No film exists of professional baseball in the nineteenth century. Without moving pictures we are left with colorful, often embellished, words to describe the early greats of the game. In those early days in the league's formative years no player's exploits jump off the page more-so than Mike 'King' Kelly. While we can't hear him speak in his thick Irish brogue, we can … [Read more...]
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1885 White Stockings Photo Among Auction Headliners
An original cabinet photograph featuring members of the National League pennant-winning Chicago White Stockings including Cap Anson, King Kelly, John Clarkson and Billy Sunday is among the top items in a large auction of vintage photographs set to close this weekend on eBay. The photo remains on its original mount. There is some expected wear along the mount, but … [Read more...]
10 Great 19th Century Tobacco Cards
Dating back to the 1800s, N-Cards (nineteenth century tobacco cards) remain popular with collectors more than 100 years after their creation. Here are ten standouts that are still not too difficult to find. There are surely more valuable cards but many of these remain within reach for today's collectors and offer a connection to some important names from baseball's distant … [Read more...]
19th Century Baseball Cards: 10 Great Players to Consider
Baseball cards didn't really gain mass popularity until the 1950s, but that doesn't mean cards weren't produced for any number of other greats. Just a few years ago, one of the world's oldest cards, thought to be a team shot of the 1865 Brooklyn Atlantics sold at auction for $92,000. There are many collectors who specialize in cards that date back a century or more and many of … [Read more...]
Pre-War Rarities Top Goodwin Auction
It was a case of "the older the better" early Saturday morning as Goodwin & Company's latest Masterpieces and Uncommon Common auction came to a close. Numerous cards dating back 100 years or more brought the biggest prices including a rare 19th century cabinet card and a possibly one-of-a-kind version of a 1910 Ty Cobb issue. At the top of the bidding for the St. … [Read more...]
Rich Klein’s Ramblings: Musings During the ‘Great’ Dallas Ice Storm
A few random notes while we are in the process of being "iced in" in Plano, TX. I swear if the weather we got late last week had happened while I was living in Northern New Jersey, we would have said, ‘well leave a few extra minutes to go to work and drive carefully’. Here in the Dallas-Fort Worth area (as discussed in my column on the weather beaten Awesome Card show last … [Read more...]
Collecting Baseball Autographs May Have Started Earlier Than We Thought
Collecting baseball player autographs has long been thought to be a 20th century creation. In fact, few signed baseballs exist that can be dated before the 1920's. Those that are dated from that period sometimes come under skepticism. However, that notion took a step backward in time on Tuesday, when Robert Edward Auctions revealed a couple of a old newspaper clippings … [Read more...]
King Kelly Cabinet Card Found by Picker Sold for $71,200
The 1888-89 Old Judge cabinet card of 19th century Hall of Famer Mike "King" Kelly found in an old trunk sold at auction Wednesday afternoon for $71,200. The live sale, conducted by Saco River Auctions, located in the appropriately named town of Biddeford, ME, drew a small crowd of locals, but also several phone bidders from across the country. The card was one of several … [Read more...]
Old Judge Cigarettes Cabinet Card Find
2012 might just go down as the 'Year of the Big Find' in sports collectibles. Another discovery of forgotten baseball cards is about to enter the hobby when Saco River Auction offers a newly discovered group of 1888-89 N-173 Old Judge cabinet cards including an ultra scarce King Kelly street clothes variation. An antique picker found the cards with a group of other items … [Read more...]
