Category Archives: Spotlights

Feliz Año Nuevo

Posted on January 4, 2020 by

I originally bought this postcard because of the greeting in Spanish and just recently started examining it more closely. The first thing I noticed was that it has a Cuban stamp and was mailed from Cuba to the U.S. with … Continue reading →

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Children’s Books for Christmas

Posted on December 24, 2019 by

This is a 1907 Christmas advertising postcard from Stearn & Co., a Cleveland store specializing in children’s toys and women’s clothing. The store claimed to have a good selection of children’s books deposited by the Good Saint Nicholas from his … Continue reading →

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National Food Store Holiday Savings 1934

Posted on January 2, 2019 by

National Tea Co. was founded in 1899. By the end of the ’20s, National Tea had over 600 locations in the Chicago area alone and another 1,000 stores nationwide. Sales grew to about $90 million a year. Many of these … Continue reading →

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The Edison Phonograph

Posted on February 9, 2018 by

The image on this postcard (copyright 1905 by National Phonograph Co.) illustrates how amazing it must have been to first hear recorded sounds coming from the phonograph invented by Thomas Edison. Originally the sounds were recorded and reproduced on cylinders. … Continue reading →

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Happy Holidays from Shapleigh Hardware Co.

Posted on December 28, 2017 by

This holiday postcard advertising Shapleigh Hardware Company’s Diamond Edge tools was sent on December 24, 1915. Hardware Dealers’ Magazine, Volume 46 of 1916 had an article on Hardware Christmas Greetings in which Shapleigh’s Christmas card and its verse were mentioned. … Continue reading →

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Slovak Catholic Sokol

Posted on August 25, 2017 by

This postcard commemorates the XXIII Slet of the Slovak Catholic Sokol that was held at Morton West High School Stadium in Berwyn, Illinois on July 23, 1967. A sokol is a Slavic gymnastic society aiming to promote a communal spirit … Continue reading →

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The Bakelite Travelcade

Posted on May 23, 2017 by

Bakelite was one of the first plastics made from synthetic components. It was developed in 1907 by the chemist Leo Baekeland. Bakelite was advertised as a material of more than a thousand uses. It was used for its electrical nonconductivity … Continue reading →

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