Had World War II not intervened, 1939 may have been seen as a starting point for the hobby. That year saw the first baseball cards from a company that would later become known as Bowman.
Gum, Inc. was founded by Warren Bowman around 1930 in Philadelphia. Despite the economic issues brought by the Great Depression, the company grew with each year. They entered the card business in 1938 with Horrors of War, which was considered controversial because it showed graphic images of war scenes. It was such a success in terms of sales, Bowman decided to get into the baseball card business the following year.
In 1939, no other gum companies were actively releasing regular baseball card sets. That immediately gave Gum, Inc. a boost and established the upstart company as a leader. Naming the set Play Ball - America, the cards were made to be slightly larger than what Goudey had been issuing before them.
The set used a simple design that included a black-and-white player picture and no other elements: no name, team name, position or autograph was added to the front. The cards were adorned with only a white border. Between Gum, Inc. and their later sets as Bowman, they returned to that concept often (1939, 1948-'50, 1953). The backs featured the player's full name and an extensive biographical write-up. At the bottom, an advertisement mentions that there were 250 cards in the set, which is incorrect.
Instead, the set is numbered to 162 (with #126 never being issued). However, there are several cards in the first couple of series with back variations. Those cards feature the player name either entirely in capital letters or in capital and lower-case letters. Most checklists for the set will indicate which cards have that variation. Cards numbered 115 and above are considered high numbers. They are scarcer and therefore more valuable.
The set features most of the stars of the era. Among them are a rookie-year card of Ted Williams and a popular card featuring Joe DiMaggio. Earl Averill is the only Hall of Famer is included in the high-numbered series, so his card is given a boost in value that might not otherwise be attached to his cards. An interesting card in the set features Al Schacht clowning around. He was a former player and coach who eventually became a comic entertainer, performing for the audience in the same manner as Max Patkin did later on and mascots do today.
Sample cards are occasionally found in the hobby; they are stamped "Sample" on the back and were given away in packs of other Gum, Inc. products as a "cross-selling" promotion.
Key 1939 Play Ball Baseball Cards:
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1939 Play Ball Baseball Card Checklist
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