Dumb question on E98 "Old Put Cigars"

[wolf441]

I'm sure that this may be a stupid question, but why are the "Old Puts" considered an ultra-rare subset, rather than just examples of E98's with a back stamp on them? Is there anything in the E98 back checklist that differs from a normal non-stamped E98 reverse? Is there evidence that these cards were issued in packages of Old Put cigars? Does anyone have an example of an actual "Old Put Cigar" package?

[Leon]

Why are different backs on T206 popular? People want them. They are different. The Old Puts are kind of unusual in that they turned candy cards into tobacco cards. I don't know of any Old Put container or wrapper being found but I think there will be one/some found in the future. If you look at a lot of old candy and tobacco ephemera you will see candy and tobacco were lumped together in many stores, catalogs, invoices, billheads etc...

[Harford20]

Thanks Leon. I never thought about these cards as Candy cards gone tobacco. I was sitting trying to think of any other card series that could be placed in BOTH and could not think of any. In your type collection are there other "dual" series like the Old Put E98?

[frankbmd]

While trying to learn about Old Put cigars, I found nothing unrelated to cards with the stamp, but.......

I found that the old NY central railroad line from NYC to Putnam, NY was referred to as the "Old Put". It operated from the early 1890s until 1913, I believe (perhaps longer), according to one source.

Given the era is the same, is there a relationship between the Old Put stamp and the railroad perhaps. I'll bet there were more than few cigar smokers riding the Old Put in the day.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

While trying to learn about Old Put cigars, I found nothing unrelated to cards with the stamp, but.......

I found that the old NY central railroad line from NYC to Putnam, NY was referred to as the "Old Put". It operated from the early 1890s until 1913, I believe (perhaps longer), according to one source.

Given the era is the same, is there a relationship between the Old Put stamp and the railroad perhaps. I'll bet there were more than few cigar smokers riding the Old Put in the day.

There is a chance the Old Puts were sold on the Old Put train.

I will look for some other cards with similar characteristics later...

[wolf441]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

While trying to learn about Old Put cigars, I found nothing unrelated to cards with the stamp, but.......

I found that the old NY central railroad line from NYC to Putnam, NY was referred to as the "Old Put". It operated from the early 1890s until 1913, I believe (perhaps longer), according to one source.

Given the era is the same, is there a relationship between the Old Put stamp and the railroad perhaps. I'll bet there were more than few cigar smokers riding the Old Put in the day.

Good thought Frank!

Maybe cigars were sold at one of the stations on the line and for a short time, these cards were given out with the cigars??

Is there any evidence that these were made separately from the regular E98 candy issue and not just E98's that someone collected and stamped? Perhaps the same railroad station sold the E98 candy product and scooped up any discarded E98's, stamped and gave them away along with the cigars?? Now we have the makings of an urban legend!!!

[Leon]

Originally Posted by wolf441

Good thought Frank!

Maybe cigars were sold at one of the stations on the line and for a short time, these cards were given out with the cigars??

Is there any evidence that these were made separately from the regular E98 candy issue and not just E98's that someone collected and stamped? Perhaps the same railroad station sold the E98 candy product and scooped up any discarded E98's, stamped and gave them away along with the cigars?? Now we have the makings of an urban legend!!!

My guess is that they were E98s, all made together, then whomever got them put the stamp on their backs.

[dstudeba]

Not the same, but similar. D card morphed into an E card.

[wolf441]

Thanks for the posts Leon and those are beautiful cards! I agree that tobacco and candy products (as well as bread, baking, etc) would be lumped together on catalogs and invoices. You'd have to think that any decent general store at the time would have sold all of these products.

[frankbmd]

Steve,

Just expanding your thought about the stamp being just a stamp.

If there is nothing unique about the cards to differentiate them from the E-98s,
the question then becomes is their really such a thing as an Old Put cigar or are the stamps from the RR stations selling cigars ???

The terminus of the railroad in NYC appears to be around 155 St. Where was the field where the Highlanders played? Perhaps folks from the north of NYC had to take the Old Put to get to the games, hence a plausible connection between baseball cards and the stamp. Just a thought.

[wolf441]

Here's a website that goes through the historical stations along the "Old Put" line:

http://www.billboeckelman.com/conten...html?id=910922