Sunday, April 6, 2008

Vintage Postcards: True Confessions

True confessions: I bought 18 vintage postcards at a huge postcard convention the other day, and if they hadn't closed up (and my friends hadn't borrowed the rest of my cash), I would have bought more. They were fabulous! Probably 50 vendors with millions of postcards each, all arranged in boxes with dividers with intriguing titles like Big Type, Midgets, Dancing, Multiple Babies (found that one after I'd already spent too much), and Enormous Objects.

I'm probably going sell some of the cards--I bought too many to keep them all. Worst of all, I found out from one of the vendors there's a postcard swap a mile from my house the first Monday of every month. I could quickly become addicted!
Almost as interesting as the cards themselves are the messages on the backs. Not all the cards had been mailed, but a number have messages and 1 cent stamps. The writing is all cursive, some beautiful, some hard to read. Many of the messages are mundane, things that would now be taken care of in a phone call or an e-mail. Here's a sample:

From a 1910 card of the flying machine:
"Dear frinds, We will be over Sunday Jnry 3. meet us at the tram good by Mr. Bert Broylis. if we are not there this Sunday we will be next Sunday shore.

From a 1953 postcard of two babies, sent from Michigan.
Dear Bill. We are up at the cottage. Drove thru the Toronto area. I will fung (?) some pape (?) pictures. Just can not describe how bad it was. So sorry for the people whoes homes are leveled to the ground. Writing this in car. Maby you can not read this.

From a 1911 card of a man swatting at mosquitoes, sent from Selma to California:
Dear Cousin: I will drop you a few lines tonight. Well, kid I was sure surprised to hear that aunt & uncle has come home so soon. I want to go to see them as soon as I can. Say Helen I have bought me a piano. What do you think about that? Say come up & we will play a Deut. ha ha.

17 comments:

Rosebud Collection said...

What fun that must have been.. I have some of my great aunts Christmas post cards..not real fancy, but I enjoy them just the same.

Unknown said...

The convention sounds like fun -- I love vintage anything and those postcards are great!

Anonymous said...

I love old postcards because of the writing on the back. Frozen moments in time when life was simple and communication was not so simple.

High Desert Diva said...

OHMYGAWD...I want the first one!

How fun!

Callooh Callay said...

The first one is, of course, the one I won't get rid of--but there were hundreds more as wonderful as her (and I have to have them all!)

picciolo said...

the Hicksville one has got to be my favourite, but they are all gorgeous!
: )

Esma said...

Those are so cool! I love going through the old postcards at antique shops... and it's always interesting to read what they say. A convention sounds awesome!

Unknown said...

I have been wanting to find some vintage postcards and I would keep them all displayed in my office in this lovely (on sale!):
http://www.potterybarn.com/products/p6894/index.cfm?pkey=xsrd0m1%7C20%7C%7C%7C1%7C%7C%7C%7C%7C%7C%7Cpost%20card&cm%5Fsrc=SCH

Thanks for sharing! I could read those all day!

bee said...

ohh how wonderful I love that flying machine one.

melissakate said...

I LOVE old postacrds!!!
AND I'm totally going to start ending all my letters with "Say come up & we will play a duet." Sounds like fun :)

OMB said...

I can see why you bought a lot of them... they're great.

Kellybot said...

Oooooh, I love vintage postcards. I am fainting now - they have conventions?? Yeah, the ones that have been sent are the funnest.

Sweet Olive Press | Helen said...

I love vintage postcards! I could pore over them for hours... Thanks for sharing the backs of these – those are the best parts!

Kim Bagwill said...

Love the postcards! Especially "I'm kept busy."

Scott Bulger Photography said...

This is one of the most interesting things to look at. Vintage post cards are such treasures.

papel1 said...

I love postcards too. The ones you purchased are very nice. Would love to go to a show just selling postcards.
Judy

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