The Humble Beginnings of a Baseball Card Giant: Topps’ Inaugural Set in 1952
The Topps Company is synonymous with baseball cards today, having dominated the market for over 60 years. Their entry into the baseball card industry was humble, to say the least. In 1952, Topps released their first set of gum-backed baseball cards, featuring photos of players from the previous 1951 season. At the time, it was a relatively small endeavor for the Brooklyn-based confectionery company best known for producing Bazooka bubble gum. Little did they know it would become the foundation for a multi-billion dollar sports and entertainment empire.
Prior to 1952, the main producer of baseball cards was the Bowman Gum Company. The 1951 Bowman set would be their last, as rising production costs forced them out of the baseball card business. This opened the door for Topps, who saw an opportunity. Led by brothers Joel, Ira, and Arthur Shorin, Topps acquired the rights to players’ photos and team logos to produce their inaugural set. Unlike modern sets with hundreds of cards, the 1952 Topps set totaled a modest 111 cards. It introduced the now-familiar format of a gum-backed card protected by a thin piece of cardboard.
Included in the set were stars of the day like Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Ted Williams, and Jackie Robinson in his fifth season breaking baseball’s color barrier. Notable rookie cards included future Hall of Famers Hank Aaron and Roberto Clemente in their first MLB seasons. The photos were black-and-white images supplied by various photographers, with players’ names and teams printed below. On the back, stats from the previous season were listed along with the Topps company information and copyright. While production values were basic, it captured the essence of what baseball card sets would become.
Distribution of the cards was also humble. Topps relied primarily on independent candy and tobacco shops to sell the packs of five cards each, along with a stick of Bazooka bubble gum. Major grocery and drug store chains were not involved at this early stage. The packs retailed for a modest 10 cents each, or two packs for a quarter. While sales figures are not precisely known, it is estimated Topps sold around 50 million packs in that first year, a respectable figure considering the fledgling nature of the enterprise.
What made the 1952 Topps set particularly notable in retrospect is how it captured the end of an era in major league baseball. Many of the players featured were in their late career years or would retire shortly after. Stars like Bob Feller, Joe DiMaggio, Stan Musial, and Warren Spahn only had a year or two left. The set was a snapshot of the last vestiges of the 1940s/early 50s before a new wave of talent emerged. Within a few short years, Mantle, Mays, Aaron, and Clemente would lead baseball into more modern times on the field and at the turnstiles.
While humble in scope, the 1952 Topps release proved there was a market for affordable sports cards to be distributed and collected by kids. It set the company on a path to dominate the baseball card industry for decades to come with bigger and better annual sets. The first year cards are highly coveted by collectors today, with gems like the Mantle and Clemente rookies fetching six-figure prices. Though a small start, Topps had laid the foundation to become a household name in sports and pop culture for generations of fans. Its first set may have been modest, but it began a legacy that would help shape our culture’s relationship with baseball.
