Baseball cards have long been an integral part of the national pastime for fans in Pittsburgh. From the earliest tobacco cards of the late 19th century to the modern era of licensed sports cards, collectors in the Steel City have amassed vast collections and fueled a multi-billion dollar industry. Some of the game’s greatest stars have graced the fronts of cards while wearing the black and gold of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The origins of the baseball card can be traced back to the late 1880s when American Tobacco Company began inserting cards featuring players into packs of cigarettes. These early tobacco era cards helped popularize the sport beyond just those who could regularly attend games. Fans in Pittsburgh were among the first to start amassing and trading these collectible cards featuring stars from both the Pirates and other National League teams. Some of the earliest cards depicting Pirates players included Dan Brouthers from 1887 and Ed Swartwood from 1890.
In the early 20th century, the baseball card boomed in popularity alongside the growing professionalization of the sport. Companies like American Caramel began inserting cards in candy instead of tobacco products, helping make them more accessible to children. Many of the biggest stars of the deadball era appeared on these cards, including Pirates legends like Honus Wagner and Fred Clarke. Wagner’s iconic 1909-11 T206 card from the tobacco-insert era remains the most valuable trading card of all-time, with examples selling for over $1 million. During this golden age of baseball cards in the early 1900s, avid collectors in Pittsburgh swapped and traded for cards from their favorite Pirates as well as stars on other teams.
After World War I, the baseball card market declined some as the tobacco companies reduced production. The Goudey Gum Company issued high quality, color portraits of players from 1933-41 that are considered a seminal set in the modern era of licensed sports cards. These included many Pirates greats like Arky Vaughan, Pie Traynor, and Lloyd and Paul Waner. In the post-war boom of the 1950s, new companies like Topps revived the baseball card and included the Pirates stars of that era like Ralph Kiner and Roberto Clemente. Topps dominated production for decades and their cards from the 50s through 80s documented Pirates history.
In the 1970s, collectors in Pittsburgh really came into their own as the city’s love for the Pirates grew. Led by stars Clemente, Willie Stargell, and Dave Parker, the Bucs captured back-to-back World Series titles in 1971-72. This success translated to huge demand for cards featuring the champs. The ’71 and ’72 Topps sets are considered classics and cards from this era remain very popular with collectors in Pittsburgh and beyond. In the late 80s, Score issued the first traded set focused solely on a single team – the Pirates. This helped fuel even more localized interest in collecting only Bucs cards.
The modern sports card boom began in the late 1980s as the direct sale of packs replaced the redemption model. New companies like Fleer, Upper Deck, and Score emerged to challenge Topps and produced cards with far superior photography and design. This golden age coincided with the Pirates resurgence that saw them reach the playoffs 6 times from 1990-97. Superstar players like Barry Bonds, Doug Drabek, and Andy Van Slyke made Pirates cards highly sought after. The increased rarity and quality of inserts and parallels in these sets appealed greatly to the growing numbers of serious collectors in Pittsburgh.
In the 21st century, the baseball card market has continued to evolve with the rise of memorabilia cards, autographs, and serially numbered parallels. The core hobby of collecting cards of the hometown Pirates remains strong. Companies produce special Pittsburgh-themed sets that are hot commodities. Online groups help fans locally trade, sell and discuss their collections. Although the digital age has changed how people consume sports, the baseball card endures as an iconic tie to the past and present for Pirates fans in Pittsburgh and around the world. From the earliest tobacco issues to modern licensed products, cards have documented over a century of Pirates history for collectors to enjoy.
