Welcome to Moody's Postcards, your source for vintage, collectible postcards! My name is Richard Moody and I started the company in 1986 and we have been accumulating "old" (otherwise known as "vintage collectible") postcards for twenty years. We specialize in United States view postcards but we also have thousands of antique foreign views, topical postcards and trade cards. Our goal is to exceed your expectations and provide a superior selection of the collectible postcard you are searching for.
Books on view cards in general just do not exist as far as I know however you can find some information in books such as James L Lowe's "Standard Postcard Catalog" that I mentioned in my last blog. In that book under "Sets and Series" you can find mention of Raphael Tuck series on St. Augustine Florida, St. Louis Missouri etc. Also, the "Detroit Publishing Company Collector's Guide" by Lowe and Papell which was done in the 1970s and Nancy Stechschulte's 1994 book "The Detroit Publishing Company Postcards" have extensive information about the postcards (estimated to exceed 17,000) produced by the company, many of which were view cards. You can also find information in books such as "Baseball Stadium Postcards" by Tom Crabtree, "Nevada Post Card Album" by Robert Greenwood, and the large number of books published by Arcadia Publishing in "The Postcard History Series". The Arcadia books are done by individual postcard collectors who share their collection and knowledge of specific towns or areas. There may very well be an Arcadia book that will cover the area you are interested in so check out their website at Arcadia Publishing and the price is less than $20.
When shopping for postcards on you favorite town, remember that content is king and availability and condition are close behind. The first card below shows a nice view of the Galesburg Illinois Burlington Railroad Depot but has the big plus of the California Zephyr in the station.
The second card shows the interior of the French Market in New Orleans. While exterior views are common, this scarce interior view with tables built around the columns with ornate mirrors on the columns and stools for the patrons increases the value of this card substantially.
