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T206CollectorI know the story you are talking about. And for that reason and more just like it I generally dislike collecting autographs unless I'm the guy that obtained them. But when the provenance is good, that's a huge start. I happen to know where most of my cards have come from and I trust the source. Indeed, letters were written by the players returning their autographed cards to the original autograph seeker. In one case, I was able to get that letter for my collection. Not a lot of people forging old Fred Snodgrass' cards or letters -- I'm just not worried about that. Also, all of my autographs were obtained from players who died in the late 1960's or later, where the opportunity to sign was much much greater. I don't own any Addie Joss or Christy Mathewson autographed T206 cards.
Moreover, I use JSA/SGC for my autographed T206 authenticating. As long as the public has confidence in JSA/SGC, then my collection will be alright. In the event that JSA/SGC lose credibility in the market, then I may have to have my autographs certified by the next big thing.
But I will definitely concede that autograph collecting is fraught with much more peril than determining whether vintage cards are altered. That is one of the main reasons I do not collect autographs generally. But, again, when you own an autographed T206 card -- and you have every reason to believe that the signature is genuine -- it is a really special experience.