Show A Card You've Owned For 30+ Years
 

Just occurred to me that I've owned this card since 1989. Can't believe that's 30 years ago. Show a card you've owned as long...

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I don’t know for certain when I bought this Matty but it was prior to getting married as I remember showing it to my roommates at my last apartment so it was 1982 or before.
Attachment 353022

I've kept this card in my wallet for 35 years now. O'Brien was my favorite player at the University of Nebraska when I was a kid. It was thrilling to me when he made it to the major leagues.

Maybe just shy of 30 years, but got these right around then...my first 3 T206 cards. Still have them.

#GBR One of my boys is a Husker, Class of 2010

Love how they look together in that display.

What a terrific card!

Class of 92 for me. :)

Had it for 29 or 30 years.

https://i917.photobucket.com/albums/...lia/lethal.jpg

Had this since ‘89

1985, give or take a year.

I'm guessing that you submitted that one yourself? If so, were you happy or disappointed?

From the early days of ESPN late on Friday nights "Lethal" Leigh Matthews

38 years.

Brian

Pulled this one myself in 1973 , Got it signed at a card show in the late 80's early 90's

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...6a6121bc68.jpglafleur by Guy Bourque, on Flickr

Purchased raw from Mike Berkus at of his Anaheim shows in the late 1970s:

http://photos.imageevent.com/exhibit...on%20ready.jpg

Got these in 1980 for my Bar Mitzvah. My father paid $165 for the pair.

In 1985 I started collecting baseball cards and was playing little league baseball. We bought Topps and Fleer and one night my dad came home with an entire paper bag full of Fleer cello packs from the local Revco store. This was monumental because my folks didn't have a lot of money.

My oldest brother Matt who was the least interested got to fill his set and when it was all said and done I had the only card he was missing. The Pete Rose. He was huge at this time and little kids like me loved him. I had to give it to Matt and I cried and was so upset.

Once I was in my late teens the set was packed away with my stash of cards and it was just sitting in a penny sleeve inside the box. In 2017 my parents were moving and my mom said take these cards or they are going in the trash. I knew the Pete Rose was there and rescued it and parted with the rest.

I got it graded and was thinking it was a PSA 4. Here it is

Attachment 353070

Since we are including post-war cards I'll add the only one to survive from my childhood collection. If I was to guess I'd say I got in in packs for my birthday late in 1959. 58s were the first cards I ever saw, 59s the first I owned. Come December it'll have been mine for 60 years.

long held cards
 

My earliest memories might be my mom cutting these from the back of boxes for me. I'm sure I couldn't read yet, but I knew who Willie Mays was!

Show A Card You've Owned For 30+ Years
 

The 86’s I know are from my original childhood collection, because they both have a thumbtack hole from where they once were affixed to the bulletin board in my childhood room.

The Mantle I can only credit as being somewhere around 28 years in my possession; I was 13 or 14 and it was either 1990 or 1991 at a card shop in Hickory, North Carolina where I traded virtually everything I owned of cardboard value up to that point to take the card home.

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i've posted this numerous times...my first tobacco card...acquired at one of my first shows with my dad c1982...$2.

30 - 72 year old acquisitions
 

I pulled these cards from their waxpacks on these dates......


Fall of 1947 (my very first BB cards)

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





Early Spring of 1949 (I wouldn't dare flip my Ruth card, or place it on my bike's spokes)
http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...baberuth49.jpg


Spring of 1949 (the Jackie Robinson card on the left)

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

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




Fall of 1952 (my last BB card as a teenager....went on to cars and girls)

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...mmantle52t.jpg



As an adult, I acquired these cards at BB card Shows...…

Spring of 1981 (My first T206)

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...aseblue50x.jpghttp://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...seblue50xb.jpg




Spring of 1989 (The start of my favorite set)

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


TED Z

T206 Reference
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[QUOTE=JeremyW;1877940]I'm guessing that you submitted that one yourself? If so, were you happy or disappointed

I don’t remember. I think I got it graded already. Was a birthday gift from my dad.

A gift from my dad in 1988. The first card I ever had graded :rolleyes:

http://www.billripken.com/bucket/1968Ryan.jpg

altho none of us can top ted
 

this is the very first trading card that ever owned me.
it was discovered, abused & discarded on the sidewalk outside wally's pharmacy in Altadena, CA, October, 1959.
almost 60 years ago!
thank you paul hornung.
I will always cherish you. :)

Some very cool stories here...thanks for posting.

My father gave me these 52 Topps, plus another 145, some 35 years ago. I also have approx 30-40+ 71-72 OPC hockey cards and a smattering of others that I collected as a child that I still own to this day as well.

Hi Irv

I know we noted this some time ago in another thread....but, it still amazes me that both your Mantle and my Mantle appear to have a very similar scratch mark.

Would you mind reposting your Mantle next to mine, so we can compare them ?


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...mmantle52t.jpg

TED Z

T206 Reference
.

I remember that as well and I even think I mentioned it twice to you nonetheless? :o
Hopefully these come out side by side but I have my doubts?

Obviously not the work of the same doctor.:eek::D

And my contribution, a really big card

https://www.collectorfocus.com/image...ud-front-1-100

My father bought this Cobb (along with a T205 Matty which I also have) at a show in the mid 80s. I remember it vividly, because they were the first prewar cards that we had ever bought. He paid $20 for each card. They hung in my bedroom in a frame, until I left for college. I got them graded a few years ago, and the grading fees were more than the cost of the cards...

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Irv

Perfect arrangement, thanks for posting it.

My question to you is how did that scratch get on your card ?

The history of my Mantle card starts from the last 1952 TOPPS waxpack which I opened in the Fall of 1952. I remember that it was the last pack since I told my buddies
that I would stop collecting BB cards upon getting the Mantle card. In 1960 when I enlisted in the Air Force, my Mom and Aunt cleaned out my room and transferred my
Sportscard collection, Stamp collection, Lionel trains, Baseball bats and gloves, etc. to our attic.

There my goodies stayed until my teenage Daughters (avid BB fans) convinced me to recover my cards (circa 1977). I found a real "treasure chest".....1000's of BB, FB,
and Non-sports cards in stacks in a huge box. The Mantle card was mid-way in large stack of 1952 cards, and most likely got scratched in the process of transporting (or
during the storage) of the cards.

Incidentally, here are the other TOPPS cards in that same pack as the Mantle card......

http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...ermspenc_1.jpg
TED Z

T206 Reference
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1963 Topps
 

From my childhood collection. Picked them up in......1963;). But the cards weren't in the same pack. Wow, 56 years ago!

My first pre-war cards I picked up nearly 30 years ago at a local show. First one was Keeler, because I had heard his name before, that I picked up for $20. The other was an Old Judge of Gunson that I got for $5 (yes, that's correct). I ended up going to the next show and picking up several other Old Judges for $5 - $10 each (about 25 total). I balked at the two Hamiltons cuz he wanted $100 each for them but I did get a Pud Galvin for $10. This Gunson is the last of those original Old Judges.

Rob M

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I'll share the love of 1985 Fleer. I was 10 years old in the summer of 1985 and vacationing with my family in Orlando, and we went in to a Walgreens pharmacy where they had a big display box of open, loose 1985 Fleer cards, selling them for 1 cent each. I went through and picked out all the Royals I could find. Those were officially my first baseball cards.

Fast forward to October 1985 when I got to watch those very same Royals pictured on my cards win a World Series. I remember shuffling through and "playing" with them during the Series, ordering them by batting order, etc. Funny enough, I did NOT pull a George Brett out of that box in Florida, but I did pull this guy...and there really wasn't a hotter pitcher than Sabes that fall. Cy Young, World Series MVP, this card was actually "valuable" for a while.

Still have it (as well as the other 1985 Fleer Royals I pulled that day). I really should pick up a Brett and any other Royals I'm missing, and finally complete that team set.

Attachment 353147

Where at in Orlando?

The Pete Rose came from the Revco on Curry Ford road. It is long gone and there is a Walgreens now that sits across the street.

Bought in 1979 off my local card store bidboard for $2.25https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...8874ba8ae0.jpg


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YOU, Sir - are amazing!

Thanks for sharing your memories.



.

Ok, Ted Z wins. Awesome!

Rob M

Cant compete with ted...you have an amazing collection.

Ive had bob here since the early 80’s...i think i paid $35 from a mail order catalog.

Found these the on the top of a pile. These are just a few of the 100's of 60-66 baseball and non-sport cards I got in 74 or 75. The best of the lot was a couple hundred 66 Topps cards that looked like they just come out of a pack. I still have around 100 of those original cards. I received the lot from my cousin before he passed away very young. They sat in a drawer untouched for around a dozen years before I started collecting.

I have 1000's of 30+ year old 1980s cards i purchases back in the day.:D

Ted, I wish I had an answer for you but even after asking my father about these cards numerous times, the information is pretty thin as he says he doesn't honestly remember much about them.

I have 2 of the cards you posted but I am missing Chapman and Jeffcoat.
My Uncle, like I have stated before, claimed some of the collection as being his.
There were 2 boxes and I received the 1st one which was much larger than the 2nd and held the Mantle card. The 2nd box I vividly remember seeing a Mathews and Ashburn card but I draw a blank on the rest. I believe most were a mix of highs and low numbers?
My father, who didn't want to create a scene or a family rift, gave the second box to my uncle even though he honestly didn't think they were his.

My uncle would have been 2 yrs old when these cards came out so it would have been highly unlikely they were his but my father caved nonetheless, unfortunately.

Despite me telling my uncle that if he ever decided to sell them to let me know, sold them years ago (likely shortly after receiving them?) to a pawn shop. :mad:

I think about those cards often, especially the Mathews card, but it serves me no purpose so I eventually move on. :(

Hey guys

I really do appreciate your compliments. But, believe me, I am not trying to win any "contest".

Sincerely, I'm a guy who enjoys sharing my experiences in this fantastic hobby with all of you.

I am probably the oldest dude on this forum...and all together between my younger days and
my grown-up days collecting sportscards….2019 marks the 49th year.


http://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...aat206tedz.jpghttp://photos.imageevent.com/tedzan7...abt206tedz.jpg



TED Z

T206 Reference
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So Ted, although most of us collect prewar, I’m guessing you are likely our only actual prewar collector (meaning born pre war)?

Rob M

franks pretty old too!!!

Well, if it's true that you're as young as you feel, then the converse should also be accurate...and with my joints and another thunderstorms coming in right now, I confirm that I'm as old as I feel...and older than a few wars my own self.

The only cards I've been able to hold onto even close to thirty years are the 1992 Little League cards of my two nephews.



.

WWII actually started September 1, 1939, when Germany invaded Poland. So, you are correct, Rob M.

I was born November 5, 1938.


TED Z

T206 Reference
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Father picked this out of a pack when he was 9, he grew up in southern Ontario and supposedly had access to a higher amount of high card packs. He gave it to me the day I was born. :D

Where abouts in southern Ontario, ATX?

My father was born and raised in the Tweed/Actinolite area of southern Ontario and in and around that area is where is got his 52 Topps cards.

Wow, that’s been way too long ago to remember details like that. Plus, I was 10 and very distracted by Space Mountain, Epcot, and all things Disney.

But between your early collection and mine, it sounds like Orlando was a hotbed for readily available Fleer cards in 1985.

Nice Rose by the way. Along with my Royals, I also remember picking up a ‘Ripken in Action’ card that showed Cal swinging frame by frame. I thought it was super cool. Still have that card too I think.

A little town called Listowel. Actually not too far from Tweed.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Li...8gEwC3oECA0QBA

I purchased my first 19th century cards in 1989 at age 15. I was intrigued by Old Judges, cards that had begun and were still turning 100 years old. Emil Geiss was my first for $12 (Southern Cards) but I really wanted Detroit cards. The first opportunity for a Detroit OJ was from Lew Lipset through an SCD add with a $130 asking price. I had virtually memorized Lew's encyclopedia of 19th century cards and was so eager for my first Detroit and so I made it mine. Back then, OJ portraits brought more of a premium than they do today. I still love that card.

http://www.net54baseball.com/picture...ictureid=26970

FWIW, I also preferred '85 Fleer over Topps & Donruss. In '85 I hadn't yet ventured into older cards. I not only liked the Fleer design most but appreciated that they put the Detroit team at the front of the set (having won the '84 World Series). I also liked the '85 Topps stickers as they dedicated a couple pages to the play-offs / WS.

Hey Chris,

Listowel is special to me due to it being the place Cyclone Taylor grew up and first learned to play hockey. Are there any kinds of shrines there to him? Is the home he was raised in known and does it still exist? If there's any traces left of his existence there... I'd love to visit.


Brent

[QUOTE=atx840;1878420]Father picked this out of a pack when he was 9, he grew up in southern Ontario and supposedly had access to a higher amount of high card packs. He gave it to me the day I was born. :D


That is a beauty !

Further away than I thought it was but I guess it proves a lot of these high number cards were available in Canada also or maybe even mainly?

I was 15 years old back in 1976 and my dad took me to the Hotel Roosevelt in NYC. I had $9 in my pocket from snow shoveling and I purchased the T206 Johnson. I remember the dealer wanted $11 and I waited to the end of the show and the card was still there. He sold it to me for $9 after I explained my story. In 1977 we went back to the same location and we purchased the 1933 Ruth for $35. My dad thought it was absolutely crazy to spend so much money on a baseball card. He passed away 18 years ago and he loved to tell the story of how I had to beg him to purchase the card and what it was now worth. In 1978, we went to Montclair State College and I purchased the 34 Gehrig for $20. I was actually very condition conscious as a kid and would never buy a card with even a slight hairline crease. I never minded a little bit of corner wear. You really did not have to worry about trimming or restorations as the only trimming was not done maliciously, but typically to fit a card into an album page. In 1978, I purchased a beautiful condition autographed 1939 Playball Joe Dimaggio (that I still own) at a card store on Springfield Avenue in Union, N.J. In the late 1990's I went to have it authenticated and it turned out Joe's sister had signed the card. She did a pretty good Dimaggio and I guess signed a lot of his mail auto requests. I always set aside a portion of my earned dollars (summer jobs, snow shoveling) back then for cards. I looked for Hall of Fame Allen and Ginter's, Gypsy Queen's, T206's and Goudey's and fortunately saved them all (except for one trade I regret with an adult dealer when I was around 16). I have graded the majority of the cards but I never had the heart to entomb the 3 cards in the scans. The Johnson is beautiful and should grade extremely well. At the time, I never thought of any of my cards as an investment, just a great time with my dad and some great memories.

great cards BOB!!!

Bob—Those are beautiful! What Gypsy Queens do you have?

Jay

Jay-I had Brouthers and Keefe but the Brouthers was actually involved in the dealer trade. I had to trade 2 for 1 in perceived value with him and as a young kid I did not know any better. When I eventually graded the Keefe with PSA it came back as a 5. The Brouthers was much nicer than the Keefe. They were N162's from the Goodwin set

And Bob, I remember meeting your dad about 25 years ago at my dad's house at St. Andrews in Boca Raton, and we spent the day talking baseball. He was indeed a very nice man.:)

Ah, I was thinking the photographic Gypsy Queens. Great cards regardless!

Barry, thank you. He spoke very highly of you and your dad also.

Lefty Grove...
 

This was my first vintage Lefty Grove card. I bought it from the Sports Collectors Digest in 1987 when I was 16 years old.

Ty Cobb
 

Bought a group of about 400 different T206 around 1983. These 4 were part of that lot.

Attachment 353536 Attachment 353537

Attachment 353538 Attachment 353539

Bill, those Cobb's are fantastic!

Not on the level of many of these awesome cards that have been posted but these were packed pulled by nine year old me. I used to like to get the newspaper out every day and look in the transactions section of the sports pages and would write on my cards when the player was traded, released or retired.

While worthless to most people, these are my most prized hobby possessions.

Had this since 1979, the first card in my collection, given to me by a friend. This started it all for me. I will never upgrade this card, it has such meaning to me as the start of my collection!!!

Thanks for sharing your card and your beautiful story, Chris. To PSA it looked like a 3, but with those off-the-chart colors and extra crisp picture registry, you and I would call it a 12, which means priceless!!!!;) --- Brian Powell

A Chris Browne sighting?

CB- shoot me a PM, long time, no speak...Hope you're well, my friend.

E98 Cobb
 

Bought this from Mr. Delong back in 1982 for $20...Jerry

Highest graded white back in the registry. Picked it up in 1975.Attachment 354678

Dust and bones
 

While I may still have a few cards left from my childhood collecting days (75-78), they're likely well loved and packed away... somewhere. They've certainly never seen the light of a scanner, and probably never will. Grover Cleveland was picked up in London in 1980 on a high school trip, if I remember correctly. He's been hanging out all this time, waiting patiently ...

My longest-held T206 and T207 clock in at 29 and 28 years respectively.

Great stories and cards, everyone!

--
Mike