Who signed the first secretarial or clubhouse signature?
 

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Twenty-five years ago i visited Cooperstown and portrayed myself as a descendant of Jess Burkett. They granted me access, as a relative to the HOF library. They brought out the Burkett file for my review. Honestly there wasn't much in it. They did allow me to xerox a copy of several items however.

The letter above was one of the items I copied. The letter itself is a copy as the original that is in the Hermann file. It appears to be handwritten and in the same hand as the signature, but what do I know.

The question I raise is that of the history of secretarial and/or clubhouse autographs. When did these practices begin? Was anybody besieging Burkett with autograph requests during his time in Worcester following his playing career.

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He also returned as a coach of the Giants in 1921. Was he besieged by autograph requests upon returning to New York?

I don't expect anyone knows for sure, but when did this form of signature (by other than the name signed) enter the baseball autograph market?

Secretarial signatures on business letters may have always happened as in the above. I have seen ones of Heilbroner, etc. As to when they started for autograph requests I am not sure. It is interesting when my son batboyed in the AZ fall league maybe 10 years ago a not very top prospect asked my son to sigh all his mail (he didn't). I also have a patient who was an NHL star. When ever he would come in I would give him a handful of cards to sign. Once when his wife came along- she grabbed them and started to sign them.

All I know is that the one time I even mentioned secretarial or clubhouse, I got me head chewed off.

At the risk of having the same treatment, I believe the practice is wide-spread.


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With Frank starting this I was going to go with . . . Alfalfa in the He Man Woman Haters Clubhouse. :eek: