The Great Depression was taking its toll on the country and in September of 1931, the city of Chicago’s two baseball teams came together to play a fundraising exhibition to benefit an unemployment relief fund. The crowd was nearly 35,000—a bigger turnout than the White Sox usually had for their American League games. Among those in attendance was a man famous well beyond … [Read more...]
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Historic Baseball Images from Photo File Archives at All-Star FanFest Auction
The vast collection of historic baseball photography from the archives of Photo File, Inc. will be offered at the 14th annual Hunt Auctions MLB All-Star FanFest Live Auction event on July 16 and 17 in Washington D.C. The archive is being unveiled publicly for the first time and is largely comprised of original baseball photography from the period of 1910-1940, originating … [Read more...]
Oversized Original Photo of Ty Cobb Dates to Holdout
Walk by a newsstand or store early in 1913 and you might have seen it. The oversized action photo of Ty Cobb sliding into third base was no doubt an attention getter, especially if you followed baseball. Cobb was in a dispute with Detroit Tigers owner Frank Navin over money. After hitting .409 and winning his sixth straight batting title, Cobb wanted his salary raised from … [Read more...]
Photo Of The Day: Big Joe and Little Joe
Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak in 1941 is one of major-league baseball’s iconic achievements, but “The Yankee Clipper” already was used to long hitting streaks. As an 18-year-old for the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League, DiMaggio hit safely in a mind-numbing 61 consecutive games from May 27 to July 25, 1933. That is the backdrop for this photograph, … [Read more...]
Charles Conlon Photo Archive Could Be Sold Soon
An Arkansas judge has given the green light to a possible auction of the Charles Conlon photo archive which was once the property of The Sporting News. The ruling came Wednesday as Pulaski County Circuit Court continued trudging through legal issues involving former photograph and sports memorabilia dealer John Rogers. According to Arkansas Business, Judge Chris … [Read more...]
Photo of the Day: Harding’s First Pitch
The first U.S. president to throw out a ceremonial first pitch was William Howard Taft in 1910. A dozen years later, the Washington D.C. tradition was alive and well. Our Photo of the Day from RMY Auctions is an original news photo from April 1922 showing the chief executive getting ready to deliver the pitch just prior to the Senators’ contest against the New York … [Read more...]
Photo of Musial’s Big League Arrival Surfaces
These days he would have had one by the time he appeared in the major leagues. In reality, Stan Musial didn’t find himself on a bubble gum card until 1948—seven seasons after his big league debut. World War II had something to do with that, of course, but the dearth of early Musial images makes a recent pretty special. If you love baseball history, the Vintage Photo of … [Read more...]
New to Market Album Includes Joe Jackson Photo
The emergence of a signed Joe Jackson photo gained national attention Monday with the Associated Press offering coverage to news outlets around the world. The 8"x 10" photo, said to date from 1911, comes from the personal collection of early Cleveland Plain Dealer photographer Frank W. Smith. According to Heritage Auctions, the consignor’s husband purchased it, along with … [Read more...]
Photo of the Day: Ump Catches Air as Jackie Slides in ’48 Pennant Chase
Not quite two years into his major league career, Jackie Robinson was one of the most feared baserunners in the National League. His presence in the lineup solidified the Dodgers as pennant contenders. The Photo of the Day, sponsored by RMY Auctions, is a snapshot of an intense moment in the National League race of 1948. The original 7x9" news photo, recently taken from a … [Read more...]
Photo of the Day: Wagner’s Wheels
Not unlike athletes of today, Honus Wagner was into the newest fads and gadgets. In the off-season of his job as the Pittsburgh Pirates’ shortstop, he was known to play the relatively new game of basketball on some local club teams. Late in the first decade of the 20th century, the automobile was becoming increasingly popular and Wagner jumped in with both feet. Our Photo … [Read more...]
