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1886 Red Stocking Cigar
8 April 2007
One of the earliest baseball cards ever printed, the 1886 Red Stocking Cigar baseball card set actually consists of three known cards. The three players depicted are C. G. Buffington, Capt. John F. Morrill, and Charles Radbourn. These unnumbered cards were discovered by a collector named Jim McClean. Each lithographed card features black and red, full-body drawings of the player and measures 6-1/2" by 3-3/4".
The player is shown standing in the center of the card with an advertisement for Red Stocking brand cigars printed vertically on the left. The player’s name and team (Boston) is printed at the bottom. Shown vertically on the right side is the card manufacturer’s name and address (located in Boston). The backs feature Boston’s 1886 schedule.
On the back is an ad stating, "Smoke the RED STOCKING Cigar." This is followed by the 1886 schedule for the "BOSTONS AT HOME" and "BOSTONS AT". At the bottom of the card back, under the schedule are the words, "Ask your Dealer for them."
It is conceivable that this set represents some of the history of today’s Red Sox baseball team.
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