[Leon]

Originally Posted by Joe_G.

A&Gs release of the second series of Champions cards (N29) and banner (G21) as reported in 8/16/1889 Tobacco Journal. The album (A17) likely followed a couple weeks later.

Most of the sport and non-sport sets at this time that had cards, banner, and album followed a pattern of cards distributed in cigarette packs with a banner at point of sale to advertise the set the consumer could collect. The coupons/certificates/tickets advertising the album were inserted with the cards in the cigarette packs. The album was usually the last to debut, a couple weeks after the cards and banner were introduced. During the late 1880s, the shelf life for a given insert from the larger tobacco manufacturers (Duke, A&G) was often only a month or two. The total population of N29 cards, for example, were likely produced and distributed from August to September, 1889. The sets that displaced N29 were Birds of the Tropics (N4) in September which was then replaced by Fish of the World (N8) in October.

Goodwin & Co. would be an exception as they stuck with their popular baseball cards for several years. Far more details can be found in last issue of OC.

Thanks Joe....certainly what I think we all hope for more of on this site. Great information on pre-wwII cards.