Posted By:
CapChronicledHi All,
I'm the creator of the website www.capanson.com. When I saw the following ebay auction, I had to know more.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6958582708&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1
Of course I was wary. The auction photos were blurry. The guy is not a regular seller of sports memorabilia. Lots of red flags. I live by the rule if it's too good to be true, it probably is. But still, it did look like a first edition Anson biography. And I did have samples to compare it to, most noticably this recent Robert Edward auction:
http://www.robertedwardauctions.com/site/bid/bidplace.asp?itemid=2421&getauctionid=10
So I made arrangements to see it in person. I drove 125 miles one-way to the tiny town of Sheffield Illinois, about 20 miles west of Lasalle/Peru where the book was found.
The seller seemed like a genuine guy and we got along well. He met me in town and took me to his house (good sign - a scam artist probably doesn't want you to know where he lives). He said he found the book at a Salvation Army store and bought it for $1 after seeing the inscription. This was in 1996. The book is the real deal, a first edition "A Ball Player's Career" from 1900. It is in poor condition with broken spine, loose binding, but it's all there and the pages are still connected. The inscription appears on the second page. It reads "May 28, 1906 / To my little friend Edwin D. Wrenn / Adrian C. Anson" in black dipped fountain pen.
It sure looks authentic to me. It was interesting that the word "friend" appeared in this inscription as well as the one in the Robert Edward auction. That along with the signature sample really made up my mind. The other main factor was that it was in a first edition book, and a hard book (and not cheap one) to find.
I'll be taking it with me to the National to have authenticated by PSA/DNA. Just thought I'd post pictures now and see what you all think. Colors may be somewhat off because of lighting. Overall, I think the auto would grade a 9/10. It's very solid.
Interested to hear your opinions. I can post the result after the grading.
Brad W.
