North West Postcards
Vintage real photo postcard scene from the North West Postcards collection

Postcard guides

Learn About Vintage Postcards

Learn how to identify, date, research, collect, and sell antique and vintage postcards.

Model of Mt. Rushmore RPPC

Carl Rise and the Photography of the Black Hills

A collector's guide to Carl Rise, Rise Studio, and his photographs of Mount Rushmore, Rapid City, the Black Hills, and early South Dakota tourism.

Kaukauna Street View Wisconsin 1950s Vehicles Postcard

L. L. Cook Co. and the Postcards of Mid-Century America

A collector's guide to the L. L. Cook Company, its nationwide real photo postcards, mid-century American views, E. C. Kropp acquisition, and later color cards.

Marineers' Pageant Parade Boat Float Anacortes Washington RPPC

Ferdinand 'Ferd' Brady, Photographer of Tulalip and Anacortes

A collector's guide to Ferd Brady's photographs of the Tulalip Reservation, Anacortes, Puget Sound communities, and early Washington real photo postcards.

Bathing Beauties, Staged Beach Scene, Hand Tinted 1905 RPPC

Neue Photographische Gesellschaft and the Industrial Real Photo Postcard

A collector's guide to Germany's Neue Photographische Gesellschaft, its mass-produced real photo postcards, NPG markings, Oranotypie cards, and market values.

Baring Washington Street View w Baring Inn RPPC

Lee Pickett, Photographer of the Skykomish Valley

A collector's guide to Lee Pickett's photographs of Stevens Pass, the Great Northern Railway, logging towns, and the Cascade Mountains.

CLIFF HOUSE San Francisco Seal Rocks

Alexander 'Zan' Stark, Photographer of the California Roadside

A collector's guide to Alexander J. Stark, his Zan of Tamalpais real photo postcards, color cards, and market values.

MT. HOOD Oregon Perpetually Snowcapped RPPC

Carlton Sawyer and Sawyer's Scenic Photos

A collector's guide to Carlton S. Sawyer, his early Pacific Northwest postcards, Sawyer's Scenic Photos, and the company that later created View-Master.

A Maine Shore Lobster?

What Are Exaggeration Postcards?

A collector's guide to exaggeration postcards, tall-tale photography, giant produce, trick images, major publishers, and market values.

BABY in White Gown RPPC Portrait Postcard

Frank La Roche, Photographer of Seattle and the Klondike

A collector's guide to Frank La Roche's photographs of Seattle, Alaska, the Klondike Gold Rush, and the difference between his postcards and mounted prints.

LOGGING IN THE NINETIES Horse Logging skidder RPPC

Jervie Henry Eastman and Eastman's Originals

A collector's guide to Jervie H. Eastman, Eastman & Company, Northern California real photo postcards, and market values.

Vinita Will Rogers Memorial Rodeo 1940s Stryker

John Addison Stryker, Early Rodeo & Equine Photographer

A collector note on John A. Stryker's rodeo and equine photography, postcard formats, and market values.

c.1925 Four loggers on a 9 foot wide Pacific Red Cedar Tree (No. 106)

Photographer John Boyd Ellis

A collector note on John Boyd Ellis, the Ellis Post Card Company, and real photo postcards from Washington state.

John DeVere Helfrich

Photographer John DeVere Helfrich

A collector note on DeVere and Helen Helfrich's rodeo photography, real photo postcards, and market values.

That Famous Bronk 'Five Minutes to Midnight' by Ralph R. Doubleday

Photographer Ralph R. Doubleday, Half a Century of American Rodeos

A collector note on Ralph Russell Doubleday's rodeo photography, western postcards, studio images, and market values.

What Is a Real Photo Postcard?

How real photo postcards differ from printed postcards, why collectors value them, and what details to inspect.

c.1950 New Heathman Hotel in Portland Oregon

Capturing the PNW - Smith's Scenic Views, Tacoma Washington

Notes on Smith's Scenic Views, the Tacoma postcard publisher founded by Kyle Smith Sr., and the kinds of Pacific Northwest cards collectors watch for.