Negro League PC - Stanley Hotel, Sweetwater, TX

[triwak]

These have been appearing all over my "Negro League" searches lately - many purporting to feature HOFers: Buck Leonard, Cool Papa Bell, & Turkey Stearnes. I'm skeptical, to say the least! But curious as to others' thoughts?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Sweetwater-...8/373003458523

[36GoudeyMan]

I have seen this postcard on a number of occasions, but cannot tell if it is vintage or a reprint. As for the "players" depicted, all I can add is that the player on the far left has a posture very similar to that of Buck Leonard, from what I've seen in other photos of him standing. Good luck!!

[Jason19th]

Pretty confident that it’s vintage. Very skeptical that the players are anything other then a town team. It’s clearly a promotional item for the hotel and if those are world famous athletes I don’t know why you wouldn’t mention there names on the card or at least try to make them recognizable

[bcbgcbrcb]

There are lots of copies of this postcard out there as they were commercially mass produced. Based on the level of players being mentioned, there is typically a single known surviving example, occasionally a couple or a few (like 3 or 4). The image is not good enough to ever be able to positively identify anyone unless a type I photo of the same image surfaces that is much larger in size.

Might as well say that it's one of those "If it's too good to be true....."

[sb1]

Several years ago I auctioned one. Here is what little I found on it.


Circa 1940's postcard of the Stanley Hotel in Sweetwater, Texas. Owned and operated by U.L. Jones and his son Albert Jones. Jones was a prominent black businessman, whose son also played baseball, local history suggests these four men posing could be members of the Black Swatters a regional Negro League team in the area in the 1940's

[triwak]

Thanks, Gang!

[glynparson]

“I had one of these postcards listed back in early 2019. I had purchased in a lot of pre 1950 Negro League related postcards out of an auction. I saw one of the Stanley Hotel postcards listed on eBay by a seller and contacted him because my version of the postcard also named 4 prominent Negro League players suggesting they were the guys on the front. I wanted to know why he was selling his for under $10 if in fact there were 4 prominent Negro League players depicted. Turns out the seller bought the contents of the hotel from the son of one of the former owners. One of the players in the picture is Charlie Roberson who was from Sweetwater, another player was one of the owners’ son from whom he had bought the hotel’s contents. Here is more info about the Stanley Hotel from the seller I contacted. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Baseball-Ne...0AAOSw7spdn3ku

[2dueces]

I’ve had that postcard numerous times in my collection. I think I still have one somewhere. Probably a good time to sort through the collection again.

[triwak]

Originally Posted by glynparson

“I had one of these postcards listed back in early 2019. I had purchased in a lot of pre 1950 Negro League related postcards out of an auction. I saw one of the Stanley Hotel postcards listed on eBay by a seller and contacted him because my version of the postcard also named 4 prominent Negro League players suggesting they were the guys on the front. I wanted to know why he was selling his for under $10 if in fact there were 4 prominent Negro League players depicted. Turns out the seller bought the contents of the hotel from the son of one of the former owners. One of the players in the picture is Charlie Roberson who was from Sweetwater, another player was one of the owners’ son from whom he had bought the hotel’s contents. Here is more info about the Stanley Hotel from the seller I contacted. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Baseball-Ne...0AAOSw7spdn3ku

Thanks, Glyn! Yes, I have seen that seller's listing also, and it makes a lot of sense (interesting story, too). Much more likely, than THREE HOFers being pictured, without any notation typed on the card!! Cool item, just not what some seller's are claiming.