Thomas Dyer
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Location: United Kingdom
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Original ship postcards.
Does anyone collect original ship postcards?
I mostly buy old postcards of White Star Line ships and an increasing number of Cunard as well as some other ships.
It is very interesting to read the messages that the passengers put on some of them.
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Feb/5/2009, 12:07 am
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starcat13
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Registered: 04-2012
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Re: Original ship postcards.
I have been slowly getting a collection together. It was originally just an add on to my interest in Titanic and steamships in general, but have the bug now. I just saw your message when I was looking around the web and reading about different ships. As it happens last night I looked up the address on one of my postcards of the Kaiser Wilhelm 11 and saw that the building still exists and now partly houses high priced units in NYC. The interesting part is the card was addressed to a buyer of an old dept. store chain that I used to work for in 80's, Weinstock's Lubin & co. The card has a cancel date of 1909, but this buyer, when I searched his name, was flown out to San Francisco to help with earthquake recovery during the 1906 quake and to help the stores set up an area to sell their merchandise. I agree with you that it's fascinating to peek into these old slices of life.
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Apr/11/2012, 12:50 am
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Thomas Dyer
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Re: Original ship postcards.
Thank you for sharing. It is fascinating to read the stories on the back of the cards. With some there might just be enough information to find out who they using immigration records etc. It is something I want to try.
Where do you collect your post cards from?
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Apr/11/2012, 3:01 am
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starcat13
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Re: Original ship postcards.
I found most of mine when a local ephemera club hosts a show once a year. They have many interesting post cards as well as other paper goods. I must admit that I have been buying them every so often on ebay also. Like anything else, you get a little more selective over the years of adding to your collection. I would like to find a few older white star line ships, but am not in a hurry. Some of the postcard dealers rip the stamps off which I don't like. If i'm buying a card that's used, part of the charm is having the stamp. Naturally the most expensive ones are in mint condition, but then you don't get the human interest part to go along with it. Are you able to locate White Star line cards with ease where you are or do you also have to seek them out at shows and from special dealers? It's been interesting to see what is showing up on Ebay during this 100th anniversary time period. Many it seems are trying to down size their collections and have wagered that this is the right time to do it.
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Apr/11/2012, 4:43 am
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Thomas Dyer
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Re: Original ship postcards.
I buy mine from market stalls, flea markets, and antique fairs. It's amazing how easy they are to buy.
This week I have bought a 1906 Mauritania, 1930's Doric, and a a 1960's Queen Mary.
I only paid £9 for them, but the Mauritania card was £3, Doric £6 and Queen Mary £2.
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Apr/25/2012, 11:55 am
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starcat13
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Re: Original ship postcards.
The prices you paid when converted to US$ are in the good deal category for sure. I just purchased some top loading hard plastic holders that claim they are safe for the cards. I hope so. I recently got 2 very nice "Oceanic" cards.
I have tried to bid on a few of the actual photo cards of several White Star line ships, but they get a high price and folks get competitive to win them. When you buy at the ephemera shows, the dealers give you break based on the amount you purchase and you are not in an auction which is nice.
Sometimes they have damaged cards, where the ship featured is in good shape, but the rest of the card is a loss. You can get these for very little, 10 to 25 cents and if crafty make other items out of them that make nice little gifts for your ship enthusiast friends.
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Apr/27/2012, 2:52 am
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