I am really glad you raise this topic of passing on the hobby to children. I thought about this just last night as I looked at the shelves of thousands of virtually worthless cards I have from the 80s and early 90s.
As a kid collecting I always lamented that my grandmother supposedly threw out my father's old cards -- supposedly various cards from the 50s. Who knows what he really had but it haunted me. So I vowed never to get rid of any of my cards in case my sons wanted them some day.
Now, I have no doubt they may some day want and maybe even cherish the vintage pre-war cards I have (T206, T205, etc.), the good rookies and HOFers I have from the post-war era, and a select few big names from recent years. Well, maybe they won't, but I like to believe someday they will see value in those.
But will they care at all about long boxes full of 1000 random 1990 UDs or 1988 Topps? Doubtful. Should I even keep them or will it be an exercise in hoarding? I can't imagine in about 2023 my son is going to get excited as he shuffles through the likes of Damaso Marte, Ellis Burks, and Biff Pocoroba...
Then again, they don't take up much space if properly stored. When the time is right, though, I will try to teach the boys about vintage baseball card collecting. Maybe starting with the REA Catalog...
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