Baseball cards have been an integral part of American culture since the late 19th century. As the sport of baseball grew in popularity across the United States, card manufacturers began producing illustrated cards featuring professional baseball players. While many associate baseball cards primarily with the larger coastal markets like New York and Boston, the city of Birmingham, Alabama has its own rich history with these collectible cards.
Located in central Alabama, Birmingham emerged as a major industrial center in the late 1800s due to its strategic location near deposits of coal and iron ore. The growing population and economic prosperity of the city helped fuel a rise in interest in professional baseball. One of the earliest documented baseball teams in Birmingham was the minor league Birmingham Barons, who began play in 1902 as part of the Southern Association. As the Barons and baseball gained more fans in Birmingham, demand grew for cards featuring the players.
Some of the earliest baseball cards to feature Birmingham or Alabama-based players began appearing in the late 1880s and 1890s from companies like Goodwin Champions and Old Judge cigarette cards. Production and distribution of cards from these early manufacturers did not reach Birmingham on a large scale. It wasn’t until the 1900s and the rise of nationally distributed baseball card sets from companies like American Tobacco and Cleveland Stamping that Birmingham residents were regularly able to obtain cards of major and minor league players.
In the early 20th century, tobacco companies like American Tobacco and Allen & Ginter dominated the baseball card market. Their mass-produced card sets of the time featured many Barons players and other Alabama-born talent. Notable Birmingham players to appear in these early 20th century sets included Barons infielder Howard “Happy” Felsch, who went on to have a career in the majors, as well as pitcher Edgar “Scrap Iron” Garbark and outfielder George “Dode” Paskert. The inclusion of local stars in these widely distributed sets helped further cement Birmingham’s connection to the baseball card phenomenon.
The golden age of baseball cards is widely considered to be the 1950s, as colorful and vividly illustrated cards from Topps, Bowman, and others flooded the market. During this boom period, Birmingham saw some of its biggest stars featured on cards that were readily available at local shops, drug stores, and candy stores around the city. Barons legends like Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, and Billy Williams all had their early minor league days chronicled on cards after starting their pro careers in Birmingham. Seeing hometown heroes depicted on cards was a thrill for many young Birmingham baseball fans of the era.
In the postwar 1950s, Birmingham had three minor league teams – the Barons in the Southern League and the Birmingham Black Barons and Birmingham A’s in the Negro American League. All three clubs were included in some regional and specialty baseball card sets of the time. In 1951, Topps issued its first Negro League set, which highlighted Black Barons stars like Willie Mays, Henry Aaron, and Willie Wells. These cards representing the all-Black teams gained popularity in Birmingham’s African American communities. Other regional sets from Bowman and Dan Dee captured the Barons and A’s players as well.
The 1960s saw continued interest in baseball cards in Birmingham, both for stars of the past and present. The Barons, who moved to the Double-A Southern League in 1964, were featured players on common issue cards from Topps, Fleer, and others. One of the most collectible cards from this era for Birmingham fans was the 1968 Topps N.L. Rookie Stars card of Hank Aaron, issued during the height of his career just after breaking Babe Ruth’s home run record. Aaron, who broke in with the Black Barons in the early 1950s, remained a hero in his hometown of Mobile, just over an hour west of Birmingham. His rookie card from 1968 is one of the most coveted in the entire hobby.
In the 1970s, 1980s, and beyond, Birmingham continued to follow both the Barons minor league club and stars with Alabama roots on their baseball cards, whether it be future Hall of Famers like Billy Williams and Davey Williams or talented but less heralded Birmingham natives like infielder Larry Lintz and pitcher Jim Kern. The city was also home to the annual National Sports Collector’s Convention (now National Sports Collectors Convention) beginning in 1981, bringing collectors from across the country to Birmingham each summer. Today, local card shops like Collector’s Edge in Hoover and online communities keep Birmingham fans engaged in the now billion-dollar industry.
Through over a century, baseball cards have served as an important connection between the city of Birmingham, Alabama and the national pastime. Whether it was seeing hometown minor league stars of the early 20th century, African American icons of the Negro Leagues, or superstars that got their pro start in the Magic City, cards provided Birmingham fans a way to collect and celebrate their local heroes on a scale that transcended the ballpark. The hobby also helped grow interest in baseball and provided memories that have been passed down for generations. Birmingham’s history with these ubiquitous collectibles mirrors how the sport took root and blossomed in the region over the decades.
