Collection of Orange Ephemera

This artificial collection, created by an unknown collector, contains 86 pieces of small printed ephemera, all on orange stock. The majority of the ephemera are from the northeastern and midwestern United States, with one order form from Texas and one hotel card from Germany. They cover a broad time range, with dated items from 1853-1960 and many undated items. The majority of items are from the late 19th century.

Many types of ephemera are represented here including tickets and promotional materials for shows, amusements, and cultural events, tickets to agricultural fairs, business cards and passes for hotels, promotional items for industrial manufacturers and medicines, advertisements for foods and home merchandise such as pottery, shoes, mattresses, and bicycles, and cards from schools and classes. The items are also visually interesting, with various typefaces, decorative borders, illustrations, and die-cut shapes. Together, these items offer a window into everyday life in the United States in the 19th century.