1895 Newsboy Cabinets N566 John Montgomery Ward – SGC 40

• Sold For: $5,175
• Year: 1895
• Auction: 2007 October
• Lot #: 3
• Auction Category: Pre-1900 Baseball Cards (1830-1899)

More stunning than any modern card could ever aspire to be, this 1895 Newsboy Cabinets John Montgomery Ward card displays an engrossing image of the leader of the player’s league. To be precise, cabinets are photographs mounted on heavy cardboard stock and known as such supposedly because they were often displayed in cabinets. A cabinet photograph is smaller than an imperial photograph but larger than a carte de visite. These popular 1895 Newsboy cabinets were given away as premiums when making a purchase of plug tobacco products produced by the National Tobacco Works of New York. The American Tobacco Company later acquired this firm. The complete Newsboy series contained over (500) different subjects including actresses, politicians and celebrities of the era, but the fourteen baseball subjects are the most highly prized in the entire set. Offered is a very attractive 1895 N566 Newsboy Cabinet #587 John M. Ward (bat at side) that has been graded 40 VG 3 by SGC. The card presents considerably sharper than the technical grade would suggest. There is a small crease on the lower left corner in the heavy backing and several small chips along the outermost edges of the silver oxide image. Both the photo and cardboard backing are numbered (#587), and the reverse is very clean. The actual image is in fabulous condition with a crystal clear image of the Hall of Famer leaning on his baseball bat. An artifact of this magnitude falls into many collecting genres and is highly coveted.