Friday, May 27, 2016

I’ll trade you a “House That Jell-o Built” for a “Bradley Fertilizer Company”

In my last post I said that American Heritage is one of my favorite magazines, now sadly defunct. What appeals to me are well-written articles on historical topics, but also the beautiful layouts of articles like “Trade Cards,” which appeared in the issue dated February 1967.

These cards, according to author William G. McLoughlin of Brown University, were popular from the 1870s until after the turn of the century. The cards shown are outstanding examples of the craft of advertising when color printing was still a novelty. As eye-catching as they are, my favorite is the one with a child running in the path of a locomotive...to promote a cold remedy! That is what I would call shock and awe advertising.

The article is Copyright © 1967 American Heritage Publishing Co.













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3 comments:

  1. David Miller7:47 PM

    I love these old trade cards. Great illustrations a top notch printing. Many are very valuable.

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  2. Postino9:51 PM

    Dave, I don't think I have ever seen any. Do you see them during your antiques excursions?

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  3. David Miller5:05 PM

    Sometimes. We recently saw a couple that sells a lot of them at an antique fair in Petaluma. Karen bought a couple in the past, but the prices have gone sky high for the attractive ones. As much as $75. They turn up other places, but usually for more than we are willing to pay.

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