handle of the wagon. Note the large back wheels on the wagon. The wheels are metal, not the rubber wheels that came later in time. The photographer and the location of the photo studio are unknown. The photo measures about 4 1/2″ x 6 1/4″ and the mat may have been trimmed.
This cabinet card portrait features a pretty young woman wearing a dark dress full of distractions. The buttons on the dress are quite prominent and she is also wearing a collar jewelry and a corsage. Hanging from her chain necklace is a ring. One can hypothesize that the ring belongs to her husband or her beau. The woman’s hair is mussed but I imagine that we are looking at a hairstyle and not laziness or apathy on her part. This photograph was taken at the Kibbe studio in Johnstown, New York. William H. Kibbe (1846-1910) was born in Johnstown. As a school student he exhibited a great deal of talent via his pen and pencil sketching. He then worked briefly as a paint shop decorator but soon found more satisfying work at the studio of renowned engraver Vistus Balch. While working there he assisted in the production of engravings from drawings by Felix Octavius Carr Darley who was famous for his illustrations appearing in Charles Dickens’ novels. During this time Kibbe became acquainted with Napoleon Sarony’s portraits which contributed to his becoming an apprentice with photographer James F. Ryder. From this apprenticeship, Kibbe learned about every aspect of operating a photography studio and in 1871 he opened his own studio at 123 West Main Street in the “Kibbe building”. His studio was decorated with his own oil and watercolor paintings and he was often joined there by his wife and son (Arthur Fonclair Kibbe) who would assist him. Kibbe was a major contributor to several photographic journals. His obituary appears in Wilson’s Photographic Magazine (1910). A portrait of Mr. Kibbe can be seen below.
This rare vintage real photo postcard features an advertisement for a Hungarian medicinal water company. The product is named “Hunyadi Janos” and it was produced by Andreas Saxlehner of Budapest, Hungary. On the reverse of the postcard is the advertising phrase “Le purgatif des Famiiles” which google translate reveals to mean “The family laxative”. Interestingly, the label on the bottle is more reminiscent of a wine label than a laxative label. The print on the reverse of the postcard is written in French, so the postcard was likely produced in France. Research reveals that Andreas Saxlehner (1815-1889) was the owner of Hunyadi Janos Mineral Water Company. The business was established in 1863. The brand was named after Hanyadi Janos (1407-1456) who was a fifteenth century Hungarian military hero. Janos was acclaimed for driving the Turks out of the Balkans and stopping a Turkish siege of Belgrade. Saxlehner’s company was very successful. His residence became the home of Budapest’s Post Office Museum. His portrait can be seen below.
This cabinet card portrait features an adorable and well dressed brother and sister. The cute little girl sits in a chair holding an open book in her lap. Her younger brother stands beside her holding his hat by his side. The photographer of this fine image is Homer C. Reed. The “History of Baron County” (1922) reveals that Reed bought the Rice Lake studio of T. H. Webster in 1893. The Wisconsin Photographers Index, compiled by the Wisconsin Historical Society reports that Webster operated his Rice Lake studio until 1928. Homer Reed was born in Michigan and began his photography career in Forest City, Iowa. He married Adda A. Smith in 1895 and she served as an assistant in his photography studio. (SOLD)
The reverse of this vintage real photo postcard indicates that the cowboy pictured on the front is named Geoffrey. My guess is that Geoffrey is a studio cowboy. His clothing, gun, holster, fringed chaps, and ten gallon hat were likely borrowed from a photography studio’s prop department. Geoffrey is not a convincing looking cowpoke or gunslinger. He has soft hands and a soft face. He certainly hasn’t been on too many cattle drives. However, this postcard is quite nice. The subject is well posed and the close-up perspective works well. An inscription on the card’s reverse reveals that he postcard photo was taken in 1922. The stamp box discloses that the publisher of the postcard stock was Vester & Company from Great Britain.
A well dressed middle aged man poses for his civil war era tintype portrait. He is accompanied in the image by three young women. The women are wearing dark dresses and each is adorned with a hair band. The woman standing behind the man is wearing her hair in a disheveled (natural?) style. One wonders what this man’s relationship is to the three women. Perhaps they are his daughters. Maybe one of the women is his wife (the woman holding his elbow?). One thing is for certain. This is an affectionate group. The foursome are sitting very close and there is a lot of touching going on. This image is the first tintype to appear in the Cabinet Card Gallery. A tintype, also known as ferrotype, is a photograph made on a thin sheet of metal coated with a dark lacquer or enamel. They were very popular during the 1860’s and 1870’s. SOLD
This cartes de visite (CDV) features a handsome young man wearing a university uniform. Note his standup collar, heavy pea coat, and wonderful cap. The photograph was taken at the M. Obergassner studio in Munich, Germany. Preliminary research reveals that Michael Obergassner had a second business besides working as a photographer. He operated a photo supply company which he established in 1889.
This is a wonderful cabinet card portrait of a pretty young woman. The photograph features a great deal of uncertainty. The individual who formerly owned this image claimed that the subject is African American. In my opinion, the claim is debatable. One of the issues relating to some cabinet card images of African Americans is this very question. Some collectors and dealers sincerely believe they possess a portrait of an African American while others dishonestly make the claim in order to increase the value of the photograph. This particular image presents another interesting and debatable subject. The previous owner also claimed that this photograph is a memorial cabinet card. In other words, the photograph was made in honor of this young woman upon her death (not a post-mortem photo). The placement of the woman’s image inside a scroll, or whatever the shape represents, is the alleged tip off that it is a memorial photograph. I have seen experts provide conflicting opinions about such claims. Lets talk about what we do know. This young and attractive woman is making an interesting fashion statement. Her dress has little squares of fabric attached to it in what appears to be a haphazard manner. She is wearing a horseshoe collar pin and a thin necklace. If this photo is a memorial cabinet card, then the horseshoe certainly didn’t provide her with good luck. She is wearing her hair up. The photographer of this cabinet card is William T. Ross (1861-1945) who operated a studio in Appleton, Wisconsin. Ross appears in “Wilson Photographic Magazine” (1898) in an article that reports that he was elected Treasurer of the Convention of Wisconsin Photographers. Ross has a presence in a number of Appleton city directories from 1889 through 1934. He was born in Syracuse, New York and was married to Ella A. Ross. The edges of this cabinet card are scalloped and gold gilded. The reverse of the cabinet card has a ghost image (see below). The image was likely formed by the rear of the cabinet card being pressed against the front of another image while occupying a frame or album. SOLD
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