Original Trade Card - "M. C. Weir's Steam Dyeing and Cleaning Establishment. 89 Water Street, Auburn, N.Y."

M. C. Weir's Steam Dyeing and Cleaning Establishment

About this Item

Original trade card featuring a black-and-white illustration of a pansy-headed figure wearing a suit with the caption, "Only a Pansy Blossom." No date, circa 1880s-1910s. 2 1/2" x 4 1/4." Trade card is very clean and intact except for one faint wrinkle to the right and a few minuscule spots of discoloration. A Near Fine copy. Trade card for M. C. Weir's Steam Dyeing and Cleaning Establishment in Auburn, New York. Trade cards are antique business cards that first became popular during the late seventeenth century in Paris and Lyon, France and London, England. Trade cards were often given by business owners and proprietors to patrons and customers as a way to promote their businesses. Prior to the use of street addresses, trade cards had maps so clients could locate the associated business. Many of these cards also incorporated elaborate designs, illustrations, and other decorative features. Trade cards became popular in the United States during the nineteenth century in the period after the Civil War. The late nineteenth century also saw the advent of trade card collecting as a hobby. While they are no longer in use, trade cards influenced the formation of trading cards and were the predecessors of modern-day business cards.

Seller Inventory # 023415

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Original Trade Card - "M. C. Weir's Steam Dyeing and Cleaning Establishment. 89 Water Street, Auburn, N.Y."
• Binding: No Binding
• Condition: Collectible-Near Fine (Near Fi
• Seller catalogs:
  • Business and Finance
  • U.S. History
  • Trade Cards