While periods typically follow acronyms and abbreviations in writing, there is an exception when it comes to vintage baseball card company abbreviations – specifically those ending in “Inc.”
Baseball cards exploded in popularity in the late 19th century as the amateur sport began its transition to professional leagues. Chewing gum and tobacco companies like American Tobacco Company, Bazooka Candy, and Topps recognized the marketing potential of small promotional baseball trading cards included in their products. These early entrepreneurs established many of the production and stylistic conventions still followed by today’s sports memorabilia industry.
One such convention was the use of abbreviations rather than spelling out company names in full on the fronts and backs of cards. Space was limited so initials like ATC, BC, and TOPPS were depicted. When the companies incorporated as legal entities, the abbreviation convention continued with the suffix “Inc.” attached but without an ending period.
Why omit the period in “Inc.” when it is grammatically correct to include it as part of the abbreviation? Experts trace the no period practice back to the limitations of printing technologies in use during baseball card’s formative years between 1887-1941. Early printers used movable type rather than digital fonts, meaning each individual letter and punctuation mark had to be physically affixed to the plate in precise alignment before mass production. Adding unnecessary punctuation like periods slightly increased print costs and risked alignment errors impacting quality control.
Aside from such technical constraints, early baseball card companies may have intuitively understood that omitting periods lent their abbreviations a more shorthand, casual style befitting a youthful leisure activity and burgeoning sport. Periods can make words appear stiff and formal, so the period-less “Inc” blended abbreviations harmoniously into the visual flow of card designs.
When these pioneering card companies incorporated during baseball’s Deadball Era, the conventions they established stuck even as printing technologies evolved. Topps, Bazooka, and Bowman adopted the period-free “Inc.” style decades before computerized desktop publishing streamlined production processes. By then, dropping the concluding period had become an entrenched visual signature identifying the factory-sealed packaging of officially licensed sports cards.
Adherence to tradition remains important in the nostalgia-centered sports memorabilia industry where vintage aesthetic cues evoke memories and command collector interest/demand. Modern card manufacturers like Upper Deck, Leaf, and Panini continue omitting periods after “Inc.” out of respect for the classic visual language set by early 20th century innovators. Consumers and authentication/grading services have come to expect period-free “Inc.” as a subtle authenticator of officially licensed modern issues tracing their pedigree to the pioneering cardboard companies of baseball’s past.
Some evidence suggests early producers may also have omitted periods to deter counterfeiters. Without digital printing, exact duplication of punctuation subtleties provided an extra layer of integrity protection. Today’s sophisticated anti-fraud marking and authentication technologies have rendered such concerns obsolete. Still, respecting design traditions maintains continuity cherished by those who enjoy baseball cards not just as financial assets but cultural artifacts representing the history of America’s favorite pastime.
While grammatical rules typically demand a period after any abbreviation, the collectibles industry exception for “Inc.” acknowledges both the technical constraints of vintage printing processes and deep-rooted traditions. Over a century after their inception, baseball cards remain one of nostalgia’s most popular contemporary artforms precisely because they preserve tangible links to a beloved sport’s early decades. In this context, the period-free style perfectly captures the playful earnestness of those pioneering card company entrepreneurs who first recognized this singular commercial opportunity within America’s pastimes.
