Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

No need to start with Checklists, or basic facts regarding the 1949 BOWMAN set. I am sure most of you are well versed on these fundamentals.

I will post interesting bits of information which I have gleaned from my experiences collecting these cards and uncut sheets since I was age 11.
Stay tuned for a lot of pictures, plus my research into this set. And, feel free to Show-N-Tell of your 1949 BOWMAN cards (and/or experiences).


Circa June 1949, candy store windows in the Philadelphia area were displaying these 1949 BOWMAN adv. banners promoting their fourth-coming series of BB cards.

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...SeriesXx25.jpghttp://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...SeriesZx25.jpghttp://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...SeriesXx25.jpg



Complete 4th series uncut 36-card sheet [this series (cards #109 - 144) were issued in the Summer of 1949]
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...seriesheet.jpg


I can tell you that the kids in our neighborhood were really excited when this series of cards were available in the Summer of 1949.
These cards were more colorful than the earlier Bowman's, the players names were printed on their fronts, and on the backs of the
cards were facsimile autographs.


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...VanderMeer.jpghttp://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...anderMeerB.jpg




TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Great topic, Ted! Will show off my three cards from the set. I'm curious if you know much about the grayish background variants occasionally seen for cards like the Campy RC.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...068ac512d1.jpg

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Looking forward to hearing and seeing more, Ted.

I know the info is most likely out there but while I'm here and it's on my mind, what's the story behind the 1952 Topps Look and See cards?

I assume they were sold in separate packs away from baseball but were they released around the same time?

I can also assume they weren't near as popular as the 52 Topps baseball cards, but did some want them for the Babe Ruth card?

Thanks in advance, Ted. :)

..

The gray variations always looked like missing color printing passes to me.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hi Jason
" Great topic, Ted! Will show off my three cards from the set. I'm curious if you know much about the grayish background variants occasionally seen for cards like the Campy RC. "

I have about 60+ "grayish" ( I refer to them as SLATE) cards in one of my 1949 BOWMAN sets. The Hi # Slate cards are extremely difficult to find.
Here is a sample of some of my Slate cards......


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...SislerDoby.jpg

The majority of the Slate cards are cards normally with Green, Light Blue, Orange, or Yellow pastel colors. Very rarely you can find a Slate that normally is Red or dark Blue.

In a forthcoming post, I will display my uncut sheet (36-cards) which includes 17 cards that were not printed with their normal background colors (i.e., Slates).



TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Here is a 3rd series complete sheet (cards #4, 74 - 108). Note that it includes 17 cards with Slate backgrounds.
These 17 cards normally have Green or Orange backgrounds.


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...bowman49.3.jpg




The 1949 BOWMAN cards were issued in the Spring of 1949. Depending what part of the country you were in, the 1st
and 2nd Series cards [#1 - 73 (minus #4)] were available at the start of the BB season.

For instance, if you lived in the South, then only cards [#1 - 3, 73, 5 - 36] were available in the Spring. Followed by
cards #37 - 72 which were available in May or June.

Pictured above are the 3rd Series cards (#4, 74 - 108) which were available Circa June of 1949.

Post #1 in this thread depicts the 4th series of cards (#109 - 144) which were issued in the Summer of 1949.

The tough Hi numbers were issued in Sept. of 1949. The 5th series cards (#145 - 180) are the most difficult to find.

The 6th series cards incl. [#181 - 240 (and the 12 variations)]. Stay tuned for more info on the 5th & 6th series.

This classic set of 252 cards is the first large set of BB cards issued since the 1940 Play Ball set. Furthermore, approx.
40 % of the subjects in the 1949 BOWMAN set are ROOKIE cards.


OK, enough said for now....now show us some of your favorite cards in this set.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Olive oil in amber
 

http://net54baseball.com/attachment....1&d=1574174165

Are we going to get in trouble for not being pre-war?

Orange and Red Dodgers
 

Green
 

Hi Dale

I'm sorry, but I cannot answer your question regarding the Look-N-See set.

We had "tons" of 1952 TOPPS (regular issue) cards in our neighborhood. But, we never saw any Look-N-See packs. And, this wasn't just limited to our neighborhood,
for we rode our bikes to other areas (miles away) to search for more, or different cards. The only ones available to us kids were BOWMAN's and TOPP's.

Perhaps, some one on this forum will chime in here and tell us about the Look-N-See cards.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Interesting thread.

Over the years, I have seen a lot of the 1948 Bowman basketball slates and eBay sellers would call them "rare variations" and try to get more money for them. However, I later discovered that these were printers' scrap and were given to kids by Zabel Bros. employees. They were later hand-cut and this is why you aren't going to find any sitting in a slab with a numerical grade. These cards get the AUTH designation only.

Now the 1949 Bowman baseball slates posted by Peter and Ted above don't look hand-cut at all. Hmmm ... interesting.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Here are two examples from 60+ Slate cards in my collection. One is obviously hand-cut (Salkeld); and, the other is Factory-cut.
A fair number of these color-error cards are indeed Factory-cut.

And that does not surprise me because when I opened up 1949 BOWMAN 5-cent packs, I do remember finding color-error cards.
Not that often; nevertheless, some which were mostly from the 3rd Series issue.

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...lkeldSLATE.jpg




Hi samosa4u

Here is an uncut sheet of Hi # cards (#37 - 72) from the 1948 BOWMAN Basketball set that you alluded to. Typically, Zabel Bros.
employees would take home such mis-printed sheets. Eventually, these 36 cards would be cut up then distributed into the hobby.
Quite a number of these sheets were discovered back in the 1970's.

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...rorSheet50.jpg


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Now this is getting very interesting!

So the slate sheets for the 1948 Bowman basketball series were all rejected, but the following year some of the slate sheets for the 1949 baseball series ended up being factory cut and inserted into packs. I wonder what happened here. It looks like Zabel Bros. just decided to send some of the slate sheets to Bowman and left it up to them. Bowman obviously had no problem with them, otherwise, I don't think they would have ended up being sold to the public.

Sorry for hijacking your post with 52 Topps card questions, Ted. I wasn't thinking. :o

Not a lot of info out there, like when they came out or availability, etc, that I could find but did find these 2 links with a bit of info.
https://www.psacard.com/cardfacts/no...ok-n-see/28128
https://www.cardboardconnection.com/...-trading-cards

Thanks Ted. :)

Dale

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Major Rookie cards in 1949 BOWMAN set....starting off with Ashburn, Campy, Lemon, Roberts, Snider, and Wynn. Stay tuned for more Rookie cards will be displayed.

Although some publications identify the 1949 BOWMAN cards of Jackie Robinson, Satchell Paige, and Larry Doby as being their Rookie cards....this is not true.



http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...nCampyPSA4.jpghttp://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...eSnider25x.jpghttp://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...hburn1949b.jpg





ROOKIE card.....issued Summer 1947 ………………..…....…….… 1948 ……..…...…..…....….. 1949
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...obby1948BT.jpghttp://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...ieRobinson.jpg

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...JRobbyPSA5.jpg





ROOKIE card......issued Summer 1949 ……………………………..………....……… Fall 1949
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...afPaige50x.jpg . . http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...anPaige50x.jpg





ROOKIE card......issued Summer 1949 …………………..……………....…… Fall 1949
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...eafDoby25x.jpg . . http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...ryDoby1951.jpg




TED Z

T206 Reference
.

bowman
 

Wow, that's some cool stuff there Ted !

What a great topic! My favorite set
 

How many RC’s in the set, Ted?

Ted, I remember well a long discussion many moons ago back in the 90's at
the old show in Asbury Park, NJ discussing the '49 Bowman set, one we both collected. So how about a little chat about the beautiful PCL Bowman subset. Best, John

My only '49.

The "Walking Man" -- still 11th all-time in walks drawn
 

http://net54baseball.com/attachment....1&d=1574248534

Possible RC -- Ted can have the final say.

The pickle-salesman who stopped Ted Williams at 84 games reaching base
 

http://net54baseball.com/attachment....1&d=1574249427

RC candidate

Can't wait to read your findings. I have the Cubs from set but didn't post. However, it seems only one series had facs auto on back. Only 130, 134 and 142 have facs autos. In addition I have both white and gray backs for some of the 1st Series. I also have the Bob Sheffing with name and no name so don't know how many more were printed this way. Unfortunately don't have any "slate" backgrounds so have something else to look for. Thanks.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hey John

Great to hear from you....thanks, you bring back some great memories of the Asbury Park Shows at the Jersey Shore.

OK, you beat me to it, I intend to eventually get into the 1949 BOWMAN Pacific Coast League (PCL) set.....but not yet.

Anyhow, here is a preview for you....some seldom seen PCL cards.....

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...bowmanpcl1.jpg


Stay tuned for more PCL stuff.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hi Tony

There are 2 tiers of Rookie cards in the 1949 BOWMAN set.

HOFers…...Ashburn, Campanella, Lemon, Roberts, Snider, Wynn

Other players....Approx. 100 more Rookie cards.
This is still a work in progress, as there are numerous 1947 TIP TOP cards of which I'm cross-checking with the 1949 BOWMAN cards.
I should have a complete Rookie list tomorrow.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Here are a few from a small group I picked up earlier this year. I wonder if any of the prizes are still around like the rings or the baseball game...

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hi Rob

I have the Baseball bank. Haven't seen the Ring in many-a-moon.


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...BowmanBank.jpg



TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Thanks for posting the baseball bank, Ted. I had not seen that before.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Checklist of ROOKIE cards in the 1949 BOWMAN set......

Card
# .. Subject

1 Bickford
2 Porterfield
8 Dickson
10 Gray
13 Chesnes
14 Simmons
15 Garver
16 Kozar
17 Torgeson
21 Baumholtz
25 Scheib
28 Kolloway
30 Seminick
31 Kokos
32 Yost
35 Raschi
39 Goodman
43 Mitchell
44 Philley
45 Westlake

46 Roberts...……….….. *
57 Bearden
62 Hatton
67 Dark
74 McBride
76 Nicholson
78 Zoldak
79 Northey
81 Stallcup
83 Scheffing
84 Campanella…….….. *
87 Gumpert
88 Salkeld
90 Coan
92 W. Jones
94 Vernon
95 Pollett
102 Spence
103 Tipton
104 Stanky

105 B. Kennedy
108 Heintzelman
109 Fitzgerald
110 Wynn....…………... *
113 Lamano
118 Mele
121 Christman
123 Blatnick
124 Murtaugh
127 Majeski
130 Walker
134 Borowy
135 Rojek
139 Arft
140 Scarborough
141 Lupien
143 Dillinger
144 Haefner

High #s

145 Donnelly
146 M. McCormick
147 Singleton
150 Clark
152 Maddern
155 Guerra
157 Masterson
159 Moulder
160 Blackburn
161 Thompson
164 Wertz
167 Martin
168 Lade
171 Fowler
172 Pellagrini
177 Lopata
178 T. Brown
181 Niarhos
182 Peck
183 Stringer

187 Marchildon
188 Drews
189 Wooten
190 Hearn
191 Haynes
195 Bockman
200 Dobernic
204 Savage
214 Ashburn….…….….. *
217 Pieretti
218 Kryhoski
222 Kellner
223 Hofman
226 Snider...….…….….. *
228 J. Mayo
237 M. Kennedy
238 Lemon....…………... *
240 Young **


* Note.... HOFer

** Note.... The front of the Norman "Babe" Young card actually depicts Bobby Young.
The bio on the back of this cards pertains to Norman Young.

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...949young_1.jpg



TED Z

T206 Reference
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Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

My favorite 1949 BOWMAN action pose....Stan (the Man) Musial in his classic batting stance.

How about showing us your favorite action pose in this set ?


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...manmusuial.jpg .



TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Action shot?
 

Ted,

What about the big leg kick of Warren Spahn?

Action?
 

Or the Springfield Rifle with 5 O’clock shadow.

Action - more candidates
 

Doby, Lamanno, Kryhoski

I never like the Bowmans and they were the last things on my want lists. I have been gaining an appreciation for them recently though. I always hated the 49's. They were the worst in my eyes. I think I own 1.

You made them look great and with the story I am really beginning to like them!! Thanks for sharing and help making me a fan.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

OK guys.... please pardon the lengthy story you are about to read here (if you so choose). A flashback to the 1970's begins this story.
I returned to this hobby in 1977. I credit my two Daughters (teenagers), who encouraged me to recover the BB cards from my youth.
Debbie and Zoe have always been avid BB fans. In 1977, they began collecting BB cards after seeing Reggie Jackson's amazing 3 HRs
in the final game of the 1977 World Series.

My large collection of the Sportscards from my youth were stored in the attic of my folks home. This 1949 set was the first one I was
interested in completing. In the process of acquiring the 40+ cards I needed, I was mystified by certain variations in it. And, so were
the hobby Price Guides of that period. Thru my hobby friend in Florida, John, I met another serious collector of 1949 Bowman cards in
North Carolina, Ralph Triplette.
Ralph and I compared our theories regarding these variations. We concluded that we should publish them in SCD. When we contacted
SCD, Bob Lemke thought our "ground-breaking" story was better suited as an article in their colorful BASEBALL CARDS Magazine. Our
article was published in Spring 1983 issue of BASEBALL CARDS Mag. Jim Beckett included our findings in his 1983 Beckett Price Guide.

Between Ralph and I, we have (or have seen) 6 of the 7 uncut sheets (36 cards each) which were printed in the production of this set.
The elusive 7th sheet has never been seen. On display here is my simulated version of it, which I put together many years ago. Note,
the 12 variations in the 1949 BOWMAN set are printed on the lower rows of this last sheet. Ralph and I have evidence (in the form of
overprinted backs) of the exact placement of 32 cards on this sheet. When I constructed this simulation, four of the variations on the
bottom row were unknown. Recently, additional evidence has surfaced and I have switched the placement of these 4 cards (as noted).


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...ed7thsheet.jpg
…………………………………....…….………… ^________________________^ ……….……….. ^_____________^

Note....evidence surfaced in recent years which made me switch the positions of Dillinger & Murtaugh, and switch Fitzgerald & Priddy


Stay tuned for more information regarding the 12 variations in this set.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Even more elusive 8th sheet...
 

Here's my imagined rendering of the even more elusive 8th sheet:

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Indeed, the toughest series of cards in the 1949 BOWMAN set are in the 5th Series (#145 - 180). My theory is, these were most
likely short-printed. As Bowman was in a hurry for the production of their last 72 cards of this set (the 6th Series). The 6th Series
cards (comprising of sheets 6 and 7) are somewhat more available than the 5th series cards.

In completing several 1949 Bowman sets throughout the years, my experience is, that these 2 cards are the most difficult to find:
Preacher Roe (#162) and George Stirnweiss (#165).

I am not sure why the Preacher Roe card is tougher to find than other cards in the 5th Series. But, one thing is for sure, Roe was
the Dodgers' southpaw pitching "ace" during 1948 - 1953 with a 93 - 33 Won-Lost record.


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...Stirnweiss.jpg


Now, on the other hand, the scarcity of the George Stirnweiss card goes with a story......

Back in the 1980's and 1990's, when I would set up at BB cards Shows in New Jersey, George Stirnweiss' family often attended.

His family would buy every Stirnweiss card I had (1947 Tip Top, 1948 - 1951 Bowmans, 1952 Topps, etc.). Therefore, my guess
is this is partially the reason for why his 1949 Bowman card is very difficult to find.


I'm curious....you collectors of 1949 BOWMAN cards....what card (or cards) in this set have you found difficult to get ?


TED Z

T206 Reference
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Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hey Tony

Neat "sheet"......but, Porterfield, Shea, and Sanford are missing from your Yankees Pitcher's display ? :)


TED Z

T206 Reference
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Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Zabel Bros. Printers in Philadelphia produced the Bowman Sportscards & Non-Sports cards. The 1948 - 1952 cards were printed using 38-inch (track width) presses.
This press dimension neatly accommodated the printing of two adjacent 36-card sheets on a standard size cardboard sheet.

Unlike the first five series (36 subjects each), the 6th Series comprises of 72 subjects. Cards #181 - 216, and cards #217 - 240 (plus the 12 variations).


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...ed7thsheet.jpg





The 6th Series cards are Hi #s, and they are pretty tough to find. From my experience, though, the Bob Lemon (#238) card is considerably more difficult to find
than the other 71 cards in this series. I don't understand why this is. Anyone on this forum, who collects these cards, having a tough time finding certain cards ?


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...noldsLemon.jpg


Here's a list of some of the star players of that era that are in the 6th Series...…

Richie Ashburn
Ralph Branca
Larry Doby
Joe Gordon
Larry Jansen
Charlie Keller
Bob Lemon
Eddie Lopat
Johnny Mize
Satchell Paige
Pete Reiser
Phil Rizzuto
Schoolboy Rowe
Dick Sisler
Duke Snider
Virgil Trucks


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

The big 3
 

Ted, my sheet isn’t all Yankees pitchers, just the big 3.

I’ve completed a couple of 49 bowman sets and the hardest cards for me have been 162 Roe, 175 Appling, 189 Wooten, 194 Branca, 211 Ferriss, and 238 Lemon HOF RC. I also do find the 145 to 181 relatively scarce as well. Also the PNOB versions of the 12 “double prints” are also hard to find.

With all of the copies of these cards out there, do you really think that the Stirnweiss family collecting of the card could have the impact of making it scarce? There had to be millions of these printed. But how many could be in circulation / existence now? I wonder...

Tony

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

It's sort of disappointing that this 1949 BOWMAN thread has not received more responses. It's a classic BB card set of 252 cards. The largest color set since the 1933 GOUDEY set.

OH WELL ! Let's see if we can generate some more interest by including the mysterious 1949 BOWMAN Pacific Coast League (PCL) set of 36 cards. Bowman expanded their market
to the west coast by introducing the PCL cards. Judging by their design and their colors, my guess is that these 36 cards were printed and issued during the Summer of 1949.

In the 1970's and early 1980's, the general consensus in the hobby was that these cards were only issued as sheets, of which the cards were hand-cut. This myth was dismissed in
the late 1980's by several finds.

Displayed here is the PCL waxpack wrapper.

…..…...... extremely rare 1949 PCL wrapper .................................................. ................... regular 5-cent 1949 wrapper

. http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...nwrappergb.jpg


Since the early 1980's, in the process of acquiring all 36 cards Factory-cut, I have completed 3.4 sets
of these PCL cards. Here is page #1 (of 3 pages) in my 1949 BOWMAN album.

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...bowmanpcl1.jpg



……………….…...… Factory-cut ………..………..…..………...…………….. Hand-cut

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...LMaltzRaim.jpg
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...altzRaimBk.jpg




Stay tuned for more 1949 PCL stuff....which includes my first "big deal" with Alan "Mr Mint" Rosen....and, my PCL find.

And, if you have some of these very "rare gems", don't be shy, share them with us.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Ted, I only posted once here but I've been loving all the info and pics! Thank you!!

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

1st series back colors
 

Can you comment on the light and dark backs of the first series (1-73 minus #4)? Are the dark backs rarer? When I put my set together without paying attention to the backs, I ended up with 44 light backs and 28 dark backs so it appears that the dark backs are harder to find. Do you know if that is really true?

And is there a story to some of the cards having the player name on the front and some not?

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hi Jay

BOWMAN printed and issued their 1st series (72 cards) with White backs. These cards were very plentiful in the Spring of 1949, especially in the Northeast.
The Gray backs followed (circa May-June 1949), and it's my understanding that these cards were distributed in the South. And, the Mid West.

Apparently, the Gray backs were printed in lower quantities than the White backs.

TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Hi Ted,

Thanks for the confirmation. I am currently trying to find the backs that I don't have in my set, and so far, the white backs have definitely been easier to get.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Jay

I have two complete sets (252 cards). The first one with all the 1st series cards with White backs. And, the 2nd set with all Gray backs.
Completing the 1st series cards with Gray backs took me a long time. Bobby Doerr (#23) was the last one I needed.

Which reminds me....regarding the Gray backs, the first 36 cards [#1 - 3, 73, 5 - 36] were considerably more difficult to find with Gray
backs than cards #37 - 72.

Was this pattern the same for your ?


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

When I initially collected the set, of the 28 grey backs I have, 16 were from the first 36 cards and 12 were from the second 36 cards so it doesn't seem like it so far. We'l see how it goes now that I am trying to find the specific back colors. Also, the Bobby Doerr card I originally had was a grey back.

My set is generally VG to VG/EX so that could have something to do with it as well.

Would you say the grey backs tend to have a premium since they appear to be more scarce?

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hi Jay

Back in the 1980's, the Gray backs of the 1st Series (72) cards had a slight premium for them. However, in recent years no one deems them anymore valuable.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hi Jason

I guess you are referring to the 12 variations in this set. As you know, the set comprises of 240 subjects. However, each sheet was printed on a 36-card format.
This number (240) is not divisible by 36; therefore, BOWMAN had their Printer add 12 cards to fill in the blank spaces on the 7th (last) sheet.

Six subjects were derived from the 3rd sheet. Six more from the 4th sheet. You can see these 12 guys here on my simulated 7th sheet. Starting with Scheffing,
Evans, Majeski, and continuing the on the bottom row.with Mize, Brazle, Dillinger, Rizzuto, Murtaugh, Fitzgerald, Priddy, Salkeld, Zoldak.

Feel free to ask me any more questions regarding this set.


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...ed7thsheet.jpg


TED Z

T206 Reference
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Ted,

If you'd be good with it I might like to summarize much of what you've provided here into an article for the SABR Baseball Cards blog. Let me know if that sounds good. Naturally I'd credit you appropriately.

Thanks,
Jason

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Ted,

You stated that the 5th series are tough because Bowman was in a hurry to get out the 6th (and last) series, so they rushed the 5th series. Did Bowman regularly do this with their other sets as well?

You also mentioned that the cards from 1948 - 52 were printed on a 38-inch (track width) press. Is this a five-color press you're talking about or was it a smaller one? I know that Zabel Bros. had many presses in their plant. They would use the big presses for the bigger jobs and small presses for smaller jobs. Back then, they did not have the technology to print on both sides of the sheet at the same time. After printing the fronts, they would then move the sheets to a smaller press to print the backs.

Oh, and I never knew the PCL cards existed! Very cool!

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Jason

That is fine with me, provided that I get to proof-read it before you submit it to SABR. AND, you credit
Ralph Triplette and I by referring to our 1983 Baseball Cards Magazine article (6 pages) displayed here.


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...dsMagazine.jpg.http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...ardsMagP52.jpg



TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

My first complete 1949 BOWMAN PCL set.

In 1984 at the Atlantic City BB card Show, I checked-out Alan "Mr Mint" Rosen's booth. He had his usual spectacular display of "oldies-n-goodies".
Including a very seldom seen complete 1949 BOWMAN PCL set.

"How much, Alan ?"....I asked. He said 2K. I said I have exactly 2K in my pocket. But, I need to spend some of it elsewhere. He suggested I give
him 500, and we can complete this deal at a later date. He removed this set off the table and told me stop by to take it with me upon leaving the
show.
The following week I drove to his home in North Jersey. He was more interested in trading than cash. I was aware of this, so I brought an eclectic
bunch of goodies. You'll have quite a laugh when you find out what he took in trade for the 1500 balance, which I owed him to complete the deal.

Here is page #2 (of 3 pages) from my 1949 BOWMAN album. Have a good look, as you very rarely see these PCL cards.


……..… "Pinky" Woods ………………………….…… Mickey Grasso ………......………………. Xavier Rescigno
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...oodsStorey.jpg
…….. "Swede" Jensen ………………..………..…… "Jo-Jo" White ………......…………..……. Harvey Storey




……...….. Tony York ……………..…….…..……..…… Jake Mooty ………........…..………..……. "Red" Adams
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...LYorkTabor.jpg
…..…"Iron Man" Malone …………...…….……..Maurice Van Robays ………......……..…....…. Jim Tabor



Stay tuned for my PCL find......Oh ! and I will not forget the trade deal with Rosen :)


TED Z

T206 Reference
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Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

samosa4u

1st…..The first Series (cards #1 - 72) in the 1950 BOWMAN set are more difficult to find than the rest of the 180 cards in this set. So, this may be another example.

2nd…..The larger BOWMAN cards (1953 - 1955 sets) were printed using a 43-inch (track width) press.

The printing of all the BOWMAN Sportscards was done using a 4-color process.


TED Z

T206 Reference
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49 Bowman
 

Ted,
I have 7 49 Bowman with double-printed backs. What can you tell me about those? I got those in St. Louis in 1972--same guy had uncut sheets of 49's, but I was putting myself through my 7th year of college and didn't have two nickels to rub together.

overprint backs
 

I have several of these, both individual cards and some partial sheets. I suspect the partial sheets are part full scrap sheets that somehow didn't make it to the garbage pile.

I also have a few graded examples from PSA. PSA thinks this one is trimmed, but I think it is more likely just a card cut from an uncut sheet. I am sure Ted has his own opinions or evidence about whether this is right.

One interesting thing about this particular example is that it card #36 (Peewee Reese) on the front, but on the back it is Reese #36 and Ken Heintzleman #108. These cards happen to be the last numerical cards from the first sheet and the third sheet of 36. I've seen the sequence of the cards on uncut sheets and they are not in sequential numerical order from upper left across the rows to lower right. But since Heinzelman is the the highest number in sheet 3 and Reese is the highest number in sheet 1, I wonder if that means that there was some specific pattern they used for the numbering sequence between the lowest and highest card number for each sheet. But since #4 is missing on the first sheet (Jerry Priddy #4 was skipped and printed on second sheet for some reason), maybe this is just a coincidence and means nothing.

Ted probably knows...

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hi Mike and Tony

I have many overprinted cards from this set. Both Lo #s and Hi #s. Plus a full uncut 36 card sheet of which cards numbering 1 - 36 are overprinted
with bios of cards numbering 4, 74 - 108.
All 7 sheets printed in this set consist of 36 cards. And the printers would test a new series of printing plates by overprinting them on older series of
scrap sheets.

Cards from the 1st sheet (#1 - 3, 73, 5 - 36) overprinted like Tony's Reese card are quite plentiful.

The 5th sheet cards (#145 - 180) overprinted with 7th sheet cards (#217 - 240, plus the 12 variations) are very, very rare. I have only about 14 of
these....and, I have been searching for these Hi # overprints for 40+ years.


TED Z

T206 Reference
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Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hey guys,

Here's an example of a Hi # card overprinted. Rigney (#170) was printed on the 5th sheet. The overprint of the Evans back occurred during a test run by the Printer,
prior to the final press runs of the 7th sheet cards.

I acquired this card (and approx. a dozen Hi # cards with overprints) in 1982. I have not seen any since. If any of you have Hi # overprinted cards, please post them.
I would really appreciate seeing these very rare cards.

Thanks.


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...yOvptEvans.jpg .http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...yOvptEvans.jpg



TED Z

T206 Reference
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Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

My BOWMAN PCL find...…
I received a call from a guy back in the late 1980's who grew up in the Philadelphia area. Jim wanted to sell me his BOWMAN and TOPPS
collections. He collected Sportscards as a kid in the late 1940's and early 1950's.


I was especially interested in his 1949 BOWMAN cards since I was starting a 2nd set. Jim had 150+ 1949 BOWMAN's. When he started to
describe them to me, I was in for quite a surprise for they included six PCL cards. He recalled these PCL cards were intermixed with the
regular BOWMAN cards in 5-cent packs. Jim recalls being confused, since the PCL cards were in the same packs as cards whose numbers
were in the 100's.
Incidentally, the cards in his entire collection were in amazing condition. Needless to say, the PCL cards were upgrades into my PCL set.


Here is the first page (of 3 pages) from my 1949 BOWMAN album. which includes the PCL set.


……....… Lee Anthony ……………….……….…… George Metkovich ………..………...…...….. Ralph Hodgin
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...altzberger.jpg
…….. "Sheriff" Gassaway ………………..…...…..… Tony Freitas …..……...………..……. Gordon Maltzberger


……..… Ken Holcombe ………………..…………..…… Don Ross ……...……..…….…...…...… "Inky" Coscarart
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...combeLazor.jpg
…...….. "Jeep" Handley …………………….....…… Herman Besse ……….....…..…………...…. John Lazor



TED Z

T206 Reference
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Thanks Ted Z...
 

Another amazing thread with interesting Bowman info! Thanks much. :cool:

jt

I appreciate your complimentary words.

Stay tuned for more information regarding this set of cards.


TED Z

T206 Reference
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Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Reprising my Alan Rosen (Mr. Mint) story in order to tell you how it ended......

OK, of all the vintage "goodies" I offered him in trade to complete this PCL set deal, Alan took ten - 1982 TOPPS Traded sets, and $500 in cash. Those 10 sets cost
me only $5 each in 1982. Needless to say, I was very delighted with this deal.

My advice to any one on this forum, who really enjoys a serious challenge....try to complete this PCL set. After all, you only have to go on the hunt for 36 cards :)
This set has increased at least five-fold in value since I first started collecting these cards in the early 1980's.


And, displayed here is the 3rd (of 3 pages) from my 1949 BOWMAN album which includes the 1949 PCL set.


…..…..… Johnny Rucker ………………………….…… Jack Brewer ………….…....…....… Dominic Dallessandro
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...eherRucker.jpg
…....….. Dick Lajeski ……….….……...………..…… Albie Glossop ………..…….….……….…. Frank Kelleher



………...… Les Scarsella ………………..………….…… Joe Marty …………….………...……..… Bill Raimondi
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...llaBurnett.jpg
……...... Gene Handley …………..……....………..…… Tom Seats ……….…..…..…….……. "Mickey" Burnett




TED Z

T206 Reference
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Great post!
 

Ted, our appreciation for your wealth of knowledge is only rivaled by our appreciation for your willingness to share it. Thank you for maintaining this thread!

I have amassed 249 of the 252, and I lack three big cards (Paige, J.Robinson, Ashburn) due to budgetary constraints. I've HELD those three cards before...

I have one slate gray (a hi#) and two PCL cards as well. Roe was one of my last acquisitions, and I also had trouble for a while getting #174 Terry Moore - so much so that I sprung for a low grade dupe when I saw one pop up. The toughest variation for me to locate was Murtaugh. I also have a handful of overprinted backs, including one that features Campanella.

I put together most of my set about 15-20 years ago, picked up a smattering of cards more recently, and will likely remain stuck on 249 unless I find a low grade trader or change income tax brackets. :-)

Please keep the info flowing! I really enjoyed seeing scarcities like the baseball bank, PCL wrapper, and the uncut sheets.

-James

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Hi jimmysuitcase

That's a cool name. And, thank you for all your kind words.

First, I'm curious regarding the Hi # slate card you have.... what card is it ?

Interesting to hear that the Preacher Roe card was one of your last cards. And, Terry Moore is indeed a tough card to find. I have a nice one for you, if you would like to upgrade.

Stay tuned there is more interesting things to share with you regarding these neat 1949 "gems".



TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Thanks for your response, Ted. My slate hi# is pictured below next to his normal counterpart.

I'm building this set right now, in low grade, with 81 cards to go. I really underrated the high numbers before starting this set, they are pretty tough comparatively. I've got a slate Joe Tipton, and plan to do the white/grey backs in series 1.


I like and hate this set. I like it as the first of the post-war 'full size' mainstream sets, and I've grown to like the odd half-colorization used in 1949 by Leaf and Bowman. As a set collector who doesn't care about rookies, all the star rookies and their increased prices sure can get annoying though, for cards that are less attractive (In my subjective opinion) than pretty much any of the mainstream 50's sets featuring the same players. The Jackie card I have never understood how it can be reasonably considered a rookie at all. I've had a ton of fun picking up the commons though as part of my full Bowman run (all my other sets are 0-5 cards away from completion).

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

jimmysuitcase

Thanks, I have "Buddy" Kerr.

I've been tracking the Hi # slates which have been found.
To date, I have 26 slates from the Hi# series.



TED Z

T206 Reference
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Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

G1911

You are a true collector...... Thanks for sharing your thoughts regarding this set.

And yes, the 1949 BOWMAN Jackie Robinson is far from being his "rookie" card.


ROOKIE card.....issued Summer 1947 ..…..……………..….....……. 1948 ……..…...…..…....…... Early Spring 1949
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...obby1948BT.jpghttp://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...ieRobinson.jpg




Mid Spring 1949

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...JRobbyPSA5.jpg



TED Z

T206 Reference
.

You forgot the Swell Sport Thrills!

Jackie has so many early issues and all this can just create confusion among us collectors. His 1948 Leaf has the crown at the moment and I think it should stay that way. This was his first card issued by a major US card manufacturer. Furthermore, it comes from one of the best baseball sets ever made.

We also want to be careful here that Jackie doesn't end up going the "Pele route." Pele had a few rookie cards, which were manufactured between the years of 1958 to 1960, sell for large amounts of money. The collecting world started to take notice, and next thing you know, he now has about twenty-plus rookies! Here is the latest discovery:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1958-A-Gaze...4AAOSwgOddzw05

It looks hand-cut to me and PSA ended up grading this piece of garbage. I had to walk away from all this madness.

The 1948 attached to the 1948 Leaf Jackie Robinson is inaccurate, and the card should be regarded as 1949. This would tie it with Bowman among major issues and of course put it even more behind various minor issues.

Personally I like 1948 Swell as a "major enough" issue and true 1948, though the card is more a highlights card than a "pure" Jackie card.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Ohhhh ! I forgot the 1948 SWELL GUM JRobby. Thanks for reminding me, Jason.

Furthermore, it's really refreshing to hear some one else on this forum agree with me regarding the 1949 LEAF cards.
Thanks again, Jason.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Here is a SABR poll from May, which shows at least 1949 is gaining steam. I linked readers to your excellent article at http://oldcardboard.com/misc/issue09/issue09.asp and Keith Olbermann commented on the poll with 1949 (see second pic).

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...7ffd0651e2.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...0c093664ce.jpg

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Jason

That poll shows us that 42 % of collectors have been "brainwashed" by PSA with their phony "1948" date on their flips. PSA should recall every single 1949 LEAF card
that they have graded, and re-grade them correcting the the date on their flip. But, we know they won't do this. So, the "fake news" will continue.

Hey guys,
I appeal to your common sense of logic. Certain bios on the backs of the 1949 LEAF cards provide proof as to when these cards were issued. I do no expect you to start
reading numerous bios to prove it to yourself. Displayed here is one card that tells the whole story, Lou Boudreau's bio......check-it-out.

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...oudreau25x.jpg . http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...udreau25xb.jpg

Lou Boudreau's MVP Award was announced in December of 1948.

And, for those of you who would counter..... "well some cards were issued in 1948, while others in 1949". Well. that is sheer "horse-crap".
The COPYRIGHT date on the back of each card identifies when its Bio was written and registered.

Here is an uncut sheet of the 1st Series cards issued in early Spring of 1949. I, and many other old-time collectors, acquired these cards in 1949.
And NO ONE, absolutely NO ONE, has ever said they acquired them in 1948. I did a survey some years ago in which I asked this of collectors who
grew up in various parts of the country in the late 1940's.


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...Series1x50.jpg


For those of you who value accurate dating of BB card sets, I leave you with this....get a copy of http://oldcardboard.com/misc/issue09/issue09.asp.
You'll find it worthwhile and very interesting.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

I think it's pretty obvious that the Leafs are a 1949 issue, the Boudreau being the most concrete evidence that makes 1948 100% impossible. I've wondered how this set got stamped with the 1948 date everywhere though. This was a fairly major issue, and not a very old set when the catalogs first began, unlike many other sets that have been attributed with inaccurate dates. In the early periodicals, does anyone know if these were correctly labelled as 1949, and the mistake came later? Or have these just always been labelled with the wrong year? Most all the catalogs and checklists I have access too from before the last few years insist it is a 1948 issue, not just PSA's slabs.


It would be a fun project to more thoroughly trace some of the historiography than the history of the sets themselves, how a lot of the misinformation that has been spread happened (T206 Hustler backs, T220 Silver border Jack Goodman, N28 being an 1888 issue, etc.)

As to Jackie:
1947 Bond Bread
1947 Bond Bread Exhibit
1947 Bond Bread Dual Sided
1947 Bond Bread Jackie Series (13 cards)
1948 R346 blue Tint
1948 Swell Sports Thrills

By my count, that's at least 18 different cards before his Leaf and Bowman were issued. If his Leaf and Bowman are rookies, than almost all the cards in the sets is a "rookie," even though those players are on many earlier cards.


Since posts are better with a card, here's the 3 Leafs I got in the mail this week, including Mr. Boudreau. I don't like this set quite enough to pay up the big bucks for the scarce second series, but I'd like to complete Series 1, raw and low-grade.

I'm going to take Ted's word for it. Alright, so it's 1949 Leaf, got it. However, it's still his rookie card and that's the point I was trying to make. It's the first Jackie Robinson made by a major US card manufacturer. Bond Bread, to me, is garbage. It looks like they printed most of their stuff in 1947 and one Buffalo Bisons set ten years later, and that's it. :rolleyes:

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Actually, figuring out the "rookie" card game turned me off back in the early 1980's, when many in this hobby referred to Mantle's 1952 TOPPS card as his "rookie" card.
And, I would flip the pages of my 1951 BOWMAN set to card #253 (Mantle) and I wondered what were these people "smoking" :)

Whatever....this BOWMAN "train" has switched on to a sidetrack.....and, it's time to get it back on the main line.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Riding again on the BOWMAN rails....if you are interested in additional info regarding the PCL set, tune into an article Mark Macrae and I
published in the VCBC magazine (Issue # 10).

You'll find it interesting, as we provide more insight into these mysterious cards, and actual collector's experiences regarding these cards.



...…...... extremely rare 1949 PCL wrapper .................................................. ...............….. regular 5-cent 1949 wrapper
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...nwrappergb.jpg


TED Z

T206 Reference
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Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

I am quite surprised at the responses to this thread regarding the fascination with the color error cards found in the set.
I'm working a special set (approx. 40 % complete) comprising of various color errors. Shown here is a sampling of some
of the printing mistakes found in this set.

Feel free to post some of your printing mistakes here.


SLATE Lo # and Hi # cards

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...Lo6HiCards.jpg



PINK and YELLOW cards (Should be RED and ORANGE)
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...k2yellowXX.jpg



7th sheet SLATE cards (Salkeld and Muncrief normally YELLOW)

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...eldSLATE_1.jpg



TED Z

T206 Reference
.

Reflections on 1949 BOWMAN's (25 HOFers, many Rookies)...show-N-tell us of your cards
 

Speaking about "color-less" BOWMAN cards.....reminds me, I still recall in the Spring of 1950 when us kids opened our 1st packs of 1950 BOWMAN BB cards,
and the thrill we got seeing all those colorful cards.....Yogi Berra, Jackie Robinson, Robin Roberts, Bob Feller, Phil Rizzuto, Pee Wee Reese, Warren Spahn, etc.



http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...5thSheet6x.jpghttp://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...hSheet6xxA.jpg



http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...wrapper25x.jpg



TED Z

T206 Reference
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