What was the salvation of the Prewar card hobby

Tony Gordon · #1 02-09-2025, 08:44 PM

My dad was born in 1937 as well but on the near North Side of Chicago where he could obtain just about anything he wanted. He collected cards. I suspect he had Bowmans, Exhibits and Leafs from the late 1940's. When I got into collecting in the mid-1970's, we went to my grandmother's house to look for his cards. Her basement was stacked with junk from her entire life, except for my dad's cards. She threw those out.

Hankphenom · #2 02-09-2025, 09:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony Gordon

My dad was born in 1937 as well but on the near North Side of Chicago where he could obtain just about anything he wanted. He collected cards. I suspect he had Bowmans, Exhibits and Leafs from the late 1940's. When I got into collecting in the mid-1970's, we went to my grandmother's house to look for his cards. Her basement was stacked with junk from her entire life, except for my dad's cards. She threw those out.

Ouch! When my dad passed away in 1979, my Mom redecorated the house I grew up in. I don't remember her calling me to say "please come get your boxes of cards, scorecards, etc." although it's entirely possible she did, perhaps more than once. At some point, I went looking in my old room and elsewhere for my stuff, and it was all gone. I'm not sure I even asked her about it because I knew the answer already and didn't want to make her feel bad.

DeanH3 · #3 02-09-2025, 09:23 PM

I think Beckett helped a ton pre-internet. I think the visuals of iconic cards allowed many of us young collectors to be exposed to and dream about cards we may not have known about otherwise.

Beckett also helped usher in the focus on the monetary end of it as well. But that probably went hand in hand.

icurnmedic · #4 02-09-2025, 10:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeanH3

I think Beckett helped a ton pre-internet. I think the visuals of iconic cards allowed many of us young collectors to be exposed to and dream about cards we may not have known about otherwise.

Beckett also helped usher in the focus on the monetary end of it as well. But that probably went hand in hand.

This was my exact thought!
Man alive, I loved looking through those as a youngster.

BioCRN · #5 02-10-2025, 09:53 AM

The cross-country buying sprees by dealers in the 1970s (that we still see today) helped a lot.

Media ads from buyers announcing when/where they're rolling into town had people rooting around for possible treasure in storage.

Then you have hobby resurgences (such as the junk wax era) that had others digging around in their storage for cardboard gold.

Balticfox · #6 02-09-2025, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tony Gordon

When I got into collecting in the mid-1970's, we went to my grandmother's house to look for his cards. Her basement was stacked with junk from her entire life, except for my dad's cards. She threw those out.

Did you ask her what she'd been using for a brain? "Oh, I'll keep all my own junk but I'll just throw out the stuff my son treasured."

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