The history of baseball cards in Lubbock, Texas spans over 100 years, dating back to the early 1900s when the first baseball cards were produced by manufacturers. Some of the earliest baseball cards produced featured players from West Texas teams that played in Lubbock in the early decades of the 20th century.

While baseball cards were produced and collected nationwide starting in the late 1880s, it took a few decades for the hobby to really take hold in Lubbock and the surrounding South Plains region. One of the first mentions of baseball cards in Lubbock newspaper archives comes from a 1909 article discussing new cards featuring players from the Texas League, the minor league that had teams in Lubbock at the time.

In the following decades, as baseball grew in popularity locally thanks to the minor league teams and youth/amateur leagues, so too did the collecting of baseball cards in Lubbock. Stores like drug stores and general stores would stock new baseball cards as they were released each year featuring players from the major leagues all the way down to local minor and independent pro teams.

Kids in Lubbock would pool their allowance money and earnings from odd jobs to try and complete full sets of the most recent baseball cards. Trading and bargaining between friends to obtain the few missing cards to finish a set was a big part of the hobby. By the late 1920s and 1930s, organized baseball card shows and swap meets were even being held in Lubbock to facilitate trades and sales between collectors.

World War 2 saw a dip in baseball card production and collecting for several years, but the hobby roared back to life in Lubbock and nationwide in the post-war years of the late 1940s and 1950s. Lubbock native Bobby Layne was starring for the Detroit Lions in the NFL during this time and his football cards were highly sought after by collectors in his hometown.

The 1950s were the golden age of baseball cards in Lubbock, as in most of America. More and more kids were taking up the hobby, spurred on by the rising popularity of the major leagues and televised baseball games. Card shows in Lubbock drew hundreds of collectors. Stars on the Lubbock Pirates like Gaylord Perry further fueled local interest in card collecting.

The 1960s saw the introduction of color to topps baseball cards in 1963, taking the hobby to new heights. Teenagers and young adults in Lubbock were fully immersed in collecting, trading, and organizing their baseball cards. The city’s first dedicated baseball card shop opened in 1964, Baseball Card City, which was a haven for collectors for decades.

Into the 1970s and 1980s, baseball card collecting remained incredibly popular in Lubbock among both kids and adults. The rise of specialty/niche cards like those featuring Texas League alumni or former Lubbock high school players added new dimensions to the local hobby. The junk wax era of the late 80s saw a crash in the baseball card market that disrupted collecting for several years.

The 1990s saw a resurgence and new expansion of the baseball card market in Lubbock. Stores like Stadium Cards and The Sports Exchange opened to cater to collectors. Shows drew thousands. Chasing rare cards of Lubbock natives like Buddy Carlyle and Curt Schilling was a top priority. The rise of the internet also allowed Lubbock collectors to easily trade online.

In the 2000s-present, baseball card collecting has remained an entrenched hobby among Lubbock residents young and old. New independent shops like PlayBall Cards have emerged. High-end vintage Lubbock cards break records at national auctions. Online groups facilitate local trades and discussions. Despite the decline of minor league baseball, the rich history and tradition of baseball card collecting lives on strongly in Lubbock.

The baseball card collecting scene in Lubbock has evolved greatly over the past century plus, from a small niche hobby to a full-fledged collecting community. It has survived ups and downs in the industry and maintained its popularity due to the city’s deep roots in amateur, minor league, and high school baseball. Today, Lubbock’s collectors preserve and celebrate the rich baseball history of the South Plains through their baseball card collections, keeping the tradition alive for future generations.

Baseball cards have been enjoyed by fans and collectors alike for over 130 years. In cities across America, local collectors would swap, trade, and purchase baseball cards amassed from packs of gum or candy. The West Texas city of Lubbock was no exception, playing host to a vibrant baseball card scene throughout the latter half of the 20th century.

During the peak of baseball card collecting’s popularity from the 1950s through the 1980s, Lubbock saw no shortage of hobby shops, corner stores, and card shows catering to collectors in the area. Among the most popular stores was Burkle’s Hobby Shop, located downtown on 19th Street. Opened in 1960, Burkle’s became a institution for Lubbock collectors, stocking packs, boxes, and individual cards from every year going back to the early tobacco era issues. Many aspiring collectors got their start regularly visiting Burkle’s to view the latest additions under glass and make trades in the back storage room.

Another iconic Lubbock shop was Al’s Sportscards, which opened in 1975 and proudly advertised as the “largest sports card store in West Texas.” Al’s became known for carrying complete sets long after they were released, as well deep runs of vintage cards dating back to the 1800s. Dozens of local collectors would flock to Al’s weekends for their legendary swap meets, where rows and rows of tables would be piled high with thousands of duplicate cards available for trading. It wasn’t unusual to see collectors spending entire Saturdays at Al’s negotiating trades and browsing through boxes.

Of course, no discussion of Lubbock’s baseball card scene is complete without mentioning Texas Trading Cards. Founded in 1981 by brothers Dale and Mike Garrett, Texas Trading Cards grew from a small Lubbock storefront into one of the largest and most important card distributors worldwide. Based on the city’s East 19th Street, TTC shipped collector supplies and traded cards across the U.S. and beyond. The Garretts are credited with helping pioneer the mass distribution model that fueled the boom years of the hobby in the 1980s and 90s. At its peak, Texas Trading Cards employed over 100 people and logged millions per year in sales.

Alongside the shops, another staple of the local scene were card shows. Some of the largest and most well-attended shows in the state were regularly held in Lubbock. The Civic Center and Hospitality Room at the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center hosted quarterly shows that would see thousands flock from across the South Plains for a full day of buying, selling, and trading. Vendors from across Texas and neighboring states knew they could reliably do big business at Lubbock shows. Major hobby dealers like Blowout Cards and Pristine Auction cut their teeth attending and eventually dealing at these massive West Texas extravaganzas.

Of course, it wasn’t just adults who made up Lubbock’s vibrant baseball card culture. Youth leagues thrived, with Little League teams, clubs, and shops holding regular tournaments, contests, and events centered around collecting. Local card companies even sponsored teams and leagues. Countless future adult collectors in Lubbock got their start as kids amassing and comparing collections, looking for that elusive rookie card or error variant that would make them the envy of their peers. Some of these early collecting passions have lasted lifetimes for many Lubbock natives.

While the popularity of baseball cards has undoubtedly waned from those peak years, the legacy of Lubbock’s collecting scene lives on. Burkle’s and Al’s may be closed now, but their histories continue to be fondly remembered by generations of collectors. And Texas Trading Cards, while reduced in physical presence, still ships worldwide as one of the hobby’s most recognizable brands. Lubbock can still boast active collector clubs and swap meets today. Its decades contributing as a hub for the baseball card trade ensured this West Texas city’s place in the rich history of sports cards in America.