Old Baseball Scrapbooks
 

I have 18 of them. 12 of them came from eBay in years past. The cover the gamut...tobacco, pre-war, post-war, the newest being early 1970s. Many were literally in tatters when I got them and had to be moved to newer archival means. Up until recently they could be had very cheap compared to other old baseball memorabilia and cards, but now, these too have gone through the roof. What 2 years ago could be bought for $10 or $15 is now $150 to $200. But there is all sorts of interesting stuff in them.

Those are awesome James. Looks like a lot of fun to look through them all to see what people back then wanted to record and remember in their personal scrapbooks. Thanks for sharing the images.



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Are you happy or unhappy that they have gone up so much in price (seems x10)?

Well, it's like everything, price-wise. You can still pick them up for $25, but not the ones loaded with memorabilia. But I guess it had to be. Sellers have become cognizant of autographs, Wheaties panels and what not, even if they are glued in. It's like with my cards and baseballs and all the other memorabilia. I have no intention of selling any of it, but who really knows? These old scrapbooks just add something to the old cards, I think, yet another window into what baseball was like. What the era was like. Everything put into them was done decades ago by young fans, I would imagine. Some of them were done with a lot of care. One of them documents Joe DiMaggio's hit streak basically day by day. Another is an accounting of the Memphis Chickasaws (more commonly Chicks) of the Southern Association the year they won a Dixie Series championship. Another has all kinds of stuff associated with Lou Gehrig and his illness, including the entire text of his speech at Yankee Stadium. Another has all kinds of newspaper clippings and magazine articles about Pearl Harbor as well as baseball, and even the big bands of Tommy Dorsey, Glenn Miller, Artie Shaw and all the others. How do you put a price on things like that? Surely, much more than $25, so they had to stop practically giving them away. I just am fortunate to have them.

Very interesting. Curious if the speech was handwritten or a snippet cut from a newspaper or magazine? It would be very cool if it was handwritten in there.




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It's cut from either a newspaper or a magazine. It's virtually the same as Gary Cooper's from the film, but... slightly different. Hard to say for sure, but I think it's the actual Lou Gehrig speech.

Wow those look amazing and love all those different photos

Lou Gehrig's speech at Yankee Stadium

https://www.ebay.com/itm/256124557990

Here is a current listing that would appear to be heading to a very reasonable conclusion.

Those are awesome! The page with the Ruth and Gehrig Kashin cards could be worth thousands if they are in good shape and can be soaked off. I can only dream of finding something like that.

Well, the 2 Kashins of Ruth and Gehrig are really glued in tight, and whatever kind of glue was used actually stained all the way through. They'll be staying where they are. Same with Gehrig and DiMaggio Wheaties panels. There's also a bunch of r312 National Chicle cards (like paper, very thin and very brittle) in one of them. Someone "corrected" the mis-spelled names. No way to get them out without destroying them. There's all kinds of things in them; schedules, score cards, ticket stubs, photos, full 1941 PM newspaper like a program for the World Series complete with scorecards, a wealth of various "Color Fotos" full size, including 1940 Cincinnati Reds, 1941 Yankees, 1941 Brooklyn Dodgers. A homemade 1932 World Series scrapbook. The fan or kid who put it together was all excited about his beloved Cubs, only to have them swept by the mighty Yankees. Just all kinds of really cool stuff. Pretty much the history of baseball in the 1930s-40s and 50s.

Even if they are stuck to the pages permanently, I guarantee you that someone would pay into three figures for Ruth and Gehrig career-issued cards.

I look at scrap books whenever I find them in the wild. Last month I got one devoted to the 1936 Olympics and it included a Jesse Owens Sports Stamp.

https://photos.imageevent.com/exhibi...Copy%20_2_.jpg

I have taken several of these scrapbooks to an antique dealer I know and trust. He and 2 consignment sellers who deal in baseball cards (1 of which I have traded cards with twice) have stated the same as you. If and/or when I would ever want to do that, I would probably sell to one of these guys. My wife has jokingly said, if I up and croak, she would, quote, "just throw that old junk out!" But she and my daughter know about the cards, baseballs and memorabilia, and know what to do if it comes to that.

That's a pretty nice Jesse Owens Sports Stamp, by the way.