Your Information Resource for Vintage Baseball Cards
eNews (February 2005, Issue #10)    www.oldcardboard.com

Welcome to Old Cardboard, the most complete reference resource for information about collecting vintage baseball cards and related memorabilia.  More information about this eNewsletter and its companion website and magazine are found at the bottom of this page.

Contents:
1. Updated Auction and Show Calendar
2. Preview of Old Cardboard Magazine Issue #3
3. Latest Updates to OldCardboard.com Website
4. Book Review (Block, Baseball Before We Knew It )
5. Memory Lane Wins Naxcom Vintage Contest

1. Updated Auction and Show Calendar*

The following is a summary of vintage card events coming up in the next 30-45 days. For the latest listings on all upcoming vintage card shows and auctions, see the auction calendar on the Old Cardboard website.

March 2005
4-5Honolulu 22st Annual Kit Young Hawaii Trade Conference (Contact: see NAXCOM Trade Shows events page).
4-6Philadelphia, PA EPSCC Ft. Washington Show, Ft. Washington, PA (see website for details).
11Internet/Phone Hunt Auctions (contact details to be added later)

*To add an auction or vintage show date to our calendar just send an email to editor@oldcardboard.com and we'll be happy to post it for you.  The designates an Old Cardboard website sponsor.

2.  Preview of Old Cardboard Magazine Issue #3

Issue #3 of Old Cardboard magazine is shaping up nicely and is on schedule for a mid-April delivery. An overview of the planned articles have been posted on the Old Cardboard website at https://www.oldcardboard.com/misc/issue03/issue03.asp. As seen from the overview, a diverse range of topics includes articles on sets from the 19th century (N172 Old Judge), from the very early 20th century (T206 Cigarette Packs and the All Star Base-Ball candy box series) as well as from the 1930s/40s (R448 Swell Sport Thrills).  Other ongoing "regular" sections include the Editor's Notebook and the Collector's Dugout profiles of fellow vintage collectors.  If you are not already receiving the magazine, you can join our growing family of subscribers at https://www.oldcardboard.com/subscriptions.asp.  Back issues #1 and #2 can also be ordered from that webpage.

3.  Latest Updates to OldCardboard.com website

Recent (past 30-45 days) additions and updates to the Old Cardboard website include:

New sets that have been added include:
1912 Baseball Player Stamps
W711 Cincinnati Team Issues

Checklists that have been added include:
1889 E. R. Williams Card Game
1948 Baseball's Greats HOF Exhibits

Set Galleries that have been added include:
1889 E. R. Williams Card Game
1948 Baseball's Greats HOF Exhibits Note: we are still looking for a scan for card #8 Collins. If you have one that you would like to share, please send via attached email to editor@oldcardboard.com.

Other information that has been added includes:
1910 T212-2 Obak Backs

A special thanks to Brian Scantland who sent us a scan of the T212-2 Obak "Just Right" back (shown at right). The scan completes our image series of all 35 Obak slogan back variations. A gallery of the 35 different backs can be seen at the link shown above. Summary information about the 1909-11 T212 Obak baseball cards can be accessed at https://www.oldcardboard.com/t/t212/t212.asp?cardsetID=706.

We will continue to update the website with checklists and full set galleries for additional vintage issues, so come back often to check out the latest additions. Any input or volunteer assistance from website viewers in adding new checklists and scans for card galleries is most welcome. Please send input to editor@oldcardboard.com.

4. Book Review (Block, Baseball Before We Knew It )

Recent discoveries have shed new light and stimulated a renewed interest in the historical origins of the game of baseball (see Old Cardboard, Issue #2, "The Earliest Bat and Ball Card"). The question of baseball's origins have never been answered more thoroughly, however, than in David Block's just-released book, Baseball Before We Knew It.

Block's research traces the origins of baseball to various bat and ball games dating from the middle ages. His narrative explains in much detail the events and biases leading up to the Mills Commission's erroneous declaration that baseball was invented by Abner Doubleday in Cooperstown, NY in 1839--an account that has long since been discredited.

Illustrations in the book include virtually every woodcut and engraving known of children playing bat and ball games. Following the detailed narrative and analysis of baseball's origins, fully half of the book is devoted to a comprehensive annotated bibliography and appendices citing the full text of a variety of source documents and correspondence. Thus, nearly every reference relating to the origins of the game are organized into a single volume. It will no doubt become the go-to resource for years to come for those researching the roots of the game of baseball.

David Block, Baseball Before We Knew It (University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln and London, 2005)

5. Memory Lane Wins Vintage Sales Competition

Memory Lane, Inc. (Tustin, CA) prevailed to take top honors in the NAXCOM "Vintage Invitational" showdown that started with 32 dealers of vintage baseball cards. The contest ended earlier this month after several months of online competition that began early last Fall (Old Cardboard eNewsletter #5, Sept. 2004).

The national competition was structured as a weekly single-elimination tournament similar to the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Thanks to the sale of a 1952 Mickey Mantle (GAI 7.5) rookie card for $26,000, Memory Lane held off a late flurry of sales by McAvoy Sports Cards (Omaha, NE.) in the final round to capture the title Vintage Memorabilia Dealer of the Year and $10,000 in the first annual event. McAvoy earned the $2500 second prize in the contest that totaled $14,500 in cash awards.

"Vintage" was defined for the contest as cards and memorabilia that were originally produced before 1980. Some of the earlier items sold included a framed display that contained a 1911 T206 Christy Matthewson card with accompanying Piedmont cigarette pack ($4,500) as well as a 1949 Bowman Duke Snyder Rookie card (card #266, graded PSA 8; $2,310).

The success of the event resulted in NAXCOM's announcement for an accelerated roll-out for a second event--the "Vintage Invitational II," which gets underway March 7. For more information about the NAXCOM Vintage Invitational II, go to NAXCOM.com or call them at 877-255-3162.

Lyman and Brett Hardeman
Old Cardboard, LLC.

Old Cardboard, LLC. was established in December, 2003, to help bring information on vintage baseball card collecting to the hobbyist. Produced by collectors for collectors, this comprehensive resource consists of three components: (1) Old Cardboard Magazine, (2) a companion website at www.oldcardboard.com and (3) this eNewsletter. The Old Cardboard website contains more than 500 pages of descriptive reference information for baseball card sets produced before 1950.  Each of these set summaries has a direct set-specific link to auctions and a similar link to 's powerful search engine for further research. The website also includes a Show and Auction Calendar, an eBay Top 50 Vintage Sellers List, and much more. As a result, the Old Cardboard website makes a great "Alt-tab" companion for vintage card shoppers and researchers. Old Cardboard eNews provides current hobby news, upcoming shows and auctions, and updates to the website and the magazine. It is published around the middle of each month. For a FREE subscription to the eNewsletter, or for subscription information on Old Cardboard Magazine, please visit the website at www.oldcardboard.com. If you find this information resource helpful, please tell your friends. We need your support and your feedback. Thank you.