The significance of the first basketball card goes beyond mere cardboard and ink; it captures a pivotal moment in collecting history and serves as a tangible connection to the origins of a sport now followed fanatically by billions.
So, which is the first true basketball card ever issued? The three contenders are:
1894 McLaughlin Coffee Paper Doll
This set of paper dolls featured boys and girls wearing various interchangeable outfits. And while most are non-sport related, there are several sports such as a baseball, a boxer and a fencer. There is also a sporting doll holding a generic ball that some believe might represent a basketball player.
Points to Consider
Is it a basketball the doll is holding?
Do you consider paper dolls to be a basketball card?
1899 Enameline College Color Paper Doll
These "cards' is made up of boy and girl paper dolls which bear the insignias of various colleges and university. The set does have a number of well known sports such as baseball, football and cycling. The potential basketball doll features a boy in an Illinois Wesleyan University sweater, holding what some say to be a “basketball”.
Points to Consider
Is it a basketball the doll is holding?
If it’s not basketball, what sport does this doll represent?
Do you consider paper dolls to be a basketball card?
Illinois Wesleyan did not have a men’s basketball team until 1909.
1903 Tetlow College Girl Series
Produced on a more commonly accepted card format, the Tetlow set has four cards depicting women playing different sports for various Ivy League colleges. One of the cards clearly shows two women in uniforms, playing on a court with a hoop and a basketball.
Points to consider
The Ivy League basketball league was created in 1902.
The image was used on a card in the 1991 Skybox basketball set for the centennial anniversary of basketball.
And the Winner is ...
The award for 'First Basketball Card' goes to the Tetlow College Girl card. Not only was it the first to adopt the traditional card format, but more significantly it was the first to to distinctly feature a player, a hoop, and a basketball.
So congratulations to Henry Tetlow for producing not just a piece of promotional cardboard; you played a role in the sport's evolution, you helped fuel the growth of fandom, and you marked the start of basketball card collecting.