Need Some Opinions

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Would you soak these photos off the paper if they were yours? They come from Dazzy Vance's family, but I don't believe the handwriting is his - I compared the writing to his signatures that I've found on the net.

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Posted By: Mike H

I would steam them off from the back with an iron.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Mike, that is actually one sheet with 4 photos on each side....I'm pretty sure the only way they are coming off is by soaking.

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Posted By: barrysloate

Why don't you want to leave the album intact?

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

The page is too large to fit into a plastic album page and I like to display my photos as singles. Probably an OCD thing, but I like my photos organized in plastic sheets inside albums.

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Posted By: Mark Steinberg

Funny... I think we collectors all have OCD, to some degree. I have dumped a number of great pieces, just because I tried to fix something, made it worse, and then could not stand to look at it anymore.

Wish I knew more about soaking photos, and the potential damage... my suggestion would be to experiment first with the photo(s) you value the least, and then take it from there.

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Posted By: barrysloate

I like the original writing on the black album pages...but I know all about the OCD thing.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Well, I just decided since they are only glued at each corner that I might be able to get a steak knife in there and get them out and the first one popped off pretty easily and to my surprise the names were on the back of the photo so I think I'm going to take the rest off as well.

edited to add: one of the unnamed players is Cotton Knaupp who had a brief career with the Cleveland Naps in 1910-11. In 1916 he turned the only unassisted triple play in Southern Association history for New Orleans.

edited to add: Joe Martina who also made a brief MLB appearance in 1924 with Washington is pictured on pic #2 that I've removed. Not regretting the removal at this point.

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Posted By: barrysloate

The guy on the top row, second from the right, reminds me a bit of Joe Jackson...same stance, even facially. But of course it's not.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Maybe it is Joe playing under an assumed name for the 1921 Pelicans. Nah, that one is identified as Manager Johnny Dobbs who played in the major leagues from 1901-05.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Wally Pipp!!!!!!!

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Posted By: Paul Muchinsky

OCD? You guys need a psychologist. I agree with Mark. Leave it alone. Its provenance is as intriguing as the items themselves. I have seen some pinbacks that were so obviously doctored as to be laughable. The dealer had a good pinback, but it was missing the springpin. So he adds a springpin from some other pinback that had a different diameter. Then he adds a crisp new R/W/B ribbon to hang below the pinback, cut with pinking shears so the edge of the ribbon is now so sharp it almost draws blood from your finger. To complete the illusion, a plastic charm made many years after the pinback was made now dangles below the pinback. I would gently ask the dealer about the unusual combination of "visual accessories" that were attached to the pinback. The answer is always the same: "I dunno, that's the way it came when I got it" (often at an "estate sale"). I'm a pin guy, not a paper guy, but I say keep it as you found it.

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Posted By: Dan Bretta

Too late Paul. I removed one as it was rather easy to remove and noticed that the names of the players were written on the back so I removed the rest and all players were identified.

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Posted By: Paul Muchinsky

See, I guess that's why I'm just a pin guy.

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Posted By: davidcycleback

That type of old black photo album paper is usually very soft, and removal shouldn't be overly difficult.

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Posted By: Corey R. Shanus

If you decide to take them off the pages, then I would recommend you have a conservator do it. Also, even if you decide to keep them on the pages, I would still recommend you have a conservator examine the item. It is possible the pages contain chemicals that over time could denigrate the condition of the photos. If that is the case and you still want the photos to stay as they are, then a conservator can install a protective layer between the photos and pages.

EDITED to add that if I had the item I would want the photos to remain on the pages.

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Posted By: Jodi Birkholm

Oyster Joe Martina...one of the ugliest men to play the game! Apparently he went searching for dental hygiene products at Joe Jackson's Liquor Store, only to come up empty-handed, thereby giving up his quest. It's crazy.

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Posted By: mike rothstein

Just for reference purposes - my wife does scrap booking and uses this stuff to remove a glued picture - the only warning she said - be careful to keep it off the front of the picture.

edit: sorry - it's called Un-du

mike

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Posted By: davidcycleback

Technically speaking, a conservator would likely recommend the photos be removed, as the album paper and glue is acidic.

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Posted By: Andy Broome

Good luck finding Un-Du, it was pulled from the shelves in Aug. 07.
The ingredient that makes Un-Du undo things (Heptine) apparently is some bad stuff.
The company is reformulating the stuff and is supposed to be back out on the market. The $4.99 bottles get close to $30 on the 'bay.

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Posted By: Paul Muchinsky

See why I just collect pins?

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Posted By: davidcycleback

With antique paintings and prints in original wooden frames, the conservators often recommends the painting be removed as the acidic wood may be damaging the painting. They may recommend a new frame and matte or, if you really like the original frame, acid free rematte the art and put it back in. So keeping something in original state is not always what a conservator would recommend. Even if the owner wanted them to remain in the album for aesthetic purposes, the conservator would still recommend the photos be removed, fixed up and put back with acid free backing.

In short, I don't think a conservator would find anything amiss about removing the photos and removing any back glue.