1950s Bowman

Bowman would continue to produce baseball cards as they had since 1948 and resume production of football cards as well after taking a hiatus from it in 1949. Bowman was the only major sports card manufacturer in 1950. The monopoly was short lived, as Topps would begin producing cards in 1951. The rivalry lasted for five years as Bowman was bought out by Topps in 1956. The following provides a brief summary of sports card sets issued during the 1950s by the Bowman Gum Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Baseball

1950

1950 was the only year in which Bowman had a monopoly on baseball cards - There were no other national issues released that year. This set numbered 252 cards total. As with the 1949 Bowman set, the cards measured 2 1/16" by 2 1/2", quite a bit smaller than what is now considered the standard size for baseball cards. The card fronts feature hand-painted color reproductions of actual photographs.

As Bowman did not have any competition in 1950, most major stars of the era are represented in this set, including Ted Williams. However, the set lacks big-name rookie cards, which has hurt its collectible value. Unlike most vintage sets, in which the high-number cards are usually harder to find (and thus more valuable), the 1950 set is actually harder to find in the low numbers, cards 1-72. Cards 181 to 252 can be found with or without a copyright line at the bottom of the card's back (the versions without the copyright being less common).

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1951

The 1951 Bowman card set totals 324 cards. Like the 1950 set, 1951 Bowman features color-art reproductions of actual photographs. The size of the cards was increased to 2-1/16" by 3-1/8". For collectors, this is the most valuable of the Bowman sets and one of the more valuable sets ever issued by any maker, due in large part to the presence of rookie cards for both Mickey Mantle (card #253) and Willie Mays (card #305).

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1952

Three factors combined in 1952 to mark the decline of Bowman:
* Bowman did not radically change the face of its cards in 1952. The images are color reproduction of actual photographs, just as they were in 1951. Only the player names changed, from typeface to facsimile autographs.
* Bowman did not increase the size of the set in 1952, as they had every year from 1949 to 1951. Instead, 1952 Bowman features only 252 cards.
* Most importantly, Topps emerged as a true competitor to Bowman. In 1952, Topps issued their first full set, in a larger format (2-5/8" by 3-3/4", whereas Bowman maintained the same size from its 1951 set) and in greater number (407 cards, a very large set for the time). The increased size of the Topps set allowed for more information on the back of the card, and the player images were a bit more colorful.

Today, the 1952 Topps set is considerably more valuable for collectors. In fact, a full 1952 Bowman set can be purchased for about one-tenth what a full 1952 Topps set will cost you. Nonetheless, the 1952 Bowman set is very attractive and features many of the stars of the day, including Yogi Berra (card #1), Mantle (card #101), Stan Musial (card #196), and Mays (card #218).

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1953

The 1953 Bowman baseball card set was printed in two series: 1) a full-color set including 160 cards with some of the biggest names of the day, and 2) a 64-card set with black-and-white images, featuring lesser known players of the time. Bowman increased the size of the cards in their 1953 baseball set to 2-1/2" by 3-3/4", more in line with the popular 1952 Topps set. This was also the first Bowman set to include player statistics on the backs of the cards (like Topps). An interesting innovation in the 1953 Bowman set were the first multiple-player cards: Card #44 has Yankee stars Mantle, Berra, and Hank Bauer, and card #93 features Billy Martin and Phil Rizzuto. The set features no major rookies, but it is still avidly collected due to the clean, full-color images of the color cards.

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1954

The color images that Bowman introduced for a portion of the 1953 set spread to the whole set in 1954. As with the 1953 set, 1954 Bowman cards measured 2-1/2 by 3-3/4 inches and were 224 in total count. On the back, Bowman added a trivia question across the bottom of each card, as had been done with the 1953 Topps set. The answer to the question ran just below the player’s statistics.

The 1954 Bowman set was printed so fast (due to the competition with Topps) that almost 20% of the cards issued had statistical errors. These errors were later corrected, making for a great number of variation cards in this set. There are several other variations worth noting, as well:
* Card #66 originally featured Ted Williams, but as it turned out Williams was signed exclusively to Topps. The card was later pulled and replaced with a card of Jimmy Piersall (who is also on card #210). Needless to say, the short-printed Williams is now highly sought after by collectors.
* Also of note are cards #33 (Vic Raschi) and #163 (Dave Philley); some versions mention the player being traded, while others do not (the cards which mention the trades are more valuable). To add to the confusion, there is a third Philley card which mentions the trade and also credits him with having played more games the previous year (157 rather than 152).

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1955

Bowman’s 1955 baseball set was its last. The company was bought out by Topps that same year. The 320-card 1955 set features one of the more creative designs in trading card history: Each card shows a color photo of a player inside a wood-grain color TV set. The 1995 Bowman set was also the first to include umpire cards. In addition, a number of cards include ‘personal testimonials’ from players, such as “My Biggest Thrill in Baseball” or “My Advice to Youngsters.” The cards measured 2-1/2 by 3-3/4 inches. The most valuable card is Mantle (#202). This final Bowman set was also the first Bowman set to feature Elston Howard (#68), Al Kaline (#23), Hank Aaron (#179), and Ernie Banks (#242).

[http://www.geocities.com/chrisstufflestreet/1955b.html Checklist] .

Football

All the Bowman football sets issued feature NFL players.
*1950 Bowman 144 cards Size: 2-1/16 X 2-1/2 in.
*1951 Bowman 144 cards Size: 2-1/16 X 3-1/8 in.
*1952 Bowman Large 144 cards Size: 2-1/2 X 3-3/4 in.
*1952 Bowman Small 144 cards Size: 2-1/16 X 3-1/8 in.
*1953 Bowman 96 cards Size: 2-1/2 X 3-3/4 in.
*1954 Bowman 128 cards Size: 2-1/2 X 3-3/4 in.
*1955 Bowman 160 cards Size: 2-1/2 X 3-3/4 in.

Non-sport

Set information is listed here by Year, Set Name, Quantity of Cards(#), and the card's Dimensions in inches.

1950

Blony Paper Novelties (#) varying sizes
Wild Man (72) 2-1/16 X 2-1/2

1951

Jets, Rockets, Spacemen (108) 2-1/16 X 3-1/8
Red Menace (48) 2-1/2 X 3-1/8

1952

Television & Radio Stars of N.B.C. (36) 2-1/2 X 3-3/4
Uncle Miltie (#) 1-5/8 X 2-9/16
U.S. Presidents (36) 2-1/2 X 3-3/4

1953

Antique Autos (48) 2-1/2 X 3-3/4
Firefighters (64) 2-1/2 X 3-3/4
Frontier Days (128) 2-1/2 X 3-3/4
Television and Radio Stars of the National Broadcasting Company (96) 2-1/2 X 3-3/4

1954

Power For Peace (96) 2-1/2 X 3-3/4
U.S. Navy Victories (48) 2-1/2 X 3-3/4

1955

Magic Pictures (40) 2-1/2 X 3-3/4 and (120) 1-1/4 X 2-1/2 (240 total)

References

*Beckett, Dr. James et al (2002). "Beckett Baseball Card Price Guide". Beckett Publications-Dallas, Texas ISBN 1-930692-17-X

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