Buck Barker writing on card backs

[brianp-beme]

The Old Judge cards shown on this thread have a completely different handwriting on the back than the Zeenut, E107 etc. cards shown that Mark M. has confirmed to be from Buck Barker. Check out the G's between the two. I have a ton of Buck's former cards...let's just say I have been a good customer of lower grade Z's from Mark for years. Maybe Mark can chime in on the Old Judge examples.

Brian

[barrysloate]

Someone just emailed me and said he did not think the writing on the back of the OJ's was Barker's. Do we have any consensus of opinion?

[sb1]

I studied this a bit this morning and it certainly does not appear the same. Buck tended to list the player and his stats, teams, position, last year in BB, etc.

Scott

[barrysloate]

Scott- you are probably correct, but there are so many Old Judges with a back notation similar to the two on this thread that one would think another important collector once owned them. Any thoughts?

[oaks1912]

Barry.... Based on what I've seen, Buck's cards had either the rubber stamp with his name / address or the detailed career notes in shorthand. The other cards with a set notation, or just numbers are inconsistent with anything that I've seen directly attributed to Buck. Buck was more about researching the player and providing a reference for himself. Our current understanding of series such as Old Judge, E-107, and Zeenuts benefitted greatly from his research...... I should also add that Buck was not the only longtime collector, or individual to write on the backs of his cards. Many cards which were handled by Frank Nagy had his unique handwriting on the back. The experienced PCL / Zeenut collectors will also be familiar with several 'fingerprint' collections that have turned up over the last 40 years . Not to bore the average reader, there are many collections which have turned up with unique markings, wear patterns, flaws, writing, etc. over the years. As Yogi Berra would say, Seeing these cards recirculate is like deja vu all over again.

[barrysloate]

Mark- the Old Judges with the ink notations are ubiquitous and have been around for years. Do you have any idea who did the notating?

[paul]

My 1919 Zeenut Paddy Driscoll has Barker's writing plus the designation "Houser 78 Dobbins 73." So, does that mean Barker purchased the card from Dick Dobbins in 1973, sold or traded it, then purchased the same card from a collector named Houser in 1978?

[Rich Klein]

Originally Posted by paul

My 1919 Zeenut Paddy Driscoll has Barker's writing plus the designation "Houser 78 Dobbins 73." So, does that mean Barker purchased the card from Dick Dobbins in 1973, sold or traded it, then purchased the same card from a collector named Houser in 1978?

The late Dave Houser, who edited "Who's Who" for many years in Baseball Hobby News and also wrote some great hobby columns for BHN. He is truly missed for his writing skills and his appreciation of the hobby, and the people.
If someone here who may have known him wants to chime in, please do so.

Rich