The small Southern Illinois town of Benton has a rich history with baseball cards dating back to the early 20th century. Even before the modern era of mass-produced cardboard cards began in the late 1880s, the tradition of collecting and trading memorabilia related to the national pastime had taken root in Benton.
Some of the earliest known examples of hand-cut paper cards featuring professional baseball players were created by local children in Benton in the late 1800s. These crude homemade cards served as a precursor to the boom in baseball card popularity that would soon follow. In the early 1900s, as companies like American Tobacco began churning out packs of cards as promotional inserts in cigarettes, Benton residents eagerly snapped them up.
Collecting cards became a widespread hobby among both children and adults in the small farming community. Local stores that sold tobacco products would get shipments of cards on a regular basis, and customers would line up hoping for rare finds in their packs. Many lifelong collections were started in this era, as entire families bonded over sorting, trading, and discussing their growing rosters of players.
By the 1920s, the heyday of the tobacco era cards was in full swing. The Great Depression hit Benton and the surrounding area particularly hard in the early 1930s. Card collecting briefly fell out of favor as people focused their limited funds on basic necessities. But the hobby roared back to life later in the decade as the national economy recovered. Gum and candy companies like Goudey and Play Ball had stepped into the void left by tobacco, and their colorful new cardboard issues were a welcome source of affordable entertainment.
The post-World War 2 era saw another surge in baseball card fandom across America, and Benton was no exception. Iconic sets from Topps like 1952 and 1954 were hot commodities. The rise of youth and little leagues also contributed to more kids getting hooked on collecting. In the 1950s, card shops started appearing in larger nearby towns like Marion and Mount Vernon, providing Benton residents with more opportunities to find the cards they wanted through trades.
Television further fueled baseball’s popularity in the late 50s and 1960s, and the card companies worked hard to keep pace with new designs, photo variations, and star players. Benton saw the rise of organized card shows, where collectors from all over Southern Illinois would converge to buy, sell and trade with dealers and each other. Top stars of the era like Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Sandy Koufax were well represented in local collections.
The 1970s were a boom time for specialized subsets, oddball issues, and regional sets tailored to certain markets. Illinois natives like Ferguson Jenkins remained well-collected in Benton. The rise of star Chicago Cubs like Billy Williams added to the excitement. In the late 70s, the introduction of high-number cards and variations like foilboards captured the imagination of collectors both young and old.
Through the ups and downs of the baseball card market in the 1980s and 1990s, Benton’s collectors remained devoted. The town was well-represented on the show circuit as both buyers and sellers. Expos like the National Sports Collectors Convention were annual pilgrimages. The junk wax era may have flooded the broader market, but Bentonians still found value and enjoyment in chasing sets from Donruss, Fleer and Score.
Today, while the physical card shop may be harder to find, the tradition of collecting in Benton lives on through online communities, card shows, and local hobby shops in nearby cities. Vintage collections that started in the early 20th century still change hands between aging fans and new enthusiasts. Whether collecting for enjoyment, investment or nostalgia, the baseball card remains an integral part of the sports culture that has been cultivated in Benton for over a century. Its history serves as an example of how even small towns can leave an indelible mark on America’s favorite pastime.
