T206's only? Please help me understand this 'F. Scott Fitzgerald' Obak

[brianp-beme]

There have been a couple of other interesting threads concerning the 'F' stamp. Here is a link to one of them:

http://www.net54baseball.com/showthr...ght=fitzgerald

Brian

[Steve D]

I just did some research on Ancestry.com, and found that FSF's mother's maiden name was McQuillan, setting up a possible connection (I did not actually find one in a cursory search) with George McQuillan, a pitcher for the Phillies, Reds, Pirates and Indians, and who had two cards in the T206 set.

Also, according to Wikipedia, FSF's parents sent him to a prep school in Hackensack, NJ. He was there from 1911 to 1913, so that would have provided him a good opportunity to collect the cards while there.


Steve

[Jobu]

I have been looking for F stamps for a while now, and almost all of them are on T206. I have managed to find two additional Obaks, making three total, compared to 29 T206.

There is evidence that some T206 brands were pretty regional and I have seen stamps on EPDG, Sweet Cap, Old Mill, and Piedmont. Not sure where those were distributed. I know Obaks were distributed on the West Coast but I have no idea whether or not they may have been distributed nationally.

The possibilities I see for these belonging to F Scott are:

1) these brands were all distributed in Minnesota, which certainly could be possible if one is willing to assume that Obak was a specialty/novelty brand only stocked in small quantities, something which would be backed up by the 29:3 ratio I have found

2) F Scott collected T206 as a kid and picked up a handful of Obaks when he was in California in the 1920s and 1930s

3) He had a pen pal (not too likely)

4) I have never seen this one suggested (though I see it was suggested while I typed this novella -- talk about being beaten to the punch, SHEESH!!!) but I think it has some legs. After reading the Wikipedia link that Cozumeleno posted, it says that F Scott was sent to a prestigious boarding school, the Newman School in NJ, in 1911, when he was 15. If his parents sent him from halfway across the country, I would image that there were students there from the West Coast. These 14- and 15-year-old kids probably brought their cards with them and I am sure trades happened. This would also explain the 29:3 ratio as I would assume the kids from the West Coast were in the minority. It is also possible that he started collecting here if he took up smoking with his new classmates. The stamp makes sense too - living in a boarding school dorm with a bunch of kids would not be the safest place to keep a pile of unmarked cards.

I have never seen this stamp on anything but a T206 or Obak, which suggests that this was a kid's collection around 1909-1911. If a later collector acquired cards from across the country I would think that this stamp would be on a lot more issues than it is. Really, the boarding school theory perfectly explains the patterns that we have been trying to figure out for so long and not much else clearly works for the patterns outlined above. Of course, it still takes a leap of faith, but boy is it fun to think about.

Maybe tomorrow, if I am up to another novella, I will give a quick summary of the rest of the story...

[egbeachley]

Would it be so weird to consider that one of his relatives, an uncle perhaps, knew he collected the T206 cards. This uncle went on a trip to California, saw an Obak or two and thought "hey, those look like the cards my nephew collects" and brought a few home to give him?

Who doesn't pick up a present for younger relatives when on a trip?

[The Nasty Nati]

I want to believe it, but it's so far fetched. There's so many other possibilities for a stamp marked "F". Yes Fitzgerald collected during the T206 era, but so did tens of thousands of boys with the first or last name of "F"...not to mention the handful of adults that collected during that time, or years after.

[MULLINS5]

I have been studying Fitzgerald for many years and can tell you, for certain, that he collected t206 cards. I have seen this stamp in some of his childhood books and the outer flap of envelopes (where people use wax to seal it shut). He left his baseball cards behind when he went to college. Throughout his life he moved around a lot, but the cards stayed at home. He got them back when his mother died in the late '30s which must have renewed interest in collecting because he bought some as an adult late in his life, while in California. They did go up for auction and Matthew Bruccoli was the underbidder on the lot.

I can't tell you if the cards pictured are his or not, but the stamps I've seen which ARE his look eerily similar, with an outline around the letter (most noticeably on the bottom). Even though there is no definitive proof that a particular card came from his collection, I would still love to pick-up a couple to add to my Fitzgerald items.

Happy to assist in any way I can. Hope this is OK to post here, but my site is feel free to contact me if you have some for sale or have any questions about Fitz.

Patrick

[unamuzd1]

Originally Posted by MULLINS5

I have been studying Fitzgerald for many years and can tell you, for certain, that he collected t206 cards. I have seen this stamp in some of his childhood books and the outer flap of envelopes (where people use wax to seal it shut).
Patrick

I think that if you can provide pictures of the stamp in items with verifiable FSF provenance, there will be some very happy collectors, myself included. I've not seen anyone make that connection.

Don't misunderstand me - I'm not doubting your word. Why would I? It looks like we're probably kin!

[brianp-beme]

Thanks Patrick for posting. It is the first time that I have heard a little more concrete info pertaining to these stamped cards. The fact that he used this stamp on childhood books and envelopes certainly makes it much more plausible that the stamps seen on cards are indeed legit.

Do you remember where you heard or read about the Fitzgerald and his T206 collection, and his later collecting?

Brian

[MULLINS5]

I first heard it from Matthew Bruccoli my freshman year of college in 2006. I am going to reach out to some of my sources at the F. Scott and Zelda Museum, as well as Sam and Eleanor Lanahan (F. Scott's grandchildren) to see if I can get some more information to share. Some of my college professors likely will be able to provide more info, too, perhaps some pictures of the stamp in his childhood books.