1951 Bowman FB #140 Leo Nomellini [#x] (49ers)

Select a different Sport or Vintage Baseball Cards set
or Find:
Enter words, partial words or phrases
1959 Topps displays vintage 1959 Topps Football sports cards.
Bowman Mickey Mantle displays all Bowman Mickey Mantle sports cards.

Official authentic vintage UPI/AP Wirephotos/Laserphotos are very limited, normally only 1 sent to subscribing newspapers. Photos were black & white printed on electro-static printers, usually sent in 3 stages, Cyan, Magenta & Yellow, then combined into a color photograph. Photos are work products and VG to NEAR MINT. As a bonus, some have editor's blue-line cropping marks.

Scarce, interesting and snapshots of history, wire photos of major subjects and moments make for great collectibles. Wirephotos and laserphotos are no longer transmitted in this manner (stopping around the early 90's). Images are now transmitted from computer to computer with no need for hardcopies.
old UPI wirephotos old AP wirephotos Wirephotos images taken with low res camera so images do not do then justice. The wirephotos are nicer than in the image. Most wirephotos from San Diego Union Tribune archives and make nice additions to your collection.

1955 Topps was the first of 2 years of horizontal card designs. As with 1952, 1953 & 1954, cards were again a tad larger than today's standard. A nice feature, facsimile autographs, again appeared on the cards. The set came in 2 series, #1-160 and scarcer "High Numbers" #161-210.

Due to the contract battles between Topps & Bowman, Cards #175,186,203 & 209 were never issued. Topps eventually won the war, buying Bowman making 1955 the last year for Bowman cards. But the damage was done as Topps had to leave out many stars including Mickey Mantle & Stan Musial.

There were a total of (15) Hall of Famers in the 1955 set !!!
Top ROOKIEs: Roberto Clemente, Sandy Koufax & Harmon Killebrew
Top Stars: Hank Aaron, Ted Williams, Al Kaline, Ernie Banks, Warren Spahn, Jackie Robinson, Eddie Mathews, Willie Mays, Yogi Berra & Duke Snider.

"The Golden Greek" Harry Agganis, a popular 1955 Topps card, is a tragic story, Agganis, a rising young star, died after his first card was issued. A football star at Boston U., he turned down an offer from the Cleveland Browns and became the starting first baseman. Shortly after he came down with pneumonia and died of a Pulmonary Embolism.

The 27-card 1954 Quaker Oats Sports Oddities multi-sport set was available card by card in boxes of Quaker Oats "Puffed Wheat and Rice" or if you weren't patient, you could purchase a complete set through the mail for all of 15 cents and two box tops from Quaker Puffed Wheat or Quaker Rice !!!

The very colorful cards measured 2-1/4 x 3-1/2 inch and came with rounded corners honoring special moments in sports history. Each card featured a portrait and action illustration.
Click for complete 1954 Quaker Oats Sports Oddities card values and prices
Note: You may be on that page right now.

How long have sports cards been around ? (part 1)

The first baseball trading cards date back to 1869. For many years, baseball cards were packaged in packs of tobacco as a way to increase sales the same way that today prizes are packaged in boxes of cereal. In the 1920's and 1930's, candy and gum companies started packaging baseball cards in their products as well.

Baseball card production was virtually halted in the early 1940's due to paper shortages created by World War II. The "Modern Era" of baseball cards began in 1948 when Bowman Gum Inc. offered one card and one piece of gum in a pack for a penny.

The first important football set was the Mayo set featuring college players in 1984. Other than the 1935 National Chicle set no other key football set was issued until 1948 when noth Bowman and Leaf produced sets.

1951 Bowman FB #140 Leo Nomellini [#x] (49ers)

Vintage Baseball Wire Photos

UPI/AP Wirephotos

1955 Topps Baseball Cards
Checklist & Values

1954 Quaker Oats Sports Oddities
Checklist & Values

1951 Bowman FB #140 Leo Nomellini [#x] (49ers)

Vintage Baseball Wire Photos

UPI/AP Wirephotos

1955 Topps Baseball Cards Checklist & Values

1954 Quaker Oats Sports Oddities Checklist & Values

1955 Topps Baseball Cards
Checklist & Values

1954 Quaker Oats Sports Oddities
Checklist & Values