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A 5.5x3" vintage RPPC photo postcard from the estate of a vintage automobile postcard collector. This was part of a huge collection of antique postcards.
Photo Overview
A well-composed real photo postcard showing a man in a straw boater hat and white shirt seated behind the wheel of an early open touring automobile, parked on a dirt road in front of a two-story frame farmhouse. The car appears to be a Reo touring model, identifiable by the script badge on the radiator, the classic brass-era headlamps, and the distinctive rounded radiator shell typical of the early 1910s. The vehicle carries a license plate reading 4380, and the driver is captured in a relaxed pose gripping the large steering wheel.
The front of the card is signed in ink \'O. K. Lee,\' likely identifying the proud owner and driver of the vehicle. The rural setting, the fine detail on the wooden-spoke wheels, and the brass fittings make this an appealing image for early automobile enthusiasts and collectors of brass-era motoring history. Real photo postcards showing identifiable early cars with named owners are especially sought after by antique auto collectors.
Historical Notes
The automobile pictured is a Reo touring car, built by the Reo Motor Car Company founded in Lansing, Michigan by Ransom E. Olds in 1904 after he left the company that bore his name. By the early 1910s, Reo was one of the most successful American automakers, and its touring cars were prized for their durability on rough country roads exactly like the one shown here. The car in this image, with its rounded radiator and brass lamps, dates to approximately 1911-1913. Reo would remain in the automobile business until 1936 before transitioning entirely to truck manufacturing, and the company\'s Speed Wagon trucks became so iconic that the rock band REO Speedwagon later took its name from them. Cars of this vintage that survive today are cherished by brass-era collectors and command significant sums at sale, making documentary photographs of them in period use increasingly valuable as historical records.
Browse our complete RPPC Photo Postcard photograph collection.
Text Present
Signed in ink on the front lower center: O. K. Lee
On the radiator badge: Reo
License plate visible on the car: 4380
Printed on the reverse: POST CARD - CORRESPONDENCE - ADDRESS ONLY
Print analysis
This is an original real photo postcard (RPPC) printed on genuine photographic paper, produced circa 1911-1913, contemporaneous with the image. The continuous-tone silver gelatin surface, the undivided descriptive elements, and the plain \'POST CARD\' back with divided correspondence and address sections are consistent with an AZO or similar photo postcard stock of the early 1910s. This is a Type 1 original photographic print, made at the time the photo was taken.
Condition
All postcards we sell are in fair to excellent vintage condition. Please see photos for any tears, folds, smudges, or other age damage that may be present.
