Vintage Victorian Advertising Collectible Trade Cards

Welcome to our offering of old historic advertising trade cards covering just about any topic or Victorian product produced in the 1800s. These cards were the preferred advertising medium for merchants in the 1800s and were given away to promote businesses and products.

The high water mark for trade cards was the 1893 Chicago Columbian Exposition, which interestingly enough marked the beginning of the postcard age. But trade cards begin to fade from favor during the yellow journalism period when newspapers and magazines loosened their advertising policies and courted advertisers while the new postcard collecting rage took hold and made collecting trade cards old fashion.

Trade cards cover many of the same collectible categories as postcards such as cats, dogs, elephants, cowboys, Indians, blacks, ethnic, comics, cupids, angels, Christmas and Santa Claus. But these Victorian advertising trade card collectibles also cover patent medicines, cosmetics, perfumes, corsets, sewing machines, sewing thread, coffee, tea, farming, bicycles, jewelry, stoves, shoe polish, clothing, hats and soaps. In addition, these advertising trade cards have some the most beautiful chromolithograph printing that you will see anywhere. So take a nostalgic trip through the Victorian age and see the advertising and images that excited your grandmother and grandfather over one hundred years ago. You will not regret the time well spent.