Baseball cards exploded in popularity in the late 19th century as the relatively new sport of professional baseball grew across America. While tobacco companies first inserted cards as advertisements and incentives in cigarette packs in the 1880s, the years around the turn of the 20th century marked the true beginning of baseball cards as a collectible hobby. The 1906 season in particular featured some of the earliest and most iconic baseball cards produced. While condition and rarity are key factors in determining value, some 1906 cards stand out as especially prized possessions for serious collectors.
One of the most well-known and valuable 1906 issues is the T206 series produced by the American Tobacco Company. These colorful tobacco era cards featured multiple future Hall of Famers and helped popularize the new pastime of baseball card collecting. Among the T206 set, the Honus Wagner card is arguably the most coveted in the entire history of the hobby, with only an estimated 50-200 surviving copies in existence today. In near-mint condition, a T206 Wagner routinely fetches over $1 million at auction. Other T206 stars that can reach six figures depending on condition include Ty Cobb, Christy Mathewson, and Nap Lajoie. Even more common players from the mammoth 524-card T206 set can sell for thousands in top grades.
Besides American Tobacco’s monumental T206 set, several other manufacturers released baseball cards in 1906 as well. The Sweet Caporal cigarette brand issued cards that year featuring individual players with backgrounds of team logos and ballparks. High-grade examples of stars like Wagner, Mathewson, and Eddie Plank can sell for $10,000 or more. Also in 1906, the Mayo Cut Plug Tobacco set highlighted multiple future Hall of Famers and is one of the earliest tobacco brands to include pitching and batting stats on the cards. Rarer Mayo cards like a PSA 8 graded Nap Lajoie are valued at $3,000.
Another historically significant 1906 issue was the Brown’s Cigarettes set produced by the Brown & Williamson Tobacco Company. While not as ornately designed as the T206s, the Browns cards included photos of players with their teams and positions listed below. Highlights of the 86-card Brown’s set fetch top dollar, such as a PSA 5 graded Ty Cobb valued at $6,000. The Brown’s cards are especially notable for being among the earliest to regularly feature African American players, including stars like Charlie Grant and George Stovey, who face additional collector demand due to their representation of pioneers breaking baseball’s color barrier.
In addition to tobacco brands, regional companies also got into the baseball card business in 1906. The Baltimore News issued cards as part of its newspaper circulation promotions that year. Featuring individual players from Baltimore-area teams, high-grade examples of Orioles stars like Wee Willie Keeler and Jack Dunn can sell for over $1,000. The News cards hold additional significance as some of the earliest documented sports cards inserted by a newspaper. Also in 1906, Goodwin & Company produced cards as part of its sporting goods and tobacco products. The Goodwin cards spotlighted major leaguers and minor league players alike. Rarer subjects like a PSA 8 graded Bill Dahlen are valued at $800.
While the earliest baseball cards were primarily used to advertise tobacco products, their collectible nature took hold as the 1900s progressed. Cards from 1906 helped popularize the new pastime and featured some of the first statistical details and team representations. Over a century later, pristine examples of these pioneering issues remain highly prized by dedicated collectors. With such a small surviving population and rich history in the development of sports card collecting, rare 1906 issues like the T206 Honus Wagner and individual stars from sets produced by Sweet Caporal, Mayo Cut Plug, Browns, Baltimore News, and Goodwin continue to be lauded as among the most prestigious acquisitions in the entire hobby. Proper preservation, grading, and demand have kept the values of these early cardboard collectibles from the dawn of baseball card mania as robust as the sport they commemorate over a century later.
