1880s Trade Card
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This 1880s trade card is for Dyer & Silvia, a hairdressing establishment which opened in 1869. Manuel X. Dyer (1844-1914) and Joseph E. Silvia (1843-1925) were in business together until 1911. The Silvia family was regarded as one of the first Portuguese families to settle in Fall River. Joseph’s daughter, Harriet “Hattie” Bence Silvia (1878-1971), was a noted china painter in Fall River.
Trade cards became a popular form of advertisement during the 1870s through the 1900s. The vibrant, whimsical colored printing captured the public’s attention, with many forming their own collections within albums.
Color printing was still a novelty during this time, so collections of brightly printed cards were a form of entertainment. By the early 1900s, full scale printing in magazines lead to the decline in trade card popularity.