This vintage postcard is an interesting example of both Tobacciana and Postal history. This postcard was a calling card sent by Tobacco salesmen to their tobacconist customers. More specifically, the postcard would inform shopkeepers as to the exact date they could expect the salesman to call on them. This postcard was sent by a salesman employed by T Whalen. The firm was located in Rochester, New York. It manufactured Tobacco and Cigars and dealt in Pipes and Leaf Tobacco. The business was established in 1840 by Abraham Van Slyke. In 1864 the firm became Woodbury & Whalen, and a year later,the company evolved into R & T Whalen. This postcard likely dates back to pre 1907, as it is undivided and allows for no message on the address side of the card. SOLD
This cabinet card features an attractive young woman posed holding a book. The woman is nicely dressed and has a lovely figure. Her great figure is, no doubt, assisted by her tight corset. The book she is holding is entitled “Grifting“. The definition of grifting is “engaging in petty swindling”. What is a nice girl like the girl in this image doing with such a sensational book? The most likely reason she has possession of that particular title is that; it was there in the studio. The book likely belonged to the photographer. The studio that produced this photograph was the Aime Dupont gallery. Dupont (1842-1900) founded his photography business in 1886 in New York City, New York. He was formerly a sculptor and he was of Belgian origin. His American wife, Etta Greer, was also a photographer. She was well respected for he work as a portraitist of opera singers in Paris, France. She was educated in Paris and spent much of her childhood there. She also met and married Dupont in Paris. The couple was very talented and they became very popular as portrait photographers in New York. Among their society and celebrity clients were many singers who were appearing in New York. After Dupont’s death, his wife, and later his son (Albert), operated the studio. His wife kept the name of the studio the same, after the death of her husband. In 1906, the Metropolitan Opera hired its own official photographer, resulting in diminished portrait work in that sector. The studio went bankrupt in 1920. A couple of interesting questions about this photograph remain unanswered. Is the subject of this photograph someone famous in society or the performing arts? Who was the photographer, was it Aime Dupont, or his wife, Etta? SOLD
This vintage real photo postcard features a studio portrait of a trombone player. He is wearing a band uniform and is holding the trombone on his lap. Writing on the reverse of the postcard indicates that his name Abdulla Adams and that he wrote the card from Jamestown, New York in 1918. Preliminary research reveals that there was an “Abdulla Adams” that lived in Jamestown. HIs draft card (1917) and the Jamestown City Directory (1922) provides some background information about this young man. Adams was born in Corytso, Albania in 1897. He was twenty-one years old when the photo on the card was taken. The city directory reveals that Adams was employed as a finisher in a furniture factory. The AZO stamp box on the reverse of this postcard indicates that the postcard was published between 1904 and 1918. SOLD
This vintage real photo postcard features American stage and silent film actress, Anna Laughlin (1885-1937). One of her major claims to fame is that she was the first actress to play Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz. She was born in California and began her stage career as a “child elocutionist” (public speaker). At age six, she started acting in vaudeville and later, in touring theater companies. When she was a young teenager, she began appearing on Broadway. In 1900, she was in the Belle of Bohemia and in 1903 she performed in the Wizard of Oz. According to the IBDb, Laughlin appeared in eight Broadway shows between 1900 and 1914. The IMDb reports that Laughlin acted in 14 silent films between 1913 and 1915. She is most well known for her roles in “Northern Lights” (1914), “The Greyhound” (1914), “The Amazing Mr. Fellman” (1915) and “What Happened to Father” (1915). She quit show business in 1915 to focus on raising her daughter. Laughlin was married in 1904 (age about 19) to a jeweler. She was widowed in 1925. Laughlin’s daughter became a noted singer. Anna Laughlin died by suicide in 1937. Her cause of death was gas poisoning. She turned the gas on in her apartment because she was very depressed about being estranged from her daughter. They had previously been very close. According to the IMDb, the following words were found in her three page suicide note. “This is good-bye. People are dreadful. I love my child. I have given all I have in the world to put her where she is now … Lucy is never coming back. I am so afraid. Where did I fail?” This postcard was published in Germany by NPG (Neue Photographische Gesellschaft) as part of a series (no.1098). A. G. Steglitz is also listed as a publisher. The postcard is an “Oranotypie” and was published in 1904. An oranotype is a trade name for a type of glossy real photo postcard published by NPG. The company was a leading bromide photo printing company for many years at the beginning of the 20th century. This card has a French stamp and was postmarked in 1907. SOLD
Meet Nellie and Minnie Maus as they pose for their portrait at the studio of S. D. Joy in Lake Odessa, Michigan. It is uncertain which of these children is Nellie and which is Minnie because the person who wrote their names on the back of the photograph failed to include their ages or other identifying information. The baby in this image is sitting in a very ornate pram. To view other turn of the century baby carriages, click on the category “Baby Carriages”. Unfortnately, Mickey Maus was unavailable when this cabinet card was produced. One can only assume that he was in California for a movie shoot or else he was bound by contractual obligations to not appear in any photographs except those published by the Walt Disney Company. Unfortunately, no biographical information about the Maus girls could be uncovered. The photographer, Sherman D. Joy appears in the 1930 census where he is listed as a 62 year-old photographer. He was married to Etta V. Joy. This cabinet card portrait is in very good condition (see scans).
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This striking vintage real photo postcard features a family of three posing in front of a house. The parents are dressed in their finest clothes. The mother is wearing dark gloves. The father is wearing an unidentified pin on his lapel. This young couple’s child is adorable. This photograph was either taken at an unidentified studio or is homemade. The card was postmarked in Siddonsburg, Pennsylvania in 1909. SOLD
A young girl sits on a chair, hands folded on her lap, and dreamily looks at the camera. Sitting alongside her is her trusty pug. Actually, the dog may not be that trusty because the dog is wearing a collar and chain insuring that he stays in range of the camera. The young girl is holding the dog’s leash. This photograph was taken at the Kottmann studio in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Edward Kottmann was a German born photographer who received his training at galleries in Philadelphia. He began working as a photographer in Altoona in about 1883. An advertisement announcing the sale of his gallery appears in Snap Shots (1908). SOLD
This vintage real photo postcard features a pretty young woman sitting at a piano. She is in a relaxed pose. This is also a leggy pose making this card risque for it’s era. Note the sheet music on the piano. This postcard portrait is hand tinted. SOLD
This carte de visite portrait features a pretty teenage girl posing with her mandolin. She is dressed in fine fashion. There is an inscription on the reverse of the photo. The inscription appears to be the girl’s name. She was photographed by Pierre Fevre (1880-1914). He operated a studio in Mery, Aube, France. In the 1911 census he is listed as a photographer in Mery. In 1914 he was killed in the Great War (World War I). SOLD
This cabinet card portrait captures four well dressed men sitting around a table topped with glasses as well as a bottle of Hunter Baltimore Rye Whiskey. The Hunter brand was once one of the most popular brands of Rye Whiskey in the United States. It was introduced in the 1850’s as Hunter Rye Whiskey but became famous as Hunter Baltimore Rye Whiskey during the latter part of the nineteenth century. The bottle pictured in this photograph is the “Hunter Baltimore” version. The brand won the Grand Prize at the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis. The men in this photograph look quite serious about this drinking session. SOLD
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