The Alamo Collection

There is universal agreement within the organized hobby that the 1914 Cracker Jack release is one of the hobby's hallmark series and quite possibly the most difficult issue of cards to procure in high grade. A German immigrant named Frederick William Rueckheim invented Cracker Jack. Rueckheim came to Chicago in 1872 to help clean up after the famous Chicago fire. He also worked selling popcorn from a cart. Together with brother Louis, Rueckheim experimented and came up with a delightful popcorn candy, which the brothers decided to mass market. Cracker Jack was first mass-produced and sold at the first Chicago World's Fair in 1893.

Everything about this set -the colors, the definition of the vintage images, the subjects featured- taps into the mere innocence and idyllic wonderment which in turn spurs on all collectors. There were some amazing higher profile cards within the offering: the collectibles featuring the likenesses of Shoeless Joe Jackson as well as the iconic and exceptionally scarce card of Christy Mathewson. The offered card of legendary baseball repugnant Joe Jackson in a PSA NM 7 holder, while the exceedingly scarce horizontally issued 1914 pasteboard of the “Christian Gentleman” Christy Mathewson is represented by a princely example that has been awarded an EX 5 grade by PSA. A collection that Mile High Card Company was proud to offer and one that will almost assuredly never be reconstructed in its PSA assessment.

Sold for $510,517.20
November 2010