Hi and a Happy New Year to Delcampe! 2008!!!

I have acquired some USA postcards from a few from 1918-later - can anyone recommend a good site to give some idea on how to price US cards and/or recommend a good site for understanding the different postcard eras in the US.

Many thanks PCS

Link (http) try this it has many pages of reff.links just root around on the top nave bar

randy

Thanks I thought I would never get a reply...

Does anyone here think I am wasting my time trying to sell US cards from the UK??

Also what are the best US posctard catalogues out there?

PCS

One of the most basic guides, and one which we highly recommend for the beginner, is The Postcard Price Guide by J. L. Mashburn. While we find the organization of it somewhat confusing, there are thousands of postcard categories including topicals, artist-signed postcards and real photo postcards.

"Does anyone here think I am wasting my time trying to sell US cards from the UK??"

No it is not a waste of time. There are a few dealers here in the US who make a good profit buying US postcards in the UK & Europe and selling them back in the USA.

You are simply cutting out the middleman and , hence; should make a better profit.

As far as what type of US postcards sell best... well ... see below for a brief listing of ideas.

#1) Older cards sell best.

#2) Small towns are MUCH better than cities.

#3) The US market is crazy about Real photograph Postcards. They will get you your best prices.

#4) Many US view collectors collect by topics all 50 of the States.

Library's ; Masonic Temples; Elk's halls ; Court Houses ; Train Stations ; Airports ; trolley cars & Stations, Main street views (Especially dirt streets)

#5) Regionally Western & Southern US postcards get the highest values (Excluding major cities)

#6) Delaware postcards (older) are very hard to find.

#7) Advertising signs add much value to US postcards:

Signs for KEEN KUTTER, MOXIE, Coca Cola, Dr Pepper, VIN FIZ, on a postcard are very desired.

#8) Automobiles where one can see the make of the car are desirable.

#9) Native Americans (Non Tourist type; generally pre 1910) are wanted.

#10) Derogatory anti black postcards in view cards are quite valuable. A Real photo Mob postcard going after a black person easily can command $1000.00 and up.

#11) Early (Pre 1918) Baseball Stadiums & players are HIGHLY desired. Black Baseball cards can got upward of $10,000 USD.

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Below is an article I wrote that may help you
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Why are real photograph postcards so pricey and so hard to find? This quick guide below will attempt to explain both questions and provide a prices realized overview of the Real Photograph postcard (RPPC) here in the US.

Postcard collecting is the third largest collectible hobby in the USA. Since the 1980s this "new" hobby increasingly garners a rapidly growing field of passionate & informed collectors. At the top tier of the hobby is a format known as the RPPC.

If a picture speaks a thousand words, then a photographic image conveys endless essays on what we as Americans are, where we came from and what we have the potential to become. The turn-of-the-century RPPC documented the transformation of an agrarian society with the advent of the automobile, the telephone, the airplane and an endless stream of modern inventions and resulting changes to American life.


Example: If while searching in a family trunk, one found an RPPC of a woman holding a banner reading "Woman Voters!" while she was riding a Harley Davidson motorbike up the gangplank of the Titanic in Ireland, one could easily surmise a sense of value to such an image. If that image were proved to be one-of-a-kind, or at least at most one of a few hundred, the value rises even more. Since this mythical image also incorporates 3 high demand collecting areas (Woman's rights, early motorcycles, & the Titanic), 3 aggressively active collecting groups would want to own it. It is these types of factors that drive the value of RPPCs.

RPPCs are valued by the 1) AGE of the image, 2) the CONTENT in the image, 2) the RARITY of the image and 4) the DEMAND for the image.

1) AGE. RPPCs can be dated by both their front and backsides. Comparing the two to one another determines the age of the image. A helicopter in an image dated 1903 would be an obvious fake, but knowing when hoop skirts were in vogue would date a street scene to within 10 years. Cars, buildings, attire, advertising signs and city backgrounds all give clues to the date of an image.

On the backside of a postcard, one will find marks made in the stamp corner by the maker of the photograph paper. A short listing of marks and their dates of use are available in ebay at Link (http)

Study the image, study the usage, and study the format of the postcard to date it properly.

If the Titanic image we found had a KODAK stamp box, it would have been a 1950s reproduction of an early image. If the stamp box had a CYKO stamp box, the image would be off to an auction, quite possibly achieving $1000s. Knowing how to compare the front to the back of an RPPC is crucial to determining its value.

2) CONTENT. Unidentified images where the location is not known have far less value than identified images.

Look closely at an image and look for interesting items such as advertising sig