Posted By:
Joe_G.Here is the eBay listing:
1887 N172 Old Judge Herr Milwaukees Card unique mount. Card is apparently a skinned OJ that was mounted on the smae back as the N611 Actress series. It's not clear if this was done by someone 120 years ago, or done at the factory, and is just possibly the first example seen. The Herr part itself has a white box in the background that is part of the card; the other variations I have seen do not have this. Whatever the case is, it's still an OJ card.
I feel it is a bit far fetched to suggest the "factory" distributed this card as such with this possibly being the first one to surface. I highly doubt Goodwin & Co. would take one of their Old Judge cards, trim it on all four sides including their advertising on the bottom, skin it, and place on a competing cigarette makers mount.
Lastly, the white box you mention is present on all original St. Louis Whites cards but usually colored in to match the background. My example is colored in although you can still see it if you look carefully.
Regards,
Joe G.