My 1956 Topps Project
 

I wanted to start a project to give my collecting a bit of focus. Ultimately, I decided upon the 1956 Topps Baseball set. Some of things that drew me to this particular set are:

- Player Selection: roughly one of every ten cards is a Hall of Famer
- Oversized Cards: simply put, they’re different than modern cards in many ways, including size
- Horizontal Format: this aspect pairs well with the use of two images front
- Overall Design: I find everything about these mid-50s cards to be aesthetically pleasing, from the large portrait, to the action shots, to the cartoons on the back. Collect what you like and like what you collect, right?

Another very appealing thing about this set (to me) is that it’s challenging, but attainable. Not so easy that I’d finish it immediately - and - not so tough that I’d lose interest over a long haul. Additionally, there are variations, such as white/grey backs and the different team cards. This will give me the option to go further once I’ve completed a “basic” set.

I figure it will take about a year or two to complete. Along the way, I’ll post my progress here. Feel free to comment if you’d like. Just remember, we all collect differently. The cards I’m getting for this set won’t be super high grade “blazers” meant to induce envy, nor will they be beaters with huge chunks of missing cardboard. Not that there’s anything wrong with those cards. They’re just not for me.

Figured I'd start this off with Richie Ashburn. I got this as a Net54 Secret Santa gift a couple years ago. :)

As a lifelong Phillies fan, I have a ton of memories that involve Whitey. After his playing career, he found his way to the announcer's booth. Growing up, I listened to him tell many a story during Phillies games. The most remarkable was the one he often told about hitting the same person with two foul balls during the same at-bat.

Sounds like the '56 set I just recently finished. Really enjoyed putting it together and it took a couple of years.

The cards are beautiful and look great together in the binder where I have them.

Good luck and enjoy the ride.

I'd recommend getting the Mantle first or at least early, if you don't already have it. That way if things go south or you get bored or stop for whatever reason, you have the Mantle. Also it makes the ride a little smoother (and easier?) without that constant nagging of "I still need to get the Mantle" as your gathering the rest of the cards.

As luck would have it, I actually got the Mantle first. I picked up this SGC 55/4.5 from Huggins & Scott in 2016. Having the Mantle already made the decision to build this set a fairly easy one.

What about the checklist cards? There are two and I found them VERY easy to get and VERY affordable.

I actually completed this set on March 8, 2009 when I added Phil Rizzuto. Good luck on your quest, this is my favorite set.

I've been working on the set for over a year now.

Have the basic set. Need 5 team card variations, one other variation, both checklist cards and the contest card. Condition is Excellent+.

Love the set. As has been said, great selection of players and it displays nicely in the binder.

Enjoy the chase! Keep us posted.

Mike

In mid-November, I made the decision to start building this set. Having just two cards at that point, I chose to keep things simple at first. The Phillies team set consists of 21 cards, one of which I already had. Plus, I'm a lifelong Phillies fan. So, I set out to complete that mini-project.

Naturally, I looked on the BST. Before long, I found '56 Topps commons being offered by Bocabirdman (hi, Mike) at a great price. So, I scooped up 7 Phillies cards for my first purchase. The first one is pictured in this post. I'll get the others up today or tomorrow.

Have a great weekend, everyone.

What contest card goes with this set? Scan please?

I think there are two. Here is one...

Attachment 376766

That is from the 1957 Topps set. May 25, 1957 was a Saturday.

I think this is the other.

Mike

...and thus, mathematically, that one would also be from 1957...

Are those contest cards sized the same as '56 Topps?

I would think a '57 Topps contest card would be slightly smaller, to match the (at the time) new card size.

So, is there a 1956 Contest Card(s)?

Mike

Im also doing the 56 topps set. Been working on it for about 4 years and almost halfway there lol. On the plus side I have the big cards from the set (Mantle, Aaron, Clemente, Koufax, Robinson) now its just been grinding it out to get those commons in. Good luck! I have some of my 56 doubles listed on the BST if interested.

I don't believe there are. At least, none that I could find online. Of course, I'm still pretty new to this particular complete set.

On a related note, according to the Standard Catalog of Vintage Baseball Cards (2014, Krause Publications) I referenced, the contest cards shown above are from 1957.

Thanks! One less card needed. The one I saw was said to be from 1956. Never bothered to check it out.

Mike

There are several 1956 Topps contest cards - for football. None for baseball. So if you are trying to get a 1956 Topps Baseball contest card to finish the set.. forget it!

The 1957 Topps contest cards for baseball match the size of the 1957 baseball card.

As promised, here are a couple more cards from that initial BST purchase.

I really like the background of the Jim Owens' card. Simple, clean, elegant image of an old ballpark.

As for Stan Lopata, there's a bit more going on in his action pose. It looks less like a staged image and more like in-game action.

Additionally, and very interestingly, Topps shortened the team name to "Phils" on the front of Lopata's card. For the position/team name, the font size is also quite different between the two cards.

Here's a cool error that is presumably uncorrected. The back of card #220, Del Ennis, has the typical trio of cartoons. On one of these, Topps spelled "Del" without the D.

And, here's the front of the Ennis card. That simple wooden outfield fence is a nice touch.

By comparison, the fence in the background of this card image is anything but simple. I tried to compare it to photos of the outfield fence at Shibe Park; however, could not match it up. I do see the same scoreboard outline (or is it a building?) on the 1952 Bowman Richie Ashburn, though. So, it seems possible Topps drew from the Phillies real-life home park for this background. If anyone has additional info, I'd love to hear it.

Another thing I enjoy about this card is the registration issue, most easily noticed in the black text and signature. I realize this would bother some collectors. However, on this example, I actually rather like it,

My last two cards from that initial BST pickup are pictured here.

The Andy Seminick has a classic catcher's image, wherein Seminick is ripping off his mask to track an infield pop-up. Though this is likely a staged pose, it undoubtedly sparked the imagination of many kids back in the 50's. With the stands visible in the background, this certainly gives the illusion of an in-game play.

On the other hand, this Bobby Morgan has an image that was likely taken from an actual game action photograph. The card appears to depict a close play at second base, with the umpire visible. The runner sliding into the bag could very well be Hank Thompson of the Giants; however, this is just speculation on my part.

Poor Jack Meyer, killed by a heart attack in 1967...only 34...

Polo Grounds - New York Giants
 

The background in the 1956 Topps Jack Meyer is the Polo Grounds in New York.

Kevin,

Thanks for the info. Exactly the type of knowledge I am hoping to gain along the way with this project.

Beautiful picture, by the way.

Best regards,

Eric

Eric,

You're welcome. Best of luck in collecting the 1956 Topps set.

Kevin

Yes you are right. I grabbed the wrong scan...…… I will see if I can find the right one...….

I made a second BST purchase from Bocabirdman shortly after the first. My haul included some Phillies, of course, including this team card. 1956 was the first year Topps issued team cards. I can only imagine what collectors thought of the concept 63 years ago.

I realize there are different versions of this card. A total of six, I believe; three white backs and three gray backs. There may come a time when I look to acquire them all. For now, though, I am content with having this one. With 342 cards for a basic set, I'll just keep things simple...and relatively cheap.

Another neat issue from this group is the Mayo Smith. When I first saw the card, his lack of a glove or bat in the action pose caught my attention. It reminded me of a coach holding the runner at third base. What an odd pose for a player.

Then, as a look of dawning comprehension washed over me, I realized Smith was manager of the ball club.

I find it interesting how much differently I'm looking at these cards while building the set. In the past, I would have simply glanced at the name, muttered "common" to myself, and moved on without a second thought. Now, for whatever reason, I've had a paradigm shift. I'm truly seeing the cards, with a thrill of discovery that wasn't there before.

This thread (specifically when the Polo Grounds was mentioned in the background of the one card) has me doing the same thing. Before that, I only thought of how something initially looked to me (and, much moreso, its value). Which led me to have no general interest in the '56s, especially when compared to my '55s.

But now that I took a second look at the amazing backgrounds in the '56s, I'm getting some commons just to appreciate that too. They are like nice postcard works of art. As a middle-aged guy who's always been a baseball player and connoisseur at heart, it's extra nostalgic.

Eric, I’m assuming you are a Phillies fan?

It seems that most of the 1956 Phillies cards have the polo grounds in the background. Do all of them have that for a background?

Born and raised in Philadelphia, lifelong Phillies fan.

Second this! Its giving new life to my collecting of the set. Ive found myself admiring my cards in a different light. Thanks for starting this thread Eric!

Didn't Topps issue team cards in 1951?

Well, how about that. They sure did.

And the learning continues. I should remember to think outside the box (and the packs) a bit more often.

As I continued to sort through my second BST purchase, I took a close look at this New York Giants team card. I pored over the info on the back, read through the names, and gazed at the image. It didn’t have the same level of detail as the single player cards. Rather, it seemed like Impressionist art. The more closely I looked at the piece, the less crisp and defined the small details became.

Some of the players were sporting features that looked almost cartoonish. For instance, the person sitting front and center (Leo Durocher) fell victim to an errant brush stroke, leaving him with half a mustache. A couple spots over, third from the right, Willie Mays seemed to have been given a huge head and toothpick arms.

At least, I believe that’s Willie Mays. The player depicted seems to be African American, the only one in the front row. And therein lies something very interesting. At the bottom of the card, Mays is listed as being in the front row, third from the left.

The image doesn’t appear to be a reverse negative or anything like that. The “New York” on the front of everyone’s uniform seems to be correctly displayed. Topps simply put Mays’ name in the wrong spot.

Looking a bit further into this, I attempted to identify someone else in the team photo. The player whose image I felt most confident about is in the back row. At the far left it would appear Hank Thompson is depicted. Again, Topps has him in the wrong spot.

Based on this info, it appears that the players are listed and pictured in reverse orders. I realize this has probably been spotted and discussed countless times by hobbyists throughout the years. However, discovering little things like this is making it so much more interesting than simply crossing number 226 off my checklist.

I really like the action photos and the backgrounds, as well as the many "cameo" appearances some players make, in the 1956 Topps set. Just like they do in 1957, the backgrounds in 1956 are mostly Polo Grounds and Yankee Stadium, along with some of of Ebbets Field. I only wish they had done a of few of Crosley Field, Forbes Field, etc.

Most of the spring training backgrounds are generic, but Charley Neal's is clearly the old Dodgers training field in Vero Beach.

The cameos include the player sliding into home on Hank Aaron's card, who is actually Willie Mays, and Jackie Robinson sliding into Bill Sarni on the latter's card. I'm pretty sure Yogi Berra is on a whole bunch of cards — just see how many cards you can find showing a catcher with a No. 8 on his back. Roy Campanella's is one. I'm sure there's a bunch more. I'm curious if anybody here has made any discoveries?

I can only imagine how much time it took for someone to create all those images. There's nothing really quite like them. Topps built on the design of 1954 and 1955 sets, and replaced their single color backgrounds with stadium panoramas like they used in the 1955 Double Header set, only with better artwork ...

A smiling Herman Wehmeier graces the front of this 1956 Topps card. A bit of a journeyman, Wehmeier would only play 3 games for the Phillies that year. He went on to have a decent season for the St. Louis Cardinals, going 12-9 with two shutouts across 34 games.

Wehmeier led the National League a few times in several categories during his 13 year career. Unfortunately, these were categories in which one does not typically wish to be a league leader: Walks surrendered three times; wild pitches twice; and Earned Runs allowed once.

Additionally, in 1952, he hit more batters than any other NL pitcher. Given his apparent lack of control, this is not surprising.

What’s in a name?

Upon first seeing this card, acquired in my second BST purchase, I wondered about the team name. The Washington Nationals sounded odd to me, especially considering the fact they played in the American League. Guess I wasn’t the only one.

“The team officially changed its name to Senators in 1956, prompted by Charlie Brotman, who at the time was the newly hired stadium announcer for Washington’s major league ball club.” (John Kelly, Washington Post, June 11, 2016)

The card itself yielded a few other interesting details. For starters, unlike the Giants team card, the players here are listed in same order which they appear.

Carlos Paula, first man to break the color line for the Washington Senators, is shown (and listed) at far right of the front row. In the second row, at far left, the man in the plain shirt is almost certainly Trainer George Lentz. And the man at far right of the back row is more than likely Juan Delis, who played all 54 of his Major League games for Washington in 1955.

Another thing that caught my eye was the scoreboard behind the team. It appears to be set up correctly for a home game against Detroit. For you Net54 sleuths out there, is this an image from Griffith Stadium, or was it creative license taken by an artist in the mid-50s?

Lastly, there are three people seated in the front. According to the card, these are the batboys. It might just be my imagination or the artist at work; however, the one in the middle (Hoover) looks bigger than most of the players. If nothing else, he is definitely the largest batboy I’ve ever seen.

Several things about this Jim Greengrass card interest me.

The first, and perhaps most obvious, is the outfield wall. It serves as a beautiful visual reminder of the way ballparks once looked. Although the advertisements had a practical purpose, helping to sells goods and services during the era, they now hold a certain nostalgic charm.

There is also the fact that Greengrass appears to be crashing into that outfield wall. The image certainly captures a moment in time that is filled with tension, action, and excitement.

Lastly, it is notable that the back of Greengrass' uniform jersey bears no number. The Phillies had acquired him during the 1955 season, giving the Topps creative team ample time to assign a jersey number (10 or 23...he wore both in Philadelphia) to this image.

No matter, though. Taken as whole, this card is a beautiful example of the artistry Topps brought to its 1956 baseball set.

This was an enjoyable set to put together -- I love the design and the combination of portrait and action photos. I started with about 30 cards and completed it in a few months about three years ago. Depending on how condition-sensitive you are, it can be a relatively affordable set to put together as the only significant rookie card is Luis Aparicio. I have always loved studying the action photos, including the same shot used for the Gail Harris and Jim Wilson cards. I'm guessing the first baseman really is Harris but doubt the runner is Wilson.

There's a certain beauty in simplicity. Just a lefty hurling his pitch from the mound. Clean, uncluttered background, no other players. It was a nice counterpoint to the other cards in this group. Speaking of which, this Curt Simmons card rounds out my second BST purchase.

Wow, what a pretty set! Thanks for posting...looking forward to your progress.

Maybe I'll graduate to a set like this some day. Maybe... :p

How are you going to store and/or show-off the set? Binder? Storage boxes? Something else?

I’m using a storage box for now. However, there’s a chance this set will eventually wind up in a binder. I guess it will depend on whether I work up the nerve to crack out the Mantle.

Just picked up the Mantle! Part of one of the carterscards HOFer auction lots tonight. Looks like a really clean 2.5ish card with just rounded corners.

That card is usually so overpriced that I'm really happy to have gotten it as part of a basically discounted lot

The next batch of cards I picked up was purchased at the Philly Show in early December. This was my first time flipping through boxes to find cards for a vintage set. At other shows, I had mostly just looked at showcases, searching for higher profile cards. This experience was quite different, and altogether much more rewarding. I had set out to finish the Phillies team set that day, and accomplished this in fairly short order.

One card from this group, #81 Wally Westlake, seemed fairly normal at first glance. However, when I looked a bit more closely, something strange caught my eye.

Westlake is pictured in a Cardinals uniform.

This was made even stranger by the fact that he hadn't played for Saint Louis since 1952. It was one of three Major League teams he was part of that season.

I suppose Topps figured they would simply use this image, though. Westlake only played 5 games (the last of his career) for Philadelphia, all of them during the 1956 season. So, game-action photos of him in a Phillies uniform weren't exactly easy to find. Somehow, I imagine they still aren't.

Congrats on the Mantle! I'm super happy for you. It's a great feeling to snag a classic baseball card, isn't it?