Breaking Ground: The Firsts
The earliest days of baseball cards were defined by both experimentation and quality, with manufacturers testing the waters in trying to make a connection between athletes, fans, and commercial goods. A card featuring a team photo of the 1865 Brooklyn Atlantics is believed to be one of the first baseball cards ever made. The card would introduce a new idea to the world that you could have a photograph of professional athletes and make a profit from it. By 1868, companies such as Peck and Snyder began mass producing team cards in a way to promote sports. This created a base for what would become a worldwide obsession.
1865 Brooklyn Atlantics Team Card
“Source: Library of Congress”
1887 Bill Phillips (Brooklyn Grays) Old Judge Cigarette Card.
“Source: Dodgers Blue Haven”
Bill Phillips (CBHOF, 1988)
Jimmy Claxton (CBHOF, 2021) Inductee Card.
Among the most groundbreaking cards of the 19th and early 20th centuries were those that represented players who themselves broke barriers. In 1887, St. John, NB native, Bill Phillips, who was one of the first Canadians to play Major League Baseball, became the first player from Canada ever featured on a baseball card, inside of an Old Judge Cigarette box. Phillips played in the Majors from 1879-1888 and was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1988, a century after his career finished.
In 1916, nearly three decades after Phillips’ card was released, a pitcher for the Oakland Oaks named Jimmy Claxton appeared on a baseball card. This was the first time that a black player was represented on an American-made baseball card. Claxton’s card (which resides in the National Baseball Hall of Fame) is used for his plaque photo in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame where he was inducted in 2021.
Women, too, made their way onto cards earlier than many people realize. A promotional card produced in 1886 for a cigarette company called Sub Rosa showed a woman in a baseball uniform. The image played off gender conventions to attract attention from consumers.
Many years later, Larry Fritsch card company also joined in by creating the first All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) card set in 1995, featuring various Canadians who had played in the league during its 11-year run from 1943-54.
1886 Sub Rosa Cigarettes Promotional Card.
(Issued by Pacholder Tobacco).
“Source: the Metropolitan Museum of Art”
Julie Dusanko (CBHOF, 1998 ) AAGPBL Card, 1996.
1969 Topps Rookie Stars Card featuring Jose (Coco) Laboy and Floyd Wicker. Laboy finished 2nd in Rookie of the Year voting in the Expos’ inaugural season in 1969.
“Source: Baseball Almanac”
Doug Ault (top left) hit the first home run in Blue Jays history in their first game in 1977.
In 1969, the Montreal Expos franchise was born, giving Canadian baseball fans the opportunity to see their own teams and players. In 1969, the Expos logo was seen on a baseball card for the first time, a major milestone for professional baseball in Canada. Eight years later with the addition of the Toronto Blue Jays, more Canadians could enjoy cards featuring players representing their country. These cards signified not only team pride but also a growing sense of Canadian ownership within the North American baseball picture.