[rats60]

Originally Posted by DixieBaseball

Pat - If the Coupon Type 1's were regionally released during the time frame with the other 16 ATC brands released between 1909-11 in New Orleans/South wouldn't they want to stick to the Southern League players and known Big league players of the day and not get into Minor league players from places like Toledo or Buffalo as minor league cards for example? This would indicate regional Southern release to me... I think that is the plausible answer why the minor league players are not present in the 68 card set. Also, this set of 68 seems like a strange number for a release and reminds me of the Red Sun set "First Series 1 to 75" (On reverse of Red Sun card) and the parallel drawn from that Regional release where by they never produced a 2nd series b/c the first series perhaps underwhelmed cigarette consumers. Obviously something caused Red Sun to not make a 2nd series. (Series 2 - 76-150) ?!? Both of these brands, Coupon & Red Sun, were both New Orleans brands and Red Sun was produced/released around 1909-10 time frame (No RS advertisements known as well, correct !?) and most likely Coupon as the 17th American Litho / ATC brand. We don't know that there was not going to be more Coupon (Type 1) cards released. Their rarity indicates something happened, just like it did to Red Sun Series 2 not being produced. I think the Red Sun set indicates something was not quite right in Tobacco/baseball card world in 1910 in that region and if this set was released in that time frame, it perhaps suffered the same fate!? Perhaps Red Sun & Coupon didn't make quite the splash against the larger National brands and the cards were a marketing stunt that just didn't materially help, so ATC / W.R. Irby nixed the series 2 RS & didn't produce/release any more Coupons.

Lastly, if you could show me a Full size American Beauty card, I would go away and say Coupon may not necessarily be one of the 17 Amer Litho ATC brands, but since exception was made on AB, why not exception on Coupon (Type 1)?! This was not a style change, but yet a size change (Width of card) and so was Coupon, a size change (Thickness of card).

Everything about the Type 1 Coupon looks like the other 16 Amer Litho - ATC brands including Ty Cobb Tobacco with exception to the thickness which can be explained by American Beauty as it is clearly different. Also there is no argument or debate for Type 2 and 3 Coupons as that would be no different than Old Mill making another set of cards in 1914 and 1919. That seems to throw people off imho. Also consider that Old Mill was on another completely different set (T210). Why not call them Old Mill Type 1 & 2 ?!? My point is Burdick made a catalog for cards. A wonderful way to help collectors... Just because he labeled certain cards T206 or T213-1 doesn't change anything about the card being just like the other American Litho - ATC brands. If you include American Beauty as a T206, then Coupon should be as well. (Not Coupon Type 2 or 3)

I would be for excluding American Beauty from the t206 cards, except they were used for t205 cards also. So, clearly they were intended to be part of t206. Not so for Coupon. Coupon is an unique set and in my opinion should remain that way.