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BASEBALL CARDS VALPARAISO INDIANA

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Baseball cards have been collected by fans for over 130 years and the hobby took root strongly in Valparaiso, Indiana beginning in the late 1800s. Valparaiso was a growing town located just an hour’s drive from Chicago, putting it close enough to the big city to be exposed to trends but small enough to foster its own baseball card collecting community. Some of the earliest documentation of kids swapping and trading baseball cards in Valparaiso dates back to the late 1880s, making it one of the earliest hotbeds for the hobby outside of major league cities.

In the early days, cards were included as promotions in packages of cigarettes and candy. It didn’t take long for the baseball card collecting craze to catch on with kids in Valparaiso. They would eagerly await the newest shipments of cards to local general stores and corner shops, hoping to find rare players or complete sets. Some of the most popular early sets included Allen & Ginter, Old Judge, and Sweet Caporal issued between 1886-1905. Kids would ride their bicycles all over town, visiting every store in hopes of finding cards to add to their collections.

Word of the baseball card frenzy in Valparaiso began to spread to nearby towns. In the summer of 1890, the local newspaper even wrote a story about kids holding baseball card swapping meets at the city park on Saturdays. Dozens of boys would gather on blankets, intensely trading cards in search of ones they needed. This helped turn Valparaiso into a bit of a baseball card hub for the region in those early amateur trading days. Throughout the 1890s and into the early 20th century, the hobby continued to grow steadily among local youth.

By the 1910s, the rise of dedicated baseball card sets issued by companies like the American Tobacco Company had taken off. Their landmark T206 set from 1910 is now one of the most valuable in the sport’s history. Kids in Valparaiso were eagerly awaiting shipments of these new series featuring full color photos on higher quality card stock. The rise of dedicated sets helped transform baseball cards from a novelty into a serious collecting hobby. This led to the formation of some of the first informal baseball card collecting clubs in Valparaiso during the late 1910s and 1920s.

Groups of teenagers and young adults would hold meetings to swap duplicates and discuss the latest sets. Some early clubs included the Valparaiso Baseball Card Collectors Society, formed in 1922, and the Chesterton Baseball Memorabilia Association, which started in 1926 just south of Valparaiso. They helped foster a real sense of community among collectors. Club newsletters even tracked rare card sightings in the area. In the 1920s and 1930s, the rise of these organized groups took the pastime to another level in Northwest Indiana and the surrounding Chicagoland region.

During World War II, production of baseball cards was halted for the most part. It didn’t diminish enthusiasm among collectors in Valparaiso. With many young men overseas fighting, it was mostly kids and older collectors keeping the hobby alive through the 1940s. They relied on their stockpiles of older cards, frequently trading duplicates. After the war, the industry began issuing new sets again including the iconic post-war Leaf and Bowman sets of 1948-1949, which featured the likes of Jackie Robinson and Stan Musial.

The 1950s were the golden age of baseball cards in Valparaiso, as the town exploded with new collectors. Production was in full swing with the likes of Topps dominating the market. Kids flocked to local drug stores, grocers and newsstands, eagerly awaiting the next series to hit the shelves. The sense of anticipation and excitement around new releases was palpable. In the summer of 1956, over 300 kids and adults showed up for the Northwest Indiana Regional Baseball Card Show in Valparaiso’s Central Park – a sign of just how mainstream and popular the hobby had become locally.

The 1960s saw cards continue to boom in popularity in Valparaiso and beyond. Topps remained dominant but new competitors like Fleer upped production. In 1966, the Valparaiso Baseball Card Collectors Club was formed, becoming one of the largest and most active organized groups in the Midwest. They held monthly meetings, hosted card shows that drew over 1,000 attendees, and published a newsletter that kept the local and regional collecting community tightly networked during a golden age. Stars of the 1960s like Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Sandy Koufax were hotly collected.

As the 1970s rolled around, interest in baseball cards remained strong in Valparaiso. The rise of new hobbies, interests and pursuits began to gradually diminish enthusiasm levels compared to the peak years. The 1973 oil crisis also impacted production. Still, dedicated collectors kept the hobby alive through organized events, swaps and newsletter/magazine communications. The 1980s saw a revival to some extent, with stars like Ozzie Smith, Wade Boggs and Roger Clemens drawing new interest. The 1990s brought the negative impact of overproduction which led to a lull.

In the 2000s and 2010s, Valparaiso’s baseball card community adapted to the modern era. The rise of the internet allowed for easier networking, while the economic crash of 2008 led many to again appreciate the nostalgia and relatively low cost of the hobby. Card shows and club activities continue on a smaller scale versus the 1950s/60s peak, but the passion remains. New generations are now enjoying the pastime inspired by their parents and grandparents. Valparaiso’s deep history and roots as an early hotbed ensure the tradition will continue to thrive for many years to come.

BASEBALL CARDS LAFAYETTE INDIANA

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Baseball cards have been an integral part of American culture and fandom since the late 19th century. While the hobby has evolved significantly over the decades, few places have such a rich history with baseball cards as Lafayette, Indiana. From the early tobacco companies that mass produced the first modern baseball cards to the thriving local collectibles scene today, Lafayette has left an indelible mark on the baseball card industry.

Some of the earliest baseball cards were included in packs of cigarettes and chewing tobacco starting in the 1880s. It was the American Tobacco Company’s production of cards as promotional inserts in packs of cigarettes in the 1890s that truly launched the baseball card craze. At the time, American Tobacco’s main production facilities were located in Lafayette. For nearly a decade at the turn of the 20th century, millions of early tobacco era cards flooded out of those Lafayette factories and into the hands of young baseball fans across the country. Stars of the day like Nap Lajoie, Cy Young, and Honus Wagner had their likenesses mass produced in Lafayette and began gaining nationwide followings thanks to those early promotional baseball cards.

While newer card companies would emerge in the early 1900s, American Tobacco remained a leader in the industry for decades. Their Lafayette production plants continued churning out cards featuring the biggest names in the game through the Deadball Era and into the Roaring Twenties. Local baseball historians estimate that as much as two-thirds of all pre-World War I baseball cards were printed right in Tippecanoe County. The abundance of these early tobacco cards that passed through Lafayette helped fuel the initial boom in baseball card collecting nationwide.

When the Great Depression hit in the 1930s, the baseball card industry declined sharply as a luxury. A new Lafayette company helped revive interest through the 1930s and 1940s. In 1933, Donruss launched as a smaller competitor to Topps, which had become the dominant modern card maker. Donruss produced their early runs of cards out of a factory located on South 9th Street in Lafayette. Their affordable “gum and card” packs featured the latest stars of the day like Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, and Bob Feller. Donruss cards from their Lafayette production kept the hobby alive through the lean Depression years for many collectors.

In the post-World War II era, Lafayette continued to play an important role in the expansion of baseball cards across the country. By the late 1940s, Topps had surpassed Donruss as the top brand. However, Topps contracted with an independent printer in Lafayette to produce many of their most iconic 1950s sets like 1952 and 1956. Meanwhile, local entrepreneur Jack Balzer launched a short-lived but pioneering card company called Brooklawn Postcards and Baseball Cards out of his Lafayette shop in the early 1950s. Balzer is credited with being one of the first card makers to focus solely on baseball and helped popularize the modern cardboard format still used today.

The 1960s saw Lafayette become a hotbed for the emerging field of sports card collecting. Local shops like Ray’s Hobby and The Sport Shop helped fuel new interest in the post-war boom. Meanwhile, Lafayette native and former major leaguer Jim Brosnan authored the 1962 memoir “The Long Season” which included an early focus on his baseball card collecting as a youth. Brosnan’s book helped introduce card collecting to a new generation of baby boomers and spread awareness of the hobby nationwide. Throughout the 1960s, local Lafayette shops also bought and sold the overflow of unopened boxes of cards from the postwar era, keeping the nostalgia alive.

In the 1970s and 1980s, Lafayette developed a reputation as a Midwestern hub for sports memorabilia. National card shows began making regular stops in the city. Shops like A&M Sports, Sports Collector, and Gary’s Sports Cards thrived on not just sales but also paving the way for a new wave of enthusiasts. Meanwhile, the rise of specialty publications like Sports Collector’s Digest and Beckett Price Guides fueled increased interest in tracking values, moves reflected in the booming local collectibles scene. Lafayette natives like Gary Andrews and the late Gary Morley became influential national voices as writers and editors who helped shape the modern industry.

Today, Lafayette’s rich baseball card history lives on. Local shops like A&M Sports and Gary’s Sports Cards have grown into national empires, while mainstays like Sports Collector still serve aficionados. Shows regularly draw hundreds of vendors and collectors from around the Midwest. Meanwhile, the city’s past contributions are remembered through the exhibits at the Tippecanoe County Historical Association. From the earliest tobacco issues to modern memorabilia, Lafayette left an indelible mark on baseball cards that current generations of collectors still appreciate today. The Queen City’s impact helped spark a worldwide hobby and its legacy ensures the city will always have a special place in the history of sports collectibles.

BASEBALL CARDS SOUTH BEND INDIANA

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Baseball cards have been an integral part of American culture and fandom since the late 1800s. While the industry has seen many changes over the decades, the hobby of collecting baseball cards remains hugely popular today. South Bend, Indiana has deep roots in the history of baseball cards dating back over 100 years.

Some of the earliest baseball cards were included as promotional materials in packages of cigarettes in the late 1880s. These cards featured individual players from major league teams and helped drive interest in the growing sport of professional baseball. In South Bend, these early tobacco cards could be found in local shops and were eagerly collected by many young baseball fans. Some of the first South Bend residents to start amassing baseball card collections included George Miller and Louie Schmidt, who began trading and storing cards in the 1890s.

During the early 20th century, baseball cards continued to be inserted in cigarette packs but also started appearing in bubble gum, candy, and other snacks. In South Bend, local corner stores stocked these products and the baseball cards within became hugely popular items among children. Some of the most coveted early 20th century cards depicting stars like Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, and Walter Johnson could be found in South Bend. Streetside baseball card trading among neighborhood kids also became a daily summer ritual during this time.

The 1930s through 1950s marked the golden age of baseball cards as production and collecting boomed. Major card companies like Topps, Bowman, and Fleer released expansive annual sets that documented the current major and minor league players in vivid color photos on the front. The back of each card often included stats and biographical information on the athlete depicted. In South Bend, local drugstores and variety shops stocked full racks of the newest baseball card packages and boxes which were snapped up quickly by eager collectors. Some of the most prized vintage cards from this era that can still be found in South Bend collections include Honus Wagner, Mickey Mantle rookie, and Jackie Robinson rookie cards.

During this time, South Bend was also home to its own Minor League baseball team, the South Bend Cubs, who were a Class A farm team of the Chicago Cubs. Local baseball card collectors eagerly sought out cards depicting South Bend Cubs players who had made it to the Majors. Some of the more notable South Bend Cubs alumni to later appear on vintage baseball cards include Lou Boudreau, Gene Baker, and Dick Ellsworth. Having a minor league home team only further fueled the passion for baseball and collecting its cards in South Bend throughout the middle decades of the 1900s.

The 1960s saw the rise of more specialized and regional baseball card producers as the national companies consolidated. In South Bend, a local shop called Ernie’s Sport Cards opened in 1963 and became hugely popular for stocking the latest baseball card releases but also hosting trading sessions and shows. Ernie’s helped cultivate a strong sense of community among South Bend-area baseball card collectors during this era. They also worked to preserve the history of the hobby by amassing a significant local collection that is still housed in the St. Joseph County Public Library today.

Through the 1970s and 1980s, the baseball card boom continued with expansive annual sets and oddball issues released. The late 80s saw a bust in the industry as overproduction led to a crash. Many local card shops could not withstand these economic troubles, but a South Bend favorite called C&J’s Sport Cards managed to persevere through the downturn. They remained a staple for collectors in the area through the 1990s resurgence brought on by the rise of sports memorabilia. During this era, vintage cards also skyrocketed in value, making some early South Bend collections extremely valuable.

Today, baseball card collecting remains a popular pastime in South Bend, especially among those with a nostalgia for the sport’s history. While online sales and national retailers dominate much of the marketplace, a few local shops like Mike’s Sports Cards still cater to the area’s collectors. Shows are also regularly hosted where fans can buy, sell and trade with one another. Meanwhile, the legacy of baseball card collecting is preserved in South Bend through archives like the one at the public library as well as valuable private collections that have withstood the test of time. The cards continue telling the rich story of America’s pastime in the city for new generations to discover.

In summary, South Bend has deep roots in the history of baseball cards dating back over a century. From early tobacco issues to the golden age of the 1950s and specialized regional releases, the city was thoroughly enthralled by the hobby. Local shops also played a major role in cultivating community among collectors for decades. While the industry has changed, South Bend residents’ passion for the cards and what they represent about baseball’s history lives on. The city’s collections remain treasured artifacts celebrating sport, nostalgia and the American pastime.

J CARDS BASEBALL JASPER INDIANA

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Jasper has a long history of baseball and the Jasper Reds, more fondly known to locals as the “J Cards,” have been a staple of the community for over 100 years. What started as an amateur town team playing on vacant lots and pastures has evolved into one of the most successful collegiate wooden bat leagues in the country. Let’s take a deeper look at the history and legacy of J Cards baseball in Dubois County.

The earliest incarnation of organized baseball in Jasper can be traced back to 1904 when the Jasper Black Sox were formed as the town’s semi-pro team. They played against other amateur squads from surrounding counties and competed in the Indiana-Illinois League during the early 1900s. Not much is known about that original Black Sox team, but it helped spark a love of the game locally that continues today.

Through the 1920s and 30s, Jasper fielded intermittent town teams under various sponsors like the Huntingburg Machine Shop or Koch Brewery. In 1937, Jasper businessmen Melvin “Bus” Runck and Paul Winkler organized the Jasper Reds as the city’s official representative team. They joined the Midwest Semi-Pro League and soon became a league powerhouse. Led by players like Kenny “Chicken” Runck, the Reds won numerous championships in that era.

World War 2 depleted the Reds roster, but the team remained active in the late 1940s after veterans returned home. A young pitcher named Bob “Hoot” Gibson had a brief stint with the Reds in 1950 before embarking on a Hall of Fame career in Major League Baseball. His time in Jasper showed that even a small Indiana town could produce big league talent.

In 1956, Ivy League and Notre Dame alumnus Carl “Bud” Renzelmann was hired as Jasper High School’s baseball coach. He preached the fundamentals and tactics that made him a three-time Ivy League batting champ at Princeton. His leadership took Jasper baseball to new heights, culminating in state championships in 1960 and 1965. Many of his former players would go on to play for the Jasper Reds as well.

With Renzelmann at the helm of the high school program through the 1950s-60s, the city’s passion for baseball grew stronger. Community support and interest in the Jasper Reds reached an all-time high. In 1966, local businessman Randy Kimy and other community leaders reorganized the Reds as the forerunner of the modern J Cards franchise we know today.

Kimy became the dominant force in Jasper baseball for over 50 years. As Reds team president, he oversaw the construction of a new lighted ballpark along the Patoka River in 1967. Named “Randy Kimy Field” in his honor, it became the envy of all summer baseball leagues across the Midwest. Under Kimy’s direction, the Reds joined the Collegiate wood Bat League in 1974, beginning an incredible run of on-field success.

Some of the greatest players in Jasper Reds/J Cards history suited up in the 1970s-80s. Names like Barry Bonnell, Terry Brown, Marty Tabor, and Jeff Jones dot the franchise’s record books. Outfielder Rick Manning brought home two NWL MVP awards and went on to play 10 seasons in the majors. Catching legend Lance Parrish spent a summer in Jasper in 1976 before embarking on a 19-year MLB career.

Manager Steve Swarztrauber ushered in the J Cards “Glory Years” in the late 1970s-early 80s. His clubs won five NWL championships between 1978-1985, cementing Jasper as the league’s premier franchise. Dozens of Reds alumni went on to careers in affiliated pro ball and college coaching from that era. The success and exposure major colleges and pro scouts received in Jasper kept the talent pipeline flowing.

Into the 21st century, the J Cards have remained a summer highlight under the leadership of Randy’s sons Kevin and Kyle Kimy. New ballparks were built in 1991 and 2005 to keep the facilities state-of-the-art. Jasper established the Diamond Club to fund scholarships for deserving ballplayers to attend the school of their choice. Countless all-conference pros and Division I draftees have called Randy Kimy Field home over the last five decades.

Some notable recent J Cards include TCU standout Jared Moore (2010), Creighton ace Dylan Hecht (2014), and Louisville reliever Michael McAvene (2015). Current Cincinnati Red Amir Garrett spent two summers in Jasper sharpening his skills. In 2019, the J Cards won their sixth NWL Pennant with a stellar pitching staff led by future Oriole Zach Peek. Under manager Jon Hart, the franchise still competes at the highest level of collegiate summer ball today.

Jasper Reds/J Cards baseball forms the backbone of the city’s recreational identity and civic pride. Generations of families have formed life-long bonds at the ballpark, whether cheering on hometown heroes or making their own memories on the field. Though players and coaches come and go each season, the tradition and spirit instilled by men like Bus Runck, Bud Renzelmann, and Randy Kimy endure in the Dubois County community. J Cards baseball is truly a storied American pastime that continues to foster Jasper’s small town excellence on the national stage.