Baseball cards have a long history in Aurora, Colorado dating back to the late 19th century. Some of the earliest baseball cards produced featured players from the minor league teams that called Aurora home in those early years. While the hobby of collecting baseball cards exploded in popularity across America in the post-World War II era, Aurora had a front row seat to the evolution of the baseball card industry from its beginnings.
One of the first minor league franchises to play in Aurora was the Aurora Blues, a charter member of the original Western League which began play in 1894. While it’s unclear if any cards featuring Aurora Blues players were produced during the team’s short run from 1894-1895, it’s possible some early tobacco or candy store handcut cards could have included Blues players. The Western League would eventually gain minor league status and become known as the American Association in 1902.
In the early 20th century, several minor league teams set up shop in Aurora and began attracting more local interest. The Aurora Bears played in the Western League from 1903-1915 and the Western Association in 1916, achieving multiple league championships. The Bears likely had some of the first mass produced baseball cards featuring their players issued during this time by companies like Tip Top Bread and Old Mill Tobacco. Fans in Aurora could purchase wax packs of these early cards at local grocery stores, drug stores and candy shops to collect images of their hometown Bears heroes.
As baseball card production ramped up in the 1920s with the rise of large scale gum and candy manufacturers, the next Aurora minor league franchise, the Aurora Bluesjays of the Western League, had players featured on cards as well. Companies like Goudey Gum and Bazooka Gum issued sets in the late 1920s and 1930s that almost certainly included Bluesjays players. Aurora was truly establishing itself as a hotbed for the hobby of baseball card collecting during this period between the two World Wars.
When the post-WWII boom in baseball card production exploded with the entry of Topps in the late 1940s, the Aurora Rockets of the Western League were there to capitalize. As one of the first minor league teams to have its entire roster included on Topps cards in 1950, the Rockets helped popularize the hobby not just in Aurora but across the country. Kids in Aurora eagerly awaited the annual Rockets card release to chase after images of the hometown heroes they cheered for at Auraria Ballpark.
The 1950s represented the golden age of minor league baseball in Aurora with not one, but two teams calling the city home. In addition to the Rockets, the Aurora Cardinals joined the Western League in 1953 and their players were also featured in Topps and Bowman sets of the era. Having two local squads to collect kept baseball card demand high in Aurora shops. The competition between Rockets and Cardinals fandom spilled over to the trading card aisle.
When Topps gained the exclusive MLB license in 1956 and began producing larger color photo cards, the Rockets and Cardinals players were still included in the early minor league only issues. This helped further grow the already booming baseball card culture in Aurora. By the late 1950s, the city had established itself as one of the hotbeds for the hobby outside of major league cities. Local card shops did a bustling business and hobbyists traded and organized their collections at the ballpark.
Into the 1960s, Topps continued featuring Aurora minor leaguers until the demise of the Rockets and Cardinals franchises. The company’s innovative annual issues like rookies, highlights and record breakers kept local collectors engaged. When the Major League franchise came to Colorado with the Denver Bears of the Pacific Coast League in 1959, Aurora collectors followed the progress of future MLB stars with the big club just down the road.
The 1970s saw a lull in baseball card production as the hobby went through changes. But Aurora collectors remained devoted to their baseball card memories of the golden minor league era. In the late 1970s, the revival of the hobby with companies like Fleer and Donruss led to renewed interest. Aurora fans eagerly added the new stars of teams like the Colorado Rockies to their collections once more.
In the 1980s and 1990s, Aurora became an epicenter for the boom in the baseball card industry as collectors transitioned to chasing modern stars. Local card shops like Aurora Sports Cards and Rocky Mountain Cards did a booming business, hosting signings, shows and auctions. The city’s long minor league card history helped fuel its status as a hotbed for the modern hobby. Today, Aurora remains home to dedicated collectors, bloggers and YouTube influencers preserving that rich baseball card heritage.
From those early Bears and Bluesjays tobacco cards to following the rise of superstars with the Rockies, Aurora’s baseball card history runs deep. The city’s passionate fan base and central location helped it become a leading city for the hobby outside of the major leagues. Multigenerational collectors in Aurora today still cherish the cards and memories of those golden minor league eras that first sparked their love of the pastime. The influence of Aurora on the growth of baseball cards has been immense considering its relatively small size.
