Baseball cards have been collected by fans for over a century, chronicling the players, teams, and history of America’s pastime. The small town of Manchester, Missouri has deep roots in the hobby through its connection to the baseball card company Topps.
Manchester is a suburb located about 30 miles west of St. Louis. In the early 1950s, the Brooklyn-based Topps Chewing Gum Company was looking to expand its operations beyond the east coast. Company executives felt that being closer to the geographic center of the country would help lower shipping costs. They chose to open a new production plant and headquarters in Manchester due to its proximity to St. Louis and major transportation routes.
Topps began manufacturing its iconic baseball cards in Manchester in 1954. At the time, the majority of cards were still produced using a labor intensive process called lithography that involved hand painting images onto stone slabs. Topps transitioned to photomechanical printing which allowed for faster, cheaper mass production. Their new facility in Manchester was set up with state-of-the-art printing equipment to handle the booming demand for baseball cards among kids across America.
In the late 1950s, Topps was producing over 500 different baseball cards sets per year in Manchester. They employed around 200 local residents to handle tasks like cutting, sorting, and packaging the cards. Topps also printed cards for other sports in Manchester like football, basketball, and hockey. The company’s success in the baseball card market during this era truly cemented it as the dominant force in sports trading cards.
Topps began holding annual baseball card conventions and memorabilia shows in Manchester in the 1970s. These gatherings drew collectors from around the country and helped fuel further interest in the hobby. Notable players often attended to sign autographs, with the 1977 event featuring appearances by legends like Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Reggie Jackson. The conventions were a major source of pride for the Manchester community and highlighted its unique connection to the baseball card industry.
Through the 1980s and 1990s, Topps continued to be headquartered in Manchester while facing new competition from companies like Fleer and Upper Deck. The town became known affectionately as the “Baseball Card Capital of the World” and Pop Warner Little Scholars even named one of their youth football teams the Manchester Cardinals in honor of the connection. The local baseball card boom began to fade as the industry consolidated and production increasingly shifted overseas to cheaper markets.
In 2007, Topps made the difficult decision to close its Manchester plant after over 50 years of operations and lay off over 100 employees. While a blow to the local economy, the facility’s baseball card printing legacy had cemented Manchester’s place in hobby history. Today, the Topps Baseball Card Capital Museum operates in Manchester and contains artifacts, photographs, and an extensive collection documenting the company’s history in the town. Special events are still held to celebrate Topps’ legacy and the region’s roots in the business of America’s favorite pastime cards.
Though no longer a production hub, Manchester remains an important touchpoint for baseball card collectors and enthusiasts. Its connection to Topps in the post-World War II era helped popularize cards nationwide when interest in the hobby really took off. The memorabilia shows of the 1970s and title of “Baseball Card Capital” fostered major pride for the small Missouri town. Even after Topps’ departure, Manchester ensures its place in the story of baseball cards lives on through organizations celebrating that colorful history. The legacy of America’s favorite pastime cards will forever be intertwined with the story of this small Midwestern community.
