Postcards depicting all sorts of scenes reached peak popularity in the late 19th century. Postcards were a primary means of sending greetings to friends and family, especially during the holidays. The golden age of communication, as this era was called, ended in the 1920s.

The Victorians in the late 1880s had transformed the original Celtic holiday of All Souls Eve into a fun and romantic family celebration. This change is reflected in the postcards of the day. Adorable smiling plump children sit atop Jack-o-lanterns portrayed with cute smiling faces that give them personality and a sense of human characteristics.

Black cats that in earlier times were associated with witchcraft were depicted on postcards at the turn of the century as cute and cuddly creatures. They were shown being held by smiling children. Even the witch was given a new identity as an attractive, smiling woman who expressed messages of love.

Another popular superstition of the time appears in romantic Halloween cards showing a young woman looking in a mirror at the stroke of midnight to see the face of her future husband. In other cards, she is depicted in front of a large mirror as she looks into a hand mirror to see the image of her future husband. The light for her to see is provided by a Jack-o-lantern.

Featured Illustrators

Big-eyed, plump-cheeked creator Grace Drayton used a similar depiction of children with wide eyes, plump cheeks, and smiling faces to illustrate Halloween postcards for Raphael Tuck and Sons.

Ellen Clapsaddle was another illustrator for Raphael Tuck and Sons. Her work was also produced by the Wolf Publishing Company, a company that she created. Clapsaddle was one of the most prolific illustrators, completing approximately 2,000 postcards. His children’s illustrations are different in that they feature sweet and colorful-looking children and youth.

Jason Freixas was a Canadian illustrator who published through Winsch, a New York company that published his cards in Germany. Postcards from Freixas are rare. However, the characteristic checkered edges that surround round-faced children make them easy to identify.

Building a collection

Select the images that appeal to you; some cards will call your name. For some, that will mean collecting cards with black cats, romantic sayings, or pretty witches. Collections can be built by collecting the work of one or two illustrators. You may decide to specialize in postcards signed by the illustrator or that were printed during a particular period of time. Whatever factors you determine will guide your collection, you don’t need to limit your collection if you find a card that doesn’t meet any of your criteria but speaks to you.

In general, it is recommended to buy the card with the best conditions within your budget. Avoid cards with missing marks, missing or bent corners, wrinkles, discoloration, damage from liquid spills.

Dating postcards

1898-1901- The postcards published during these years have the inscription “Private postcard”. The inscription makes the cards from this era extremely easy to identify.

1901-1907-Cards from this era are undivided back, allowing the sender to provide the address of the intended recipient. The message for the recipient had to be written on the image side of the card. The inscription “Postcard” is also seen on the reverse of the cards from this era.

1907-1915 – March 1, 2017 marks the official beginning of the era of the split-back postcard. This allowed the address and message to be placed on the back, leaving the image unwritten. In addition, the image occupies the entire face of the card; there are no borders for the postcards of this era.

Prices

Cards produced by American companies like Tuck sold their cards for a penny. The postcards produced by Winsch sold two for five cents. The higher cost was due to a tariff imposed on cards imported from Germany.

In today’s market, postcards in good condition can cost anywhere from $ 1.00 to over $ 550.00.

Halloween has become a fun holiday that is celebrated throughout the United States.

The Halloween Postcard Collection provides a view of the images used to communicate with family and friends on this holiday. Postcards are widely available at auctions, flea markets, and the Internet. Reproductions of old cards are also widely available. It is important to learn to recognize the difference between authentic vintage cards and authentic reproduction, if only to avoid a costly mistake.