Howe McCormick backstamps - 50 I'll never see

[Archive]

Posted By: Ed McCollum

Last week, I snuck in the back door of the upcoming Mastro auction and came across the description of lot 11. It seemed like a lot of cards listed in the near set of 519 T206s listed rubber stampings on the back as the main concern of condition. I e-mailed Mastro last Thursday and asked for any idea of what the stamps might be, but being the National was going on, I wasn't surprised not to hear from them. I tried again this morning, and when the reply came, I didn't know whether to be happy or sick to my stomach...


Hi Ed,

You sir, are in luck! I count 50 additions to your collection. Here are the combinations;

Old Mill: Violat/Jacksonville, White/Houston, Reagan/New Orleans, Mullaney/Jacksonville, Manion/Columbia, Jordan/Atlanta, Hickman/Mobile, Helm/Columbus, Coles/Augusta

Hindu: Otey/Norfolk, Molesworth/Birmingham, McCauley/Portsmouth, Foster/Charleston,

Piedmont: Berger/Cleveland, Elberfeld/N.Y. Amer, Donovan/Detroit, Covaleski/Phila, J.J. Clarke/Cleveland, Cicotte/Boston, Chase/Pink, M. Brown/Chicago Natl, Birmingham/Cleveland, Ames/NY, Ames/Portrait/NY, Kelley/Toronto, Killian/Detroit, Joss/Glove/Cleveland, Jones/St Louis, F. Jones/Chicago, Hulswitt/St Louis, Oberlin/Minneapolis, Nicholls/Phila, Murray/NY, Moran/Chicago, Mitchell/Cincinnati, McIntyre/Bkln/Chicago, Mathewson/Glove, Lundgren/Chicago, Lajoie/Cleveland, Konetchy/St Louis, Rudolph/Toronto, Paskert/Cincinnati, Parent/Chicago, Owen/Chicago, Overall/Chicago, O'Neil/Minneapolis, O'Leary/Detroit, Young/Glove, Wilhelm/Brooklyn and Walsh/Portrait/Chicago.

Good luck bidding,
Steve Lucas


Holy Crap! I thought I was doing good to have possession of 60 (by the send of this week) after only 15 months of concentrating on these. Now, in one lot, are 50 more! Needless to say, I won't be getting these. The lot of 12 in the recent Huggins and Scott auction nearly cost me my marriage (when the wife figured out the price per card I ended up paying for them), and it cleaned out any funds I had raised in my endeavor to collect only the cards with this stamp by selling all my other cards.

I'm trying not to be totally pessimistic. I figure I still have several shots at it...

1. Every relative I have, both known and unknown, dies immediately and names me as their sole heir to their up-to-this-time unknown fortunes.

2. I sell the five T205s and the one t206 that wasn't stamped by Howe from the H&S auction and use those funds to purchase this near complete set.

3. There are still at least three more PowerBall drawings between now and the end of the auction, and I'm sure my one ticket per drawing is sure to win.

4. Someone from the Network 54 board buys the lot, and offers to trade or sell all 50 of these to me over time as I can either afford to purchase or find replacements for.

5. I beg Mastro to break every rule I'm sure auction houses have and inform me of who the winning bidder might be, so I can try and strike the same deal with them mentioned in #4.


I guess my options are better than I thought. Any other ideas from board members on how not to let this set get away?

Ed