1909-1911 E254 Colgan's Chips Advertising Pamphlet Featuring Honus Wagner and Cy Young

Sold For:

$600

Year:

1909

Auction:

2018 Fall

Lot #:

510

Category:

Prewar Baseball - 1910s and 1920s Cards

Exceedingly rare advertising pamphlet issued in promotion of the popular E254 Colgan's Chips series. This multicolor eight-page pamphlet was produced by the Colgan Gum Company (Louisville, Kentucky) to inform merchants how much more revenue they could make by stocking Colgan's Chips, "The Gum That's Round." The highlight of the pamphlet, as far as baseball collectors are concerned, is Page 2, which is devoted to the circular cards issued in the tins. Featured on the page are samples of seven player cards: Honus Wagner, Frank Chance, Johnny Evers, Cy Young, Hal Chase, Hughie Jennings, and Harry Davis. The adjacent text reads "The Pictures of Ball Players are a big hit with the boys One in every box of Colgan's Chips." In describing the gum and its tin-packaging, the company again makes note that "In every box is a picture of a star base-ball player. Every boy wants to make a collection." The other pages are devoted to Colgan's nationwide promotional campaign and feature illustrations of the various advertisements the company is placing in periodicals and newspapers, including The Saturday Evening Post and Collier's. The final page offers dealers a free "Counter-Jumper" with every order of six boxes or more. (A "Counter Jumper" was a display rack designed to hold twenty round tins of gum, available in colorful green and purple varieties.) What is most striking about this pamphlet is its size. When originally folded and mailed, the pamphlet measured 12 x 5 inches, but it unfurls to 19.25 x 24 inches. As such, the page displaying the Colgan's Chips cards is more akin to an advertising poster than a pamphlet, and could easily be framed to make for a spectacular wall display. The pamphlet, printed on thin paper stock, displays normal fold lines as issued. a number of small tears affect the fold lines, while a few additional small tears affect the interior areas. The back page, which includes the mailing address and label, display a number of large tears and paper loss. The page displaying the cards has an interior tear in the area of the illustrated purple baseball which has been "repaired" by attaching a piece of purple cloth on the reverse to help mask the small amount of paper loss. In Good condition overall, but the page featuring the cards has a much higher Excellent overall appearance. This is the first example of this pamphlet we have ever seen and one that would be a welcome addition to any advanced baseball advertising or Colgan's Chips collection. Reserve $500. Estimate (open).