1860's baseball...was this a deal?

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Posted By: Dave F

I ended up not putting in a bid at the last minute, but was curious if this was indeed a deal. I couldn't find much on Scranton in the 1860's, although I did find where this W.M. Silkman did play for the team in 1866 and was the V.P. in 1867.

Was Scranton considered a team in the pioneer days of baseball? Did they play against any of the future major league clubs; Cincy, N.Y, etc?


http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=270301632323&ssPa geName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=017

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Posted By: Dave Haas

He looks like he should play for the House of David baseball team in 1913.

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Posted By: barrysloate

I saw that CdV and also noted how strange looking that long beard is on a baseball player. Price seems fair for what it is.

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Posted By: davidcycleback

The value is that it's a clean example of an 1860s baseball CDV. Pre-1870 baseball photos are rare. I'd say it's a fair price. There's nothing special about the player, his equipment or team, just a clean example of a CDV from the early time period. The player image is real sharp, which of course is a plus. Notice the wooden stand behind him, which made him stand still for the camera.

If you had sniped the winner and won it for a bit more, it would have been a nice pickup.

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Posted By: Dave F

The border around the card looks pretty similar to the one below, which went for pretty big money in a REA auction, but the one below obviously was identified from the card.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

The backing on CDV's is pretty standard so the photos are not related...and the biggest reason that CDV went for so much in the REA auction is because the player pictured played on the 1869 Reds team...it's actually Dave Birdsall and not Bernie Hannegan.

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Posted By: barrysloate

Dave- good observation. Those borders are seen on CdV's issued from the mid to late 1860's. By 1870 they were no longer in use.

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Posted By: davidcycleback

Most 1860s CDVs had square corners, while later usually had rounded corners. It can be hard to determine if the card has wear or is clipped. The double line in blue or red was a common styke to 1860s CDVs, though you can find examples with one line or no lines.

The example on eBay is clearly from the 1860s, down to the guy wearing long pants instead of knickers.