What got you started collecting cards?

[Cardboard Junkie]

Around 53/56, I collected topps world on wheels and rails and sails then in 56 had to have davy crockett cards. But in the background of my memory I see my older brother, who was about 13 or so at the time playing with baseball cards, football cards and hockey cards. The first baseball I actually remember openning was 57 topps. By 58 59 60 I was into it big time and would buy them by the box. (From the milk depot) (a little woodfloor depot covered in sawdust and sold dairy and eggs.....had a small place on the counter with boxes of topps issues stacked 3 or 4 high.) (they always gave me a free glass 1/2 pint of milk....I would put a strawberry or chocolate "flavor straw" in it and sip on it while looking for Tigers......it was heaven.

[jbl79]

In 1988, my dad owned a small convenience store when I was younger and always supplied wax boxes of Topps, Donruss, and Score baseball cards. Every once in a while he would give me a couple of packs to open. Since I was a big SF Giants fan I would always try to find Will Clark cards since he was my favorite player. I didn't get into vintage until the mid 90s when I went to my first major show in SF. I was amazed to see all the Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Ted Williams, and Mickey Mantle cards at all the tables. That's when I started to read up on the history of the game and all the great players. Once I did that, I've been collecting vintage cards ever since.

[quinnsryche]

Started in 1976 when my dad and his 3 friends opened their card store in Chicago. At age 10 I saw more cards than most people have ever seen total in their entire lives. Cases of Topps cards from the 60's & 70's, literally stacked to the ceiling, 3 deep in multiple storerooms. Tables in the store front made out of unopened cases of cards (3 high and 2 deep with plywood and fabric on top of them). Cabinets filled with complete sets of 50's - 70's Topps, 48 -55 Bowman, Goudey, etc. Put together a 1956 Topps set, hand picked in NM condition and sold it for $300! Tried many times over to stop collecting, just can't do it. I guess it's in my blood.

[vintagechris]

I was 11 in 1980 and my Mother worked at Sears at the local mall. When I was out of school for Summer or Christmas, I would go to the mall with her and I would play video games.

One of the places I shoveled massive amounts of quarters into was the Woolworths game room. It was in the back of the store. While walking quickly to the game room one day, I noticed a box in the candy section that had some kind of football design on it.

Being a fan, I stopped to see what it was. Saw they were football cards and bought two packs. Went outside the store to one of the mall benches and opened the packs. In the first pack, I got a card of Tony Hill who played for my favorite childhood team the Cowboys. I was hooked. I then took all of my video game $ and bought football cards that day.

Shortly after that, my Mom started buying me two packs of cards everyday that she worked at the mall. She did that for 6 years when I took a break from collecting. It's one of the great memories I have of my Mom who is no longer here.

Then in the summer of 1981, while at the local flea market with my Dad, there was a guy there who had older cards I had never seen. Mantle, Aaron, Mays, guys from the 50's I had only heard of but never saw cards of. I plopped down $5 for my first vintage purchase, a 1959 Topps Yogi Berra. Two weeks later I paid $6 for a 1965 Topps Hank Aaron. Shortly after that I paid $9 for a Mike Schmidt RC and when I showed it to my Dad, he thought I was crazy for spending that kind of money for "old cardboard".

Like many, collecting cards was one of the great memories I had as a child.