Don’s Baseball Cards: A Portland Institution for Over 50 Years
Tucked away on Forest Avenue in Portland, Maine lies a humble storefront that has become a mecca for baseball card collectors across New England – Don’s Baseball Cards. For over 50 years, Don’s has been providing the local community with everything related to the hobby of collecting baseball cards. What started as a small collection that owner Don Henderson grew as a boy in the 1950s and 1960s has blossomed into one of the largest and most extensive collections of cards, memorabilia, and supplies in the Northeast.
In 1968, after finishing his military service, Don decided to pursue his lifelong passion of baseball cards as a business. He opened the first Don’s Baseball Cards store right in Portland. Those early years saw Don building relationships within the collector community and growing his inventory through purchases from local collectors looking to sell parts of their collections. Word of Don’s selection and fair prices slowly spread. By the 1970s, Don’s was a staple hangout for countless kids and adults in Portland who enjoyed trading and discussing the latest cards.
A key part of Don’s success over the decades has been his commitment to vast selection and grading accuracy. While internet retailers today can offer new cards and larger collections with a few clicks, Don prides himself on having something for every collector no matter their interests or budget. In the store you’ll find vintage cards from the turn of the 20th century all the way to the latest 2021 releases. Don’s selection of commons from the 1980s and 1990s that many collectors today are seeking to complete sets is unrivaled in New England.
But it’s not just new products that draw customers, it’s Don’s thorough knowledge of grades and conditions. Back in the pre-grading company days, Don and his son David developed an expertise evaluating the centering, corners and edges of each vintage card to determine its relative condition. This attention to detail and accuracy has always separated Don’s from shops just pushing volumes of cards. Whether it’s a 1909-11 T206 tobacco card being considered for a seven-figure price tag or a 1985 Topps Mark McGwire rookie in need of grading, collectors trust Don’s evaluations above all others in the region.
Beyond the store, Don’s became a meeting spot for the Portland card community. Throughout the 70s and 80s, many lifelong friendships were forged over boxes of cards spread out on the counter as collectors swapped, discussed the Red Sox/Yankees, and planned for upcoming shows. While the internet has allowed greater connectivity worldwide, the sense of local community was a special part of the early Don’s experience. David Henderson now runs the store alongside his father full time, continuing that small town atmosphere valued patrons.
The growth of the business coincided with explosive rises in the hobby through the late 80s and 90s. Ken Griffey Jr.’s Upper Deck rookie in 1989 was a watershed moment that brought in new generations of collectors. Television coverage of sports also ballooned, feeding more interest. Don’s expanded its retail space multiple times to keep up with rising demand that showed no signs of slowing. Popular sets like Finest, Topps Chrome, and Bowman Draft Picks kept collectors coming back to rip packs and add to their PC’s (personal collections).
While the internet changed how many choose to collect in recent decades, diminishing local card shop viability, Don’s proven track record of selection and expertise has kept collectors making the trip. Now spanning two storefronts and over 10,000 square feet, finding what you need at Don’s is effortless. Nearly any card imaginable from over a century of the hobby reside within. The walls are lined with valuable vintage cabinets holding treasures carefully organized by year and set. Behind the counter in protective cases sit some of the world’s most coveted specimens waiting to be brought out for examining.
Into the 2020s, Don’s serves as much as an historical archive of baseball cards as it does a bustling business. For over half a century, collectors from all over New England have made creating memories at Don’s part of their baseball card experience. Whether buying packs as a kid, searching long boxes for finds as a collector, getting cards graded or just shooting the breeze about the latest Red Sox acquisition, Don’s special blend of personable expertise, curation and community fosters a unique and welcoming atmosphere. And as long as there are fans of the game cherishing cards and following their favorite players’ careers immortalized in plastic, Don’s looks assured of thriving for generations more as the regional hobby institution collectors look to first. With Don and David’s stewardship, this Portland gem reminds us all why local businesses anchored in passion and service are so valuable.
