Ty Cobb
AMAZING FIND: Babe Ruth, ‘Shoeless’ Joe Jackson highlight vintage 1920s cards found in 100-year-old tobacco tin
A slew of rare baseball cards from the 1920s will be offered by Auction Monthly in January and February, adding the latest chapter to Ed’s collection and a remarkable sports card tale.
Born in 1909, Ed (no last name was given for family security reasons) worked as a purchasing agent in Northern California, according to his son. Ed was a loyal fan of both the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland A’s when they arrived in 1968, 10 years after the Giants relocated to California from New York City.
Ed took his son to his first major league game in 1958, traveling on a Key System train and then walking to Seal Stadium. Also that year, Ed bought his son a pack of Topps baseball cards and showed him his collection, which was stored in a tobacco tin.
“When he first showed them to me, I was 8; [the cards] seemed old and looked well worn. In my youth I was a casual card collector and at around age 12 I stopped collecting,” said Ed’s son, who also requested anonymity due to safety concerns. “Like the scorecards from the games he and I attended, [his cards] were a reminder of my time with him.”
Father and son also attended other sporting events, such as college football games, ice hockey games, sports car races, and the local short-track stock car races.
Ed’s son said his dad built his card collection thanks to family members who often gave him cards.
“Like many of those who grew up in the Depression, my father and the members of his family did not discard anything. For example, he kept in the garage back [issues] of National Geographic from the 1920s, [which] he was given [through] a subscription as a gift. The plug tobacco box [in which he stored his cards] was probably given to him by one of his uncles — and a Google search revealed that [the] tin is a lunch box-style and was made in the early 1900s.”
Ed died in 1994 while living in Tracy, Calif.
His son did a “systematic search” of the closets in Ed’s house with the hope that the tobacco tin and cards had not gone missing.
“I was relieved that they had not been given away or discarded,” his son said. “I did not think the cards had much value until a friend suggested we take them to get evaluated.”
Sure enough, Ed’s cards are a gold mine, even if not in gem-mint condition.
The highlight of Ed’s amazing collection is the unique variety of vintage Babe Ruth cards and hundreds of rare cards of Baseball Hall of Famers. The collection includes cards more than 100 years old, including tobacco, strip and Caramel cards.
“As I was digging deeper into the tobacco tin, I noticed several cards from the 1919 'Black Sox' team, and then I pulled the ‘Shoeless’ Joe Jackson card — a very rare find,” says Brandon, vice president of Auction Monthly, who did not give his last name to protect their customer’s privacy.
Ed’s antique tobacco tin was filled with many different types of pre-war cards from the 1920s, including strip baseball cards from 1919 to 1923 and rare 1924-26 Zeenuts cards that were distributed on the West Coast. Inside the tin, were many vintage cards that collectors are always on the hunt for, including:
• 1919-21 W514 “Shoeless” Joe Jackson.
• Nearly every player card from the iconic 1919 “Black Sox” team.
• 1921 E220 National Caramel Babe Ruth.
• 1922 American Caramel E121 Babe Ruth.
• 1919-21 Babe Ruth W514.
• 1920 W519 Babe Ruth.
• Ty Cobb 1922 American Caramel E121.
• 1921 W516 Ty Cobb.
• 1920 W519 George Sisler.
“We were very excited that Auction Monthly was selected to sell this incredible rare collection of 1920s vintage baseball cards with so many Babe Ruth cards,” Brandon said. “I couldn’t believe what I was seeing when the owner of the collection placed the old tin tobacco box on the table in front of me. A vintage baseball collection like this is what every collector hopes to find.”
About 80 of the cards will be graded, Brandon said, and those will be offered by Auction Monthly in the first quarter of 2024.
“Our initial estimate for the collection is high six figures,” he said.
Ed’s son confirmed that he kept a few of his dad’s vintage cards as mementos, along with Ed’s baseball glove.
“I have reached the age where it is time to begin downsizing,” Ed’s son said.
There are 20 Babe Ruth cards and cards of nearly all the players from the 1919 Chicago “Black” Sox team, including “Shoeless” Joe Jackson. Some of the cards will sell for a few thousand dollars, Brandon said.
“Most of the cards are lower grade, but they have value in any condition. This would be a multi-million-dollar collection if the vintage cards were all high grade.”
