1949 Jackies on Memory Lane

[CharleyBrown]

Originally Posted by barrysloate

As great as the Bond Bread issue is- and thanks Shaun for the useful information- they were a regional issue, pretty much available only in Brooklyn. Some collectors prefer that rookie cards were distributed nationally. It's fodder for debate.

Barry, they were available outside of Brooklyn as well. In NYC, they could be found in Brooklyn and Harlem. They were also available in these cities and their suburbs (I may be missing some as I'm on the phone away from my research): Washington DC, Baltimore, Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, St. Louis, Montreal.

While I've tracked down some cards from New Orleans, they were not purchased from the original owner, but rather pawn shop / dealers that bought them as part of a collection. Since I don't know if the person that sold to those dealers / pawn shops moved to New Orleans later in life, I can't confirm that they were available in that city.

[CharleyBrown]

That being said, I don't know about the clipped corner Bond Bread issue, as I have not researched it.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by CharleyBrown

Barry, they were available outside of Brooklyn as well. In NYC, they could be found in Brooklyn and Harlem. They were also available in these cities and their suburbs (I may be missing some as I'm on the phone away from my research): Washington DC, Baltimore, Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, St. Louis, Montreal.

While I've tracked down some cards from New Orleans, they were not purchased from the original owner, but rather pawn shop / dealers that bought them as part of a collection. Since I don't know if the person that sold to those dealers / pawn shops moved to New Orleans later in life, I can't confirm that they were available in that city.

May I ask how you were able to find out that Bond Breads were sold in (for example) Baltimore and its suburbs in 1947? That's pretty impressive and have no idea how one would go about that.

[CharleyBrown]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

May I ask how you were able to find out that Bond Breads were sold in (for example) Baltimore and its suburbs in 1947? That's pretty impressive and have no idea how one would go about that.

Peter,

I completely missed your post. I used library archives, leads from fellow members, and social media.

[barrysloate]

Originally Posted by CharleyBrown

Barry, they were available outside of Brooklyn as well. In NYC, they could be found in Brooklyn and Harlem. They were also available in these cities and their suburbs (I may be missing some as I'm on the phone away from my research): Washington DC, Baltimore, Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chicago, St. Louis, Montreal.

While I've tracked down some cards from New Orleans, they were not purchased from the original owner, but rather pawn shop / dealers that bought them as part of a collection. Since I don't know if the person that sold to those dealers / pawn shops moved to New Orleans later in life, I can't confirm that they were available in that city.

Interesting. I would have assumed Manhattan, but surprised the cards were available in all those other cities. If that is the case, then why isn't the Bond Bread Jackie's rookie card? It really should be.

Where's Ted Z when you need him? Although not a pre-war discussion, I think this topic is worthy of it's own thread, which might catch the attention of more members who have extensively researched these cards (not to overlook the terrific knowledge provided by Shaun)

Link to the Bond Bread research thread. Man we really need those pics back!

http://www.net54baseball.com/showthread.php?t=171169

[CharleyBrown]

Originally Posted by barrysloate

Interesting. I would have assumed Manhattan, but surprised the cards were available in all those other cities. If that is the case, then why isn't the Bond Bread Jackie's rookie card? It really should be.

Barry, I think there are 4 reasons as to why it hasn't picked up more steam as being Jackie's official rookie card.

1) Jackie was the only player featured in the set of 13. I could be wrong, but I feel like most widely accepted RCs come from sets with multiple players.

2) The confusion on the release date. Because it was incorrectly believed for quite some time that all 13 cards were released in 1947, it is likely that most collectors didn't know which card should be considered his RC, so thereby figured the Leaf/Bowman options would be easier to classify as such.

3) While the card wasn't regional in terms of city distribution, it was primarily distributed in neighborhoods / suburbs with larger black / African-American populations. This doesn't mean that it wasn't available in neighborhoods where the demographic was primarily white, but the majority of distribution did happen where there was a larger black demographic. I think this is why the regional label does still stick.

4) Low pop numbers in comparison to the Leaf / Bowman issues. While the reported distribution numbers of the Bond Bread white borders portrait card were very high, the pop reports would lead one to believe otherwise. I think that the low pop numbers contribute as well to the regional label. As I mentioned in a previous reply, I believe that many of the people that received this card, and the other Bond Bread white border cards (D302) weren't necessarily baseball card collectors. As we know, Jackie's importance went well beyond the game, and would thus make this promotional item attractive to those that never bought a pack, etc.

I believe that there are many more of at least the white border portrait card out there. As for the remaining 12 - I'm not really sure. The distribution areas were the same, though the distribution #s aren't as clear on those just yet.

[barrysloate]

Shaun- maybe if there was more information regarding the issue date and distribution of the cards, collectors might look at them in a new light. I'm okay with the idea that most choose the 1949 Leaf, but that Bond Bread set is pretty darn interesting and deserves some further research.

[CharleyBrown]

Originally Posted by barrysloate

Shaun- maybe if there was more information regarding the issue date and distribution of the cards, collectors might look at them in a new light. I'm okay with the idea that most choose the 1949 Leaf, but that Bond Bread set is pretty darn interesting and deserves some further research.

Agreed. I've been hoping to put together an article compiling all of my research - it's been a goal of mine for the last 2 years. Time has not been on my side, though. The closest thing for now is in a recent Goldin Auction catalog, which used my research in the write-up for a friend's set.

[barrysloate]

If you can find the time it would make for a great article.

Originally Posted by CharleyBrown

Agreed. I've been hoping to put together an article compiling all of my research - it's been a goal of mine for the last 2 years. Time has not been on my side, though. The closest thing for now is in a recent Goldin Auction catalog, which used my research in the write-up for a friend's set.

The most compelling part for me from the previous archived thread on the subject was:

1) The advertisement which actually pictured the White Bordered Portrait w/ facsimile autograph card and invited consumers to come into their local grocer to pick up a card. This was used to pinpoint the release date of that particular card to the summer of 1947. Another interesting thing about this particular card is that it has a unique back compared to the other 12 and is the only card that includes biographical information about Jackie Robinson, rather than just advertising Bond Bread

2) The research which cross-references the original wire photos to the images on the cards and was utilized to verify that particular cards could not have been produced prior to the date on the photos.

3) The different backs and how it was hypothesized the cards were distributed in waves over a 2-3 year period.

The research was very compelling and was even more so with the photographic evidence provided. I'm basing all of this off memory and am pretty much plagiarizing the work that Shaun did along with Ted Z, but I know after reading through that thread I felt extremely confident that the White Bordered Jackie Portrait w/ facsimile autograph was almost definitely the first released on the 13 white bordered cards produced, was likely distributed in a different manner (retailer vs. packages of bread), and was likely a promotional card of sorts produced to gauge consumer response

Shaun, are you able to post the picture from the archived thread of the original advertising of the White Bordered Jackie Portrait w/ facsimile autograph? All the pics from the archived thread are gone. Also do you happen to have a link to the write up you did for your friend's set in the Goldin Auction catalog?