SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - Sing Fat Co.

Divided back postcard showing the Sing Fat Co., an Oriental bazaar, in the Chinatown district of San Francisco, California. Card was published by Pacific Novelty Co. of San Francisco. The card is dated on the back September 23, 1922.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - Chamber of Commerce

White border real photo postcard showing the Chamber of Commerce Building at the corner of 12th St and Broadway in Los Angeles, California. This building was completed in 1924 and was demolished in the 1960s for expansion of the Los Angeles Times. Although the card itself is not dated, white border cards were produced in the U.S. between 1915 and 1930.

PASADENA, CALIFORNIA - Bullock's Inc.

Kodak real photo postcard of Bullock's Inc. in Pasadena, California. Bullock's was a popular department store and a front-runner to the modern shopping mall.This card was published in the early 1950s by the Los Angeles Photo Post Card Co. of Los Angeles, CA.

YORK, NEBRASKA - Court House

Two EKC real photo postcards showing the York County Court House in downtown York, Nebraska. Both postcards were published by the L.L. Cook Co. of Milwaukee, WI. EKC cards were produced between 1939 and 1950.

BLOOMINGTON, ILLINOIS - Main Street

Undivided back post card of Main Street in downtown Bloomington, Illinois. Card is dated 1898 on the back. Published by Pantagraph Printing and Stationery of Bloomington.

MACKINAW, ILLINOIS

Divided back greeting card showing six views of Mackinaw, Illinois. Clockwise from top left the views are of: the High School, the Christian Church, the City Park, the Illinois Traction railroad tracks, the Mackinaw River, and the bank building.

MACKINAW, ILLINOIS - Christian Church

Two divided back postcards of the Christian Church in Mackinaw, Illinois, both postmarked at Mackinaw, the first in 1908 and the second in 1909.

NEWTONVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS - Masonic Building

Undivided back postcard showing the Masonic Building on Walnut Street in Newtonville, Massachusetts. Made in Germany, this card is copyrighted 1905 by the Rotograph Co. of New York City.

AURORA, ILLINOIS - River Street

Divided back postcard showing businesses on River Street in downtown Aurora, Illinois. Made in Germany, this card was published by A.A. Lindstrom of Aurora.

AURORA, ILLINOIS - Hotel Bishop

Undivided back postcard showing the Hotel Bishop in Aurora, Illinois. Printed in Germany, this postcard was published in 1909 by A.A. Lindstrom of Aurora.

BUNKER HILL, ILLINOIS - M.E. Church

Divided back postcard of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Bunker Hill, Illinois. Postmarked at Bunker Hill with a date of August 17, 1908. This postcard was made in Germany and published by L.E. Jansen of Bunker Hill.

LAGUNA BEACH, CALIFORNIA - Pottery Shack

Chrome postcard advertising the Pottery Shack in Laguna Beach, California. This is a Plastichrome postcard published by Colourpicture Co. of Boston, MA. Initially the site of a small home, then the Yum-Yum Tea Room, in 1936 it was to become the home of The Pottery Shack and remain so for the next 66 years. With a trailer load of “seconds” from J.A. Bauer’s Glendale factory, The Pottery Shack flourished as a destination for residents and visitors alike combing through stacks of pottery and collectibles. The founding Childs family retired in 1972 and sold their business to Pier One Imports with its intention of using the brand and concept as the basis for national expansion. With these plans aborted, it passed back into private hands and in 2004 one of Laguna Beach’s favorite shopping places closed its retail store. In 2006, after two years of caring renovation, The Shack was reborn as The Old Pottery Place, providing a home for an array of distinctive shops, restaurants, and offices.

ST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - Webb's City

Chrome postcard showing Webb's City in St. Petersburg, Florida. This postcard was published by Ward Beckett & Co. of Clearwater, FL. Webb's City advertised itself as "The World's Most Unusual Drug Store". It covered 5 city blocks and included 67 stores in downtown St. Petersburg. Webb's had a gift shop, hardware store, meat market, beauty salon, travel agency, clothing departments, cafeteria, multiple coffee shops and soda fountains and of course, a drugstore. The store first opened in the mid 1920s and closed for good in 1979.

PEKIN, ILLINOIS - Pekin Public Hospital

Chrome postcard showing the new addition to Pekin Public Hospital in Pekin, Illinois. The hospital was established in 1913 and this third addition was dedicated in 1955. This is an Eaglecolor card published by Cincinnati Litho Co. Eagle Division of Chicago, IL.

EAST PEORIA, ILLINOIS - Caterpillar Tractor Co.

Chrome postcard showing Building KK of Caterpillar Tractor Co. in East Peoria, Illinois. Building KK housed the most modern diesel engine factory in the world and was part of Caterpillar's 5.5 million square feet of floor space under roof. This is a Curteichcrom card published in 1956 by Curteich of Chicago, IL.

GILLETTE, WYOMING - The Corner Motel

Advertising postcard for The Corner Motel in Gillette, Wyoming

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - The Tropics

Linen postcard showing two interior views of The Tropics Hawaiian Cocktail Lounge inside the Hotel Chicagoan at 67 W. Madison St. in downtown Chicago. This is a CC.T. Art-Colortone postcard published in 1940 by Curteich of Chicago.

ROBINSON, ILLINOIS - The Woodworth

Divided back advertising postcard from the Woodworth Hotel in Robinson, Illinois

MATTOON, ILLINOIS - Hotel Byers

This is a linen postcard advertising the Hotel Byers in Mattoon, Illinois. This is a color litho Barsheen finished postcard published by the MWM Co. of Aurora, Missouri.

JOPLIN, MISSOURI - Joplin Motel

Advertising postcard for the Joplin Motel which was located on US Highway 66 on the west edge of Joplin, Missouri. This is a color litho Barsheen finished postcard published by the MWM Co. of Aurora, Missouri. Card is postmarked at Joplin and is dated January 7, 1960.

KIT CARSON, COLORADO - Kit Carson Cottage Camp

AZO Real photo postcard showing the Kit Carson Cottage Camp in Kit Carson, Colorado. This card was published between 1926 and 1940.

CAMP GRANT, ILLINOIS - Orders to Leave

Divided back postcard showing soldiers in fron the barracks at Camp Grant, Illinois. This postcard was published by E.C. Kropp Co. of Milwaukee, WI. It was postmarked at Rockford, Illinois, and is dated January 10, 1919. Camp Grant, near Rockford, was established in 1917 and became one of the major training facilities during World War I. In October 1940 Camp Grant was re-activated as an induction center and also served as a POW detention center during World War II. The camp was permanently closed in 1946 and many of the buildings had been razed by the late 1940s.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - USO Lounge and Servicemen's Canteen

Divided back postcard showing two views of the USO Lounge and Servicemen's Canteen located inside Chicago Union Station at Chicago, IL. Card is postmarked at Chicago and dated June 28, 1943.

THE NEW CINERAMA

Advertising postcard for the New Cinerama Presentation "Cinerama Holiday" from the Boyd Theatre at 1908 Chestnut Street in Philadelphia, PA. This postcard was sent from Peoria, Illinois, and is postmarked July 12, 1955.

1960 RAMBLER

Advertising postcard for the 1960 Rambler Custom 4-Door Sedan

QUIZ KIDS

This is a real photo postcard showing the 7 Quiz Kids as well as the quizmaster Joe Kelly. The Quiz Kids was a popular radio (and later TV) series from the 1940s and 1950s. Originally sponsored by Alka-Seltzer, the series was first broadcast on NBC from Chicago on June 28, 1940. It continued on radio for the next 13 years. On television, the show was seen on NBC and CBS from July 6, 1949 to July 5, 1953, with Joe Kelly as quizmaster, and again from January 12 to September 27, 1956, with Clifton Fadiman as host.

MORTON, ILLINOIS - W9ERE Ham Radio Operator

This is a penny postcard from ham radio operator Elmer R. "Mike" Strunk from Morton, Illinois. Card is dated November 25, 1938, and was postmarked at Morton and mailed on December 13, 1938. Mike Strunk was my uncle and I spent many days in my youth listening to him talk to his many friends all over the world via his ham radio.

MACKINAW, ILLINOIS - High School

Divided back postcard showing the High School in Mackinaw, Illinois. Card is published by Fred C. Whisler of Mackinaw. The high school was completed in 1889 and was remodeled several times over the years. The building was demolished in 2009 to make way for a new high school addition.