• History

Celebrate Major League Baseball’s Birthday With Dazzling Vintage Baseball Cards

2 minute read

The first National League baseball game was played on April 22, 1876, between the Boston Red Stockings and the Philadelphia Athletics. But it would take nearly a century before baseball fans and officials recognized that day as the birthday of Major League Baseball.

See More: Start the Season Right With These 19th-Century Baseball Portraits

As MLB historian John Thorn has explained, there were a few different dates in the running for the honor. In the middle of the 19th century, the sport—supposedly invented in 1839—began to spread, and professional leagues were established. There was a claim made by 1869, and one for 1871, when the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players‚ an MLB precursor, organized its first game. But the National Association couldn’t hold it together and eventually broke up. In its place came the National League.

In the 1960s—just in time for the MLB centennial—the league recognized that April game 140 years ago as Major League Baseball’s first.

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It didn’t take much longer for the baseball card to come around, often as an advertising gimmick that would come with a pack of cigarettes. The Library of Congress holds a collection of thousands of early baseball cards, from which the gallery above is drawn.

Babe Ruth baseball card circa 1933.
George Herman (Babe) Ruth, Big League Chewing Gum baseball card. Boston : Goudey Gum Co., 1933.Library of Congress
John Clarkson, Boston Beaneaters, baseball card, 1887.
John Clarkson, Boston Beaneaters, baseball card, 1887.Library of Congress
John J. Evers, Chicago Cubs, baseball card, 1911.
John J. Evers, Chicago Cubs, baseball card, 1911.Library of Congress
Tim Keefe, New York Giants, baseball card, 1888.
Tim Keefe, New York Giants, baseball card, 1888.Library of Congress
Chas. Bender, Philadelphia Athletics, baseball card, 1911.
Chas. Bender, Philadelphia Athletics, baseball card, 1911.Library of Congress
Byrd, San Francisco Team, baseball card, 1910.
Byrd, San Francisco Team, baseball card, 1910.Library of Congress
Dode Paskert, Cincinnati Reds, baseball card, 1909-1911.
Dode Paskert, Cincinnati Reds, baseball card, 1909-1911.Library of Congress
Tex Erwin, Brooklyn Dodgers, baseball card, 1911.
Tex Erwin, Brooklyn Dodgers, baseball card, 1911.Library of Congress
Chas. W. Bennett, Detroit Wolverines, baseball card, 1887.
Chas. W. Bennett, Detroit Wolverines, baseball card, 1887.Library of Congress
Louis Evans, St. Louis Cardinals, baseball card, 1911.
Louis Evans, St. Louis Cardinals, baseball card, 1911.Library of Congress
Cap Anson, Chicago White Stockings, baseball card, 1888.
Cap Anson, Chicago White Stockings, baseball card, 1888.Library of Congress
Eddie Collins, Philadelphia Athletics, baseball card, 1914.
Eddie Collins, Philadelphia Athletics, baseball card, 1914.Library of Congress
Ernie Howard, Savannah Team, baseball card, 1909-1911.
Ernie Howard, Savannah Team, baseball card, 1909-1911.Library of Congress
Bill Bergen, Brooklyn Dodgers, baseball card, 1909-1911.
Bill Bergen, Brooklyn Dodgers, baseball card, 1909-1911.Library of Congress
Sherry Magee, Philadelphia Phillies, baseball card, 1911.
Sherry Magee, Philadelphia Phillies, baseball card, 1911.Library of Congress
Tip O'Neill, St. Louis Browns, baseball card, 1888.
Tip O'Neill, St. Louis Browns, baseball card, 1888.Library of Congress
Clark Griffith, Cincinnati Reds, baseball card, 1911.
Clark Griffith, Cincinnati Reds, baseball card, 1911.Library of Congress
Ed Reulbach, Chicago Cubs, baseball card, 1909-1911.
Ed Reulbach, Chicago Cubs, baseball card, 1909-1911.Library of Congress
Speas, Portland Team, baseball card, 1911.
Speas, Portland Team, baseball card, 1911.Library of Congress
http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/bbc.0798f
John McGraw, New York Giants, baseball card, 1909-1911.Library of Congress

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