Lot of 10 Vintage US Navy RPPC Postcards 1911-1915 USS Maryland Sailors Group For Sale

Up for sale is an exceptional, historically significant estate lot of 10 original antique Real Photo Postcards (RPPC) documenting the service of US Navy Sailor W.E. Seaberry aboard the armored cruiser USS Maryland between 1911 and 1915.This is a phenomenal, cohesive archive belonging to a single sailor. A major highlight is a card featuring a detailed handwritten message by Seaberry himself, sent from Honolulu, Hawaii Territory on December 17, 1911. He describes an excursion to the Kilauea Volcano, writing about standing on the \"hot sand\" and identifying himself in the photo (\"standing on the right with hat on the back of my head\").Another standout is a 1915 group portrait featuring a crisp, rare ink souvenir stamp on the reverse from the Penny Arcade at 741 Fifth Street, San Diego, celebrating the Panama-California Exposition.The 10 photographic cards in this collection include:

• Honolulu / Kilauea Volcano Excursion (1911): Includes the fantastic handwritten and signed message by W.E. Seaberry on the back.
• Studio Portrait: Clean, unposted portrait of W.E. Seaberry in full uniform, signed on the reverse.
• Fun Costume Studio Portrait: Two sailors posing in front of a painted ocean backdrop, with one wearing fuzzy woolie chaps and a western gun belt.
• San Diego Panama-California Exposition (1915): Group studio portrait of four sailors draped in a US Flag, featuring the 1915 Penny Arcade San Diego ink stamp on the back.
• Southern Pacific Railroad Train: Sailors leaning out of the windows and posing next to a train car in San Francisco (1911).
• Galley \"Spud Duty\" (1912): Great candid interior shot of two sailors peeling potatoes on the ship\'s deck.
• Crossing the Line Ceremony (1912): An excellent action shot capturing the classic Navy \"Shellback\" initiation rituals.
• Onshore Pie Eating Contest (1912): Fun recreation shot of sailors lined up at a wooden bench with a crowd watching.
• Ship Deck Candid: Three sailors casually posing topside by the ship\'s massive ventilators.
• USS Maryland Swim Call (1912): A rare, candid action shot of sailors swimming off the side of the ship.

Condition & Technical Specs: All cards are authentic, 110+ year-old photographic prints on antique paper. The backs are incredibly clean, featuring AZO (four triangles up) and NOKO stamp boxes, perfectly dating the photo papers to the 1904–1918 era. They are in great antique condition overall, showing minor corner bumps, light edge wear, or tiny pinpricks on a couple of edges typical of silver gelatin prints from this age. Please see the high-resolution scans of the fronts and backs to assess the exact condition of each card.This is a ready-made collection for any serious USN military historian, RPPC collector, or Hawaii/California history enthusiast. The cards will be sleeved individually and shipped securely in a rigid mailer. Thanks for looking!Store

---