Michael Lehr Antiques
Live Auction

June 2026 Vernacular Photo History Auction

Wed, Jun 24, 2026 11:00AM EDT
Lot 518

Real Photo Postcard, Woman and Two Children Riding Alligators

Estimate: $25 - $50

Bid Increments

Price Bid Increment
$0 $5
$100 $10
$200 $25
$500 $50
$1,000 $100
$2,000 $250
$5,000 $500
$10,000 $1,000
$20,000 $2,000
$50,000 $5,000
A woman and two young children pose outdoors before a dense backdrop of palm fronds in this real photo postcard, likely made in Florida during the early twentieth century. The woman stands at center holding a round straw hat with a decorative medallion at her side, wearing a white high-collared blouse with pintuck detailing, a dark skirt, and a wide-brimmed black hat trimmed with striped ribbon. The two children are seated in front of her, each perched atop a large taxidermied alligator props.

The younger child at left wears a white eyelet dress and a frilled bonnet with ribbon ties, while the older child at right is dressed in a white suit with ribbon-tied shoes and grins broadly at the camera. Both alligators are fully visible on the grass, their bodies extending toward the frame edges, consistent with the souvenir alligator portrait trade common in Florida tourist destinations of the period.

St. Augustine, Florida was a popular winter resort during the Edwardian era, and novelty alligator photographs were widely produced there as tourist keepsakes, particularly near the Alligator Farm established in 1893.

The reverse bears a handwritten address to Hotel Barcelona, St. Augustine, Florida, and identifies the subjects as Kathryn Ricker, Kennel Cowan Jr., and Sara Louise Cowan Jr., with a penciled notation reading "3" at upper center.

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