What was your first pre-war purchase?
 

I am currently on the fence about making a larger purchase (~$1500) for a relatively scarce item.

I have wanted this player's T206 portrait card for quite some time, but a unique D/E/W card has presented itself.

What was your first pre-war purchase? What made you pull the trigger on that copy?

I'm 75% likely buying this card, just want to hear some others stories first.

My first prewar purchase was a T206 Krause Portrait with an AB 350 back.

I had done a few months worth of research on the T206 set, and I was in the process of selling off my near complete graded 1953 Topps set. I had done my research, set up my spreadsheet in Excel, and was watching what was listed regularly on ebay. The Krause was part of a large assortment of cards offered all ending around the same time. Something about his portrait stuck out to me, and I knew I wanted my first purchase to be an off back, because I knew the backs would be something I would be focusing on with my T206 collecting project(s)

No regrets. I had almost a complete Krause portrait back run assembled before I shifted my collecting goals in the last 6 months, but I kept the AB350 back, and always will, since it is my first. It was originally in an SGC 4 holder (though it was probably overgraded) and has since been snapped out and put in my binder

https://i.ibb.co/KKpDV5T/Krause-Amer...-350-SGC-4.png

My first pre-war cards was a T205 Bresnahan. I had decided I wanted to build the T205 Hall of Fame set, and this was the first card in that set which went up for auction.

My first "expensive" pre-war card was a T205 Mathewson (photo attached).

No regrets :)

Mine was a cheap, low grade T206 common. I took a similar approach to E and other T sets, to help me decide if I wanted to try collecting more of them later. In hindsight, I'm glad I approached it that way. Good luck with whatever you decide, and I hope you'll share pics! -Matthew

I bought a random T206 from Card Collectors Company, which turned out to be a Snodgrass batting. That was the mid 1970s. Still have it.

A T-206 Red portrait Ty Cobb Polar Bear back. $250.00 seemed like a great deal at the time. I made this purchase around 2002.

Ty Cobb
 

A T-206 Red portrait Ty Cobb Polar Bear back. $250.00 seemed like a great deal at the time. I made this purchase around 2002.

These five from one dealer at a show some decades ago, back when you could get such cards for some spare lawn mowing money (and I didn't charge that much). Having begun in a more collector friendly era, I can't imagine starting up now, but I applaud anyone that goes into vintage thinking of the long haul, and not just the possibility of a quick turnaround.

Still have them all.

Brian

https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ni-CTlO4p...mage+(320).jpg

This Matty Dark Cap. I bought it in the late 70s, maybe early 80s thru an ad in one of the hobby publications. At the time I had plans to build a Hall of Fame collection using playing era cards whenever possible but even then, with prices laughably low compared with those today, it proved to be an impossible task once we began a family.

I still have it although I'm considering letting it go after all these years.

I was at the Philly Show in December of 2011. While I didn't set out to purchase a Pre-War card, this one caught my eye. I still have it.

Since that fateful day, I've picked up more than 100 additional T206 cards. It's a fun addiction hobby. I can stop any time I want...honest. :D

I have been collecting on and off for over 40 years, so I do not remember my first pre-war acquisition. I do recall that my first T206, which may have also been my first pre-war card as well, was a Bresnahan with bat (raw of course bc this was in the early-mid 1980's).

It was pretty beat up, but I remember thinking it was so cool because it was so old- almost as old as my grandparents, and they were old!

The first pre-war i picked up when I was 21, always gravitated towards pre-war after the seed was planted in my head as a 10 year old kid looking at the Kellogg's all-time greats 3D set, couldn't help thinking "who are these guys?!?"
_

What was your first pre-war purchase?
 

Okay, I pulled the trigger

1909 W555 Christy Mathewson. 14 known copies between PSA and SGC

I consulted Bluejacket66, John Mangini, and ThoseBackPages on this one. They were a huge help.

I am so happy!

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/BVkAA...Vo/s-l1600.jpg

National Game - Runner Sliding Umpire Behind
 

Twelve years ago I bought this one for $28.

https://static.wixstatic.com/media/5...58a44f~mv2.jpg

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Nice card!

I've been collecting on and off for something like 53 years. As a kid it was all Topps. My first pre-war cards were 1933 Goudey Ruth and Gehrig for $500 in 1988, using re-enlistment bonus money at Chanute AFB. I thought at the time it was highway robbery. Who could know?

A beat the hell up (major corner rounding and a crease) T206 common of a Cubs player (Del Howard). Piedmont back, nothing special. Got it at a card show for $25 and I was blown away simply handling it.

I traded it for a slightly off-center 2001 Bowman Pujols in 2001. Financially, it was a good deal for me at the time, and it was still a good financial deal when I sold the Pujols a couple years ago for $80.

That said, I'd rather have that card back than the $80. It's a part of my personal journey as a collector that's no longer around.

I'm glad I still have my first overall "vintage" card I bought in 1988 as a 12 year old...a slightly beat up 1972 Reggie Jackson. I paid $35 for it and I could probably get $15-20 today. I wouldn't even take $100 for it, though.

Street t206 portrait. Maranville Cracker Jack and speaker t206 were next purchases.

Purchased this Foxx around 1993. The owner allowed me to make payments.

1933 Goudey Rabbit Maranville. Figured cards that old would cost a fortune and that this seller on eBay was a fool for selling one of a Hall of Famer for under $100.

That was about 20 years ago. It's probably still not worth what I paid for it then.

My first prewar card was this T206 Hannifan Sovereign back. I had wanted a T206 since I was a kid and when I was in college I got a catalog from Kit Young. I picked out the Hannifan because he was on the Jersey City team and I thought that was cool. No mention of the back in the catalog. I was so excited when it showed up I looked at it for weeks. Still have it to this day. I'll never part with it. Since then I've started a Jersey City team collection which I love.




.

T206 Waddell throwing

The A's were my team, I wanted to finally get a T206, and enjoyrf his incredible story.



pizzazza

My first pre-war was a t206 Chance Red Portrait off of eBay back in probably 2003. Polar Bear back and poor condition. I paid $28.

My Red Cobb is my most expensive purchase but will be outdone when I finally get a Green Cobb Port.

Bill

At my first card show in 1974, I picked up t206s of Lajoie, Mordecai Brown and Chase, all in roughly perfect shape — the dealer, John Parks, had soaked them out of a scrapbook. I recall the HOFers were $3 each, while Chase was $1. I was about 13 at the time — I had read about those players in "The Glory of Their Times."

My first purchase was a T206 red portrait Ty Cobb in the early to mid 1990s for $75 from a dealer in FL, Orve Johansson (rest his soul). I became real good friends with Orve and a few years after the Cobb purchase, (was working by this time) I picked up a group of Goudeys including a Ruth + Gehrig!! Orve claimed the goudeys came from Johnny Allen’s collection, a player featured in the 1934 set. How true this is I’m unsure.

Danny

My first vintage that I can remember was mid 80's show in Albany area where I picked up T206 Keeler portrait. I had no idea this would lead to 40yrs of trying to get every Yankee

Purchased on eBay in late 2016 when I hit my mid-30s and realized I could realistically collect cards that would have seemed impossible to obtain as a kid (I didn’t even see cards like this at the local card shops and flea markets I frequented in the 1990s), prompting a return to the hobby.

At $385, it was the most expensive card I’d purchased or owned up to that point. Of course, it seems like a relative bargain just a few years later. The 2015-2020 period will stand as a golden age for older millennials who returned to collecting during that stretch. Goudey Ruths could be had for $1,500, I tell ya.

An old hooker on the upper West Side of Manhattan when I was 17 (just kidding 🤣)

First Purchase
 

When I first found pre-war cards, I was referred over to net54. eliotdeutsch was kind enough to give me a great deal on a group of 3 commons and he even included an extra beat up Jack Barry with a faded backstamp on it. Pretty awesome start!

I love all these cards, (Powers, Street, McGlynn, Barry), but something about the Powers all beat up with a slit on the bottom with the mask feels like the "first one"

Been an amazing journey in this first year of collecting and made some great friends along the way here. 32 / 520 so far and slowly working my way towards finishing the monster!

Thinking all the commons will go in an album, and will planning to get low grade SGC graded cards for the HOF'ers to display. I may splurge on a nice white cap Matty one day though :)

How about $500 for Ruth AND Gehrig in 1988? My best friend and my sister both thought I was insane, and I thought it was rash (I also bought a 1934 OAL ball signed by Ruth, Gehrig and Cobb at the same time) as well. As I have said ever since, who could know?

My first and only prewar card.
Wanted a card of one of the blacksox

https://www.net54baseball.com/pictur...ictureid=34246

The very d304 Cobb pictured below was my first pre-war card purchase a decade ago. I didn't know anything about it or pre-war cards at the time, yet the image was just so pleasing to my eye that I bid on it and won. I had actually sold it to a friend yet was so attached to it he allowed me to get it back in a later trade. Tough card to find, and too pricey for me in higher grades, so this was always "the one" for me.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...3beeb4c1_z.jpg

3 1933 Goudey's for $7.50 in 1987. Bing Miller, Randy Moore and someone else. I was always trying to get "the oldest card I've ever had" and that was my first foray into anything before the late 1950's.

T206 Kisinger, purchased for $1. I still have it somewhere.

Well I may have bought a couple common t206s on Ebay, this was my first significant prewar purchase, and the first card I ever bought from an auction house. I believe it was actually the last auction that Legendary ran. I still have the card, and as I've mentioned on a few threads it's my all time favorite image on a baseball card. Pictured next to my '27 Ruth

1914 Cracker Jack Evers SGC 40/3 bought roughly 12 years ago for $300 saying I wanted to own one expensive card after climbing back in the hobby. I thought I would be done after that but...we'll not so much.

t206 bradley with bat
 

paid $18 and remember thinking I was overpaying. Probably would pay about the same today.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...180d6a7f_w.jpg

Bought this Matty with a Speaker and a year later I had 519 t206s.

This card which I bought for $250 from Steve Verkman in 1989 at a small show in Manhasset, Long Island. I had collected cards as a kid in the 1970’s, and got back into it in 1989 after college. Still my favorite card, sentiment playing a big role. Thought it was the coolest thing i had seen, i had no idea growing up that cards went back that far.

1915 Cracker Jack Cobb.

Red Cobb portrait, T206

T206 Eddie Collins. Thought, and still think he's extremely undervalued considering how good of a ballplayer he was.

In 1978, I purchased a 1933 Goudey #238 Hugh Critz for $20.00. The next week I purchased a 1934 Goudey Lefty Grove for $20.00. Both cards are still in my collection.

It was a 1909 T206 Buck Herzog with pair loss on the back. The card still makes me smile.

https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/vg0AA...UE-/s-l500.jpg

First pre-war purchase, 30+ years ago, at a regional show (St Louis). 8 years before joining eBay. Its the only pre-war Pirate I held onto.

https://net54baseball.com/picture.ph...ictureid=30023

Great thread. I started getting back into cards around spring 2014. Bought a nice '54 Bowman Mantle that summer, which was by far the most I'd ever spent on a card. I had a little familiarity with vintage, but knew almost nothing about prewar. It seemed like a steep learning curve. Then I went to the Raleigh show in December 2014 and saw this T205 Mathewson in a dealer's case. It was love at first sight. I slept on it that night, and went back and bought it the next day for $325. It was in a SGC 30/2 holder at the time, and I cracked it and sent it to PSA where it (rightly) upgraded. Still have it front and center in my display case.

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/...abe99329_c.jpg

Well, it may not be much help, but here it is.

The shop In the town I'd just moved to had T206 comons for 1.50 each. I really liked them, but hadn't bought any.

Then the guys at the shop said they'd held one aside for me.
ANd it was only 20 cents! Of course, it was also heavily creased, torn, taped to keep it in one piece... but it was mine! If I'd only known where that would lead....
https://www.net54baseball.com/pictur...pictureid=4729

early
 

90's

Richard Galasso SCD adv. I bought an N43 baseball card in VG/X

fast forward and I need but Edwards the boxer to complete a nice graded set......

Bought these two in the same transaction a few years ago. No longer have the Gehrig, though.

In 1976 I was 11 years old. Took my paper route money and was going to buy a 1953 Paige from an older kid in the neighborhood. He had 2nd thoughts and instead gave me a T206 Mathewson portrait and a 62 Musial for $30 total. That was a ton of money for me at 11, but got me hooked.

This may sound odd especially since I am a Ruth, Jackson collector primarily.

But my first pickups were Raw T206 and T205 Cards. At the time walked into a Great little Card store on Long Island and he had alot of T205 and T206 Cards that were on display and Raw. Many HOFers and at reasonable prices. So I picked up a few of each. Expanded to non HOFers and was working on each set but was to many players, add backs (prior to me appreciating Ad backs like my Joe Jackson Ad Backs), and so on.
I also picked up a Cap Anson because he was the first Truly Famous player to me (no knock on others) and I wanted a card from the 1800's.
Also even though prices were reasonable the more I bought the more my money was tied up. So when my dream card a 1909 Joe Jackson became available I did not have funds and realized how much I had tied up in the cards.

All since sold to support my Ruth and Jackson addictions

My first Pre-War was a football card. When David Hall sold off his collection I ended up with this National Chicle. Finally I re-discovered baseball cards and got this Lajoie.

Two events happened almost at the same time. First was, I bought a 1955 Koufax rookie and another rookie at the same time. I asked for a T206 Walter Johnson portait as a "throw in" and they agreed.

I don't even remember what the 2nd rookie card was but was captivated by the T206 Johnson portrait and never looked back 25+ years later.

Best throw in ever.

Dark cap Matty. Still my favorite in the T206 set.

Hey, Jeff, that Anson looks familiar :)

Yes Chris that one is now yours.

I rediscover all my old cards a year ago and sold them to turn it into my 1915 World Series Program

This…

First pre war
 

My first few pre war in this group

https://www.collectorfocus.com/image...37/first-cards

My first prewar cards were a T206 Jack Pfeister (seated), a 1933 Goudey Hugh Critz, and a 1934 Diamond Stars Johnny Vergez, bought in 1979 for a total of $3.25 from dealer Paul Marchant. I still have all of them.

About 30-some odd years ago, I purchased a binder with over 250 T206 cards and other tobacco issues for $1,500.

Many of them were in outstanding shape.


I started selling them off a few at a time and after a year or so, I had only a few that I was determined to keep...alas.


The bat-on Cobb, which was, for a long time, the cornerstone of my collection, was the last to go a couple of years ago.



But Hey...I still have my 1990 Fleer Jose Uribe!

I know the photo is incredibly blurry, but dang if some of those look like reprints, especially, to my vintage encrusted eyes, the Goudeys and some of the extra white bordered 1950's cards.

Brian (no offense, just an observation)

Pre War
 

No reprints there!

Then quite the bunch of first cards!

Brian

I prefer the bat off to the bat on.

Great cards!

My first pre-war card was a Mayo football card that I bought in the late-1980s.

T206 Killian portrait. Good memories from the start.

T206 red Cobb $100.00 in the 1980’s. THe other 3. Cobb’s in an SCD auction for $265.00 also in the 1980’s. Collected the complete Detroit set, since sold.

When I re-entered the hobby circa 1990 and decided to make Full Count a pre-war dealer, my first card was a 1914 Cracker Jack Fred Clarke. The pose just seemed to me to capture the spirit of baseball at the time. Still have it and will never part with it.

My first pre-war card
 

When I graduated from college in 1970 and got my first job, I bought some cards sets that I'd collected as a kid. I bought complete sets of '55, '58, and '60 Topps from Stan Martucci for about $35-50 each. A few years later, maybe 1974 or 1975, my then-wife, who was an arts administrator, mentioned my interest in cards to Tom Akins, who I remembered as the double-bass player for the Indianapolis Symphony. (When I googled him just now, I learned that he was, in fact, the tympanist.)

He invited me to go to a card show with him where I passed on a 1959 Bob Gibson for $3, since I didn't understand the concept of a "rookie card" (although I think I got "high number.") At the end of the show, Tom gave me a T206 Cobb with the bat off shoulder that had a large diagonal crease the width of the card. He reckoned it was worth about $5. I sold the card (with most of the rest of my collection) around 2009 when my younger daughter was off to college. I remember the card fondly, though, and Tom, if you're out there, thanks so much for taking me to that card show.

Bought my first two - WG5 National Game John McGraw and a T206 Jimmy Collins - on the same day (1/14/1995) at a Parsippany, NJ card show.

My first pre war card and the only one i currently have.
My favorite all time movie is Field of Dreams and i wanted badly to have one of the "Black Sox." Means even more now that my Dad has passed with plot of the movie etc.

https://www.net54baseball.com/pictur...ictureid=30030

My first pre-war and first Ruth. This led to all the Ruths and Gehrigs. Then the Lajoie and eventually the rest of the set.

https://photos.imageevent.com/exhibi...on%20ready.jpg

Bought it around 1977 or 1978, unslabbed, in Anaheim CA from Mike Berkus. I was 12 or 13. Cost me twelve bucks, which was a big chunk of my cash on hand at that show. Had it slabbed 20 or so years later.

Some throw in! Who would do that?

1922 E121-120 Elmer Miller card at the 1989 National in Chicago. He was my great great Uncle

Adam, I got my Walter Johnson (part of my first group of 5 prewar cards I purchased) about 3 or 4 years after you for either $2 or $3. Although yours is nicer, I am on here to time travel reprimand you for wasting your allowance.

Brian

T205
 

I think I purchased this in the summer of either 1989 or 1990 as a 10 or 11 year old at the monthly Gonzaga show in Milwaukee. I wanted a T card and thought this was a good looking image.
Still have it and it’s still my only T205 I’ve ever owned.

I consider mine an indirect and lucky purchase. I had picked up a couple of boxes of 2004 Topps Cracker Jack while building the set. They had some sort of bonus pack in each box that contained a mini card, or mini sticker, I can't remember. It was acting as the typical prize you'd find in a Cracker Jack package. They had randomly inserted an original Cracker Jack card into those packs and I was able to pull one. Unfortunately I got rid of it about ten years ago.

1933 Goudey Bing Miller and 2 others that I can't remember anymore fr $2.50 each at a mall show in about 1987.

I don't remember which one was first, but these were purchased at Lambertville NJ Flea Market @ 1979 or 1980, Barkley was $20 and Young $16