Antique & Vintage Postcards

Firelight and flour dust fill the air in this vivid chrome-era glimpse inside the Raleigh Tavern Bake Shop at Colonial Williamsburg — two bakers in white caps lean over a worktable crowded with rounds of freshly baked bread, the massive double-arched brick hearth glowing behind them, copper pots lining every shelf and the whole scene radiating the warmth of 18th-century craft. The Raleigh Tavern was one of colonial Virginia's most storied gathering places, frequented by figures including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson; its reconstructed bake shop became one of the most beloved living-history demonstrations in Restored Williamsburg, drawing postcard buyers by the thousands from the 1940s through the 1960s. This Mirro-Krome card — produced by H.S. Crocker Co. of San Francisco for the Official Colonial Williamsburg series — captures the demonstration in lush, saturated color typical of mid-century chrome printing, with strong detail in the brickwork and baked goods. The card is unused with a penciled dealer price of 50¢ visible in the stamp box area.