My conversation with Smoky Joe Wood's Grandson....show some Smoky Joe stuff

[tedzan]

Hiking the Appalachian Trail in the Delaware Water Gap region, we stayed in Milford, PA. At the Inn we stayed at, I met Smoky Joe's Grandson, Dave.
The Innkeeper, Carl, introduced me to Dave. We sat at the bar and talked for quite a while. Smokey Joe was a very popular guy in Pike County, since
apparently he was quite a character in his older years. Both Dave and Carl related some interesting stories regarding Smoky Joe and his farm (which
has been in the family since the days of the American Revolution).
The conversation switched to talking BB and of course Joe's unbelievable 1912 season. Fenway Park's opening in 1912 was magic for Joe. He won 34
games while losing only 5. His ERA = 1.91, and he won 3 games in the World Series beating the NY Giants.
Dave wanted to know if his Grandfather's BB cards and memorabilia are valuable nowadays. And I said they certainly are. To which he replied...."Gee,
I am glad that I acquired most of my Grandfather's stuff back in the 1960's and 1970's."

Here's one of the displays in the Milford Historical Museum about Smoky Joe Wood......



Sorry about the blurry printing, but the lighting in the Museum was not too bright.


On display in this Museum is a very significant piece of American history, of which I will speak of in one of my next post here.....so stay tuned.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

[ejharrington]

My one item

[bengineno9]

RPPC of Joe’s brother Pete at Lawrence,KS. Personal post card of his that he sent to a cousin.


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[Kenny Cole]

M116

[T206Collector]

[h2oya311]

can’t find this one in the T205 set...one of three in the Piedmont Stamps set that don’t also make an appearance in T205:

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

Be the proud owner of this card currently in my 2nd annual Pre War Auction!

(Sorry for the crass commercialism Ted)

[brianp-beme]

T202 end panel (who wants all the rest of the card, anyway) of Mr. Wood.

Brian

[Andrew1975]

In 2016, I was in Anaheim for work and was able to catch an Angels/Red Sox game. Mid game, struck up a conversation with a nice man and woman who were sitting behind me and wearing all Red Sox attire (I’m originally from Boston area). I’m guessing they were in their early 70s. We spoke for a while, and at one point, the woman casually mentioned that her grandfather had played for the Red Sox (the man with her was her brother). Yup, Smoky Joe’s grandkids (not sure if this was the same grandson you spoke with, Ted). They were very excited that I had actually heard of their grandfather, then, somewhat shocked that I knew of his 34-5 record in 1912. Very nice people. Here is my favorite Smoky Joe card from my collection...





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[Kris19]

Great stories, Ted and Andrew! Smoky Joe is one of my favorite photo subjects. Here are some of mine, including four different angles of the photo op with Mathewson during the 1912 World Series.

[AJR]

325a_med.jpg
https://crazyuncleauctions.com/1968_...gn-LOT325.aspx

[prestigecollectibles]

1935 Yale team in Japan with Smoky Joe Wood

[conor912]

Very nice stuff, gents. Love me some Smoky Joe. Below are a couple recent pickups I'm really exited about. My one and only Conlon, plus a photo from Joe's estate, taken from the press box at Fenway of him warming up for that 1912 duel with Walter Johnson. Looking at this while listening to Joe talk about it in his interview with Larry Ritter gives me goosebumps.

[tedzan]

Originally Posted by Andrew1975

In 2016, I was in Anaheim for work and was able to catch an Angels/Red Sox game. Mid game, struck up a conversation with a nice man and woman who were sitting behind me and wearing all Red Sox attire (I’m originally from Boston area). I’m guessing they were in their early 70s. We spoke for a while, and at one point, the woman casually mentioned that her grandfather had played for the Red Sox (the man with her was her brother). Yup, Smoky Joe’s grandkids (not sure if this was the same grandson you spoke with, Ted). They were very excited that I had actually heard of their grandfather, then, somewhat shocked that I knew of his 34-5 record in 1912. Very nice people. Here is my favorite Smoky Joe card from my collection...

Hi Andrew

Quite a coincidence, thanks for sharing your story with us. Dave Wood was also very friendly. We talked quite a bit about his Grandfather.

Here's a description of Dave Wood....about 6-foot tall, solid built, blue eyes, wearing glasses, and his age is 74.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

[conor912]

Originally Posted by tedzan

Hi Andrew

Quite a coincidence, thanks for sharing your story with us. Dave Wood was also very friendly. We talked quite a bit about his Grandfather.

Here's a description of Dave Wood....about 6-foot tall, solid built, blue eyes, wearing glasses, and his age is 74.

I believe Dave’s father was Joe Wood Jr., who had a cup of coffee with the Sox in ‘44.

[Vintagecatcher]

When I first entered the hobby I had the pleasure of many conversations with Joe's son Robert, who was a baseball dealer here in the Boston area. Bob lived in Keene, NH, and had a antique booth in the Colonial Mill in Keene as well.

I bought my first 2 T207s from him...a Roger Bresnahan and a Jack Lapp. He also sold me a copy of the photo of the first All-Star team.

Bob was also hopeful that his dad would someday be enshrined in Cooperstown.

Patrick

[dclarkraiders]

Thanks for sharing your experiences with the Wood family. I picked this up recently.

[tedzan]

Originally Posted by Vintagecatcher

When I first entered the hobby I had the pleasure of many conversations with Joe's son Robert, who was a baseball dealer here in the Boston area. Bob lived in Keene, NH, and had a antique booth in the Colonial Mill in Keene as well.

I bought my first 2 T207s from him...a Roger Bresnahan and a Jack Lapp. He also sold me a copy of the photo of the first All-Star team.

Bob was also hopeful that his dad would someday be enshrined in Cooperstown.

Patrick

Hi Patrick,

Great story, thanks for sharing it with us. Now, we have 3 personal stories with family members of Smoky Wood. You have to love this.


TED Z

T206 Reference

[tedzan]

Originally Posted by Vintagecatcher

When I first entered the hobby I had the pleasure of many conversations with Joe's son Robert, who was a baseball dealer here in the Boston area. Bob lived in Keene, NH, and had a antique booth in the Colonial Mill in Keene as well.

I bought my first 2 T207s from him...a Roger Bresnahan and a Jack Lapp. He also sold me a copy of the photo of the first All-Star team.

Bob was also hopeful that his dad would someday be enshrined in Cooperstown.

Patrick

I think it's a shame that Smoky Joe Wood....and Lefty O'Doul and Gil Hodges....are not in the BB Hall of Fame. So, let
us take a look at Smoky Joe's numbers for 14 years in the Major Leagues...…

BOSTON (1908 - 1916) Won-Lost pitching record = 117 - 56 (.677 Pct.)
ERA = 2.03....plus in 1912 (34 -5 ), tied Walter Johnson with 16 consecutive victories (an AL record which still stands)
Furthermore, Joe won the 1st game.....the 4th game.....the last game of the 1912 World Series beating the NY Giants.

CLEVELAND (1917 - 1922) Outfielder BA = .300 (470 games)

There are a number of BB players in the HOF whose credentials are equal to (or less than) Smoky Joe's. Therefore, I do
understand why Smokey Joe is not in the HOF.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

[John70]

I also met Robert Wood back in the late 80’s at the Fort Washington, PA card shows. He would often travel down from NH and setup a small table with pictures of his father with various other stars of the era. I still have the pictures in my collection. One year he had a really nice framed picture of Joe Wood with a cancelled check. I purchased the same picture and a cancelled check to frame in the future. Here’s an image of the picture and check I purchased from Him. As you can see still not in a frame...

I purchased well over 15-20 pictures from Robert over the years. I also corresponded with him many years later when I was in the military, still buying pictures little by little. I also purchased a T206 Johnson card from him which also remains in my collection.

Robert was a very nice man and always had great stories to share about Joe Wood. Like Patrick noted, Robert was always a champion for Joe Wood to enter the HOF. It is a shame he is not...

Troy




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[Hankphenom]

Joe's son Bob and I became friends through the Philly show over the years, and he and I actually played in a baseball game at a SABR get-together in Vermont in 1995. Later, we visited together at his son's farm in Maryland. In 2006, I got a call from the Red Sox asking if I would be interested in coming to Boston to throw out the first pitch at the first Washington game there since 1971, and I told them I would do it if they also brought Bob Wood to come down from Keene to do it with me. Here's the picture from that occasion. Bob was 86 at the time.

[conor912]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

Joe's son Bob and I became friends through the Philly show over the years, and he and I actually played in a baseball game at a SABR get-together in Vermont in 1995. Later, we visited together at his son's farm in Maryland. In 2006, I got a call from the Red Sox asking if I would be interested in coming to Boston to throw out the first pitch at the first Washington game there since 1971, and I told them I would do it if they also brought Bob Wood to come down from Keene to do it with me. Here's the picture from that occasion. Bob was 86 at the time.

Wow. Cool gesture and photo!

[Andrew1975]

This is awesome. Thanks for sharing.

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

Joe's son Bob and I became friends through the Philly show over the years, and he and I actually played in a baseball game at a SABR get-together in Vermont in 1995. Later, we visited together at his son's farm in Maryland. In 2006, I got a call from the Red Sox asking if I would be interested in coming to Boston to throw out the first pitch at the first Washington game there since 1971, and I told them I would do it if they also brought Bob Wood to come down from Keene to do it with me. Here's the picture from that occasion. Bob was 86 at the time.

[bgar3]

Also got to know Bob Wood at the Philly shows. He was a frequent and excellent source for 1912 Red Sox and World Series collection. He once very generously gave me a tour of the Yale special baseball collection. A very nice man.
A few of the photos posted in this thread came from him and were from Joe’s own stuff. Most notably, I think, the one of Joe warming up to face Walter Johnson.

[ksfarmboy]

Joe Wood, bat boy and mascot with the Ouray team in 1902. He’s the kid on the right.

[ValKehl]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

Joe's son Bob and I became friends through the Philly show over the years, and he and I actually played in a baseball game at a SABR get-together in Vermont in 1995. Later, we visited together at his son's farm in Maryland. In 2006, I got a call from the Red Sox asking if I would be interested in coming to Boston to throw out the first pitch at the first Washington game there since 1971, and I told them I would do it if they also brought Bob Wood to come down from Keene to do it with me. Here's the picture from that occasion. Bob was 86 at the time.

Wonderful experience and fantastic pic! Hank, are you a sidearm thrower, like your grandpa (WaJo, for anyone not aware)?

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by ValKehl

Wonderful experience and fantastic pic! Hank, are you a sidearm thrower, like your grandpa (WaJo, for anyone not aware)?

They broke the mold when they made his arm. I'm going to the series tomorrow, Val, wish me--and the Nats--luck!

[ValKehl]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

They broke the mold when they made his arm. I'm going to the series tomorrow, Val, wish me--and the Nats--luck!

Hank, I'm jealous! But, I do wish you luck, and I wish the Nats more hitting skill on Sunday. As I see it, whichever team wins Game 5 wins the WS.

[Leon]

That is awesome!

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

Joe's son Bob and I became friends through the Philly show over the years, and he and I actually played in a baseball game at a SABR get-together in Vermont in 1995. Later, we visited together at his son's farm in Maryland. In 2006, I got a call from the Red Sox asking if I would be interested in coming to Boston to throw out the first pitch at the first Washington game there since 1971, and I told them I would do it if they also brought Bob Wood to come down from Keene to do it with me. Here's the picture from that occasion. Bob was 86 at the time.

[svtPONY95]

[pherbener]

Conlon Type 1 and M101-2 of Smokey Joe

[bcbgcbrcb]

Ted or anyone else:

I recall a number of years ago, there was a lot of controversy surrounding this postcard and Joe Wood/Addie Joss. Does anyone know what the final outcome was on that or is there still debate?

[Leon]

Originally Posted by bcbgcbrcb

Ted or anyone else:

I recall a number of years ago, there was a lot of controversy surrounding this postcard and Joe Wood/Addie Joss. Does anyone know what the final outcome was on that or is there still debate?

Don't think I remember seeing a definitive answer. I think there are a few other bloomer cards that might have Joe on them....

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by Leon

Don't think I remember seeing a definitive answer. I think there are a few other bloomer cards that might have Joe on them....

That sure looks like Joss, doesn't it? And I believe I've seen at least one Bloomer postcard with Joe. He played for the National Bloomer Girls team out of Kansas City, also owned by Logan Galbreath of the Boston Bloomers. I don't think that connection had anything to do with Joe getting signed by the Red Sox, however.