The Dead Years (1890-1908), What Happened?

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Posted By: Todd Schultz

I've seen that line about the tobacco trust monopoly before, and think that it's either an oversimplification and/or just partially accurate. First, it seems that there were several other types of cards/silks/pins/inserts in tobacco products throughout the 1890-1908 era. If you didn't need to hype your product with "prizes" then why have these?

Second, the American Tobacco Company was not ordered to be dissolved until 1911, yet the ATC brands were issuing t206 beforehand. I suppose some could argue that T206 was issued in response to the antitrust steps that were taken in 1907--the beginning of the end for ATC- to show that the brands were competing against each other, but if so, that seems a little weak to me.

Baseball was not unpopular throughout this era, although it had its moments of disrepute. The American League would not have been formed had there not been demand for the game. Perhaps the paucity of cards during this period is explained in part by the costs of obtaining the players' permission to use their likenesses?