Pittsburgh Pirates Autographs and Memorabilia
30 Lots
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Lot 32. Dramatic and Rare 1913 Lithographic "Two Stars" Supplement with Honus Wagner and Nap Lajoie. The “Pittsburgh Press” issued the colorful 14” x 20” supplement for the “Pittsburg-Cleveland Series 1913,” an exhibition involving the two teams. Images of Wagner and Lajoie are superimposed on artwork showing a game in progress. Above is a black & white photo showing a capacity crowd at Forbes Field. The supplement has small chips in three corners and along two edges. Tape on the blank back repairs two lengthy tears that have the appearance of creases. Colors remain strong, apparently as originally issued. Whatever technical issues the supplement may have are more than countered by its attractiveness, its scarcity and the importance of its subjects. We have seen only two of these supplements, including this one.
Winning Bid $1,433.
Lot 33. Forbes Field Original 1909 Seat. An ornate metal stanchion on each side identifies this seat as an original installed in Forbes Field as it was being readied for the 1909 season. The seat was present in 1909 when Honus Wagner outplayed Ty Cobb in the World Series, in 1935 when Babe Ruth hit his final home run and in 1960 when Bill Mazeroski’s most important home run brought Pittsburgh its third world championship. The wood components of this seat, which appear to be original, have been stripped. In fact, we believe the seat to be completely original, except for screws that have been used to hold the four back slats in place and to attach the seat to a wood base. In addition, the seat comes with three slats and a seat bottom that retain their original light-green paint. This type of seat was used in limited sections of Forbes Field. It is a rare, fine specimen!
Winning Bid $1,302.
Lot 34. Pair of Attached Forbes Field Seats. From 1909-70, Forbes Field was home to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Over the decades, thousands of baseball fans watched from these seats as Pirates, players from other major league teams and members of the Homestead Grays made important baseball history. Football fans too occupied these seats to witness the exploits of Finks, Layne, Dudley, McNally, Stautner and others. Measuring 42” across, the seats are numbered 1 and 2 and are in excellent condition. Whether their current layer of paint was applied before or after they left Forbes Field is uncertain. The blue color is the same as they wore for decades inside the venerable ball park. A NOTE ABOUT SHIPPING: Depending on the destination, shipping costs could be as much as approximately $350. This estimate is based on shipping to California.
Winning Bid $666.
Lot 35. Rare Cigar Box Commemorating the Pittsburgh Pirates’ 1909 World Championship. Honus Wagner, Babe Adams, Fred Clarke and Tommy Leach were the stars as Pittsburgh topped Ty Cobb and the Detroit Tigers, 4 games to 3. The world championship was Pittsburgh’s first. The outside and inside of the cigar box lid both say “Pittsburgh Champion Stogies, handmade long filler from selected high grade stock.” Constructed of wood, the box shows light to moderate wear and inoffensive discoloration on the outside lid. It carries a tax stamp with 1909 and 1910 dates. The inside of the lid, which has a yellow border, displays exceptionally well. We sold this box to a Pirates collector in 2003. Since then, we have not seen another. It’s a rare collectible from the first of Pittsburgh’s five world championships.
Winning Bid $220.
Lot 36. Pittsburgh Pirates 1909 Panoramic Three-Panel, Double-Fold Postcard of Forbes Field. From center field, the colorized card shows a game in progress. Measuring 3.5” x 16.5”, it is titled “Panoramic View of Forbes Field, World’s Greatest Base Ball Park, Pittsburg, PA.” Chautauqua Photographic Co. copyrighted the photo, and Fort Pitt Publishing produced the card, which is numbered N. 243. Technically vg+ to ex, it looks better and is extremely scarce.
Winning Bid $338.
Lot 37. Extremely Rare Engraved Photo of the 1923 Pittsburgh Pirates Team. The 1923 Pirates were led by a manager and fielded four players now in the Hall of Fame – Bill McKechnie, Max Carey, Kiki Cuyler, Pie Traynor and Rabbit Maranville. They finished third in the N.L. pennant race. They and their teammates are pictured in a photo with player identifications promoting the Superior Engraving Co. of Pittsburgh. The photo itself is approximately 4.25” x 12.5”, while the full printed piece is approximately 7” x 14”. It is matted and framed to 11.5” x 18.5”. The engraving has vertical folds and creases and a couple of light stains. We are unaware of another copy. This example comes from the collection of a veteran, serious Pittsburgh collector.
Minimum Bid $200.
Lot 38. Rarely Seen “1960 Welcome Pittsburgh Pirates World Champs” Banner. These red, black and gold banners were displayed at various locations and events around Pittsburgh after the Pirates defeated the New York Yankees in the World Series. This 19” x 34” example is close to pristine, with some wrinkles that could be ironed away.
Winning Bid $847.
Lot 39. Very Rare Iron City Beer Color Photo of the 1960 World Champion Pittsburgh Pirates. This is the 10.75” x 16” version of the brewer’s promotional photo. It is far less common, and easier to display, than the 17” x 33” version. Roberto Clemente and Bill Mazeroski are in the photo, as well as Dick Groat, ElRoy Face, Bob Friend, Vernon Law, Dick Stuart, Smoky Burgess and broadcaster Bob Prince. There is a small chip in the lower right corner, a crease that touches Hal Smith and Don Hoak and various scratches or light indentations, primarily around the Iron City Beer logo. A rarely seen memento of the 1960 championship season!
Winning Bid $242.
Lot 40. New York Yankees at Pittsburgh Pirates 1960 World Series Game 1 Ticket Stub. Strong bleacher seat stub with two sections present and neatly separated from the third. Free of stains and surface imperfections, it has one medium crease and two lighter creases on the part that says “Bleacher” and provides the seat number. Vg+ to ex. The Pirates won Game 1, 6-4.
Winning Bid $92.
Lot 41. Pittsburgh Pirates 1960 World Series Program. Bill Mazeroski’s immortal walk-off home run enabled Pittsburgh to defeat the New York Yankees in seven games. Nm and easily the finest copy of the program we have handled.
Winning Bid $110.
Lot 43. George Burke 1937 Photo of Honus Wagner and a Second Wagner Image. Burke was the premier baseball photographer of the 1930s. His images of baseball’s Hall of Fame stars are highly prized. This 4” x 6” b&w portrait captures Wagner as a Pittsburgh Pirates coach. Ex-m. It has Burke’s stamp on the back. The Burke photo is accompanied by a 2.75” x 4.5” vintage snapshot that shows Wagner at Forbes Field with another individual. Ex-m to nm.
Winning Bid $113.
Lot 44. Honus Wagner 1940s Matchbook Promoting His Pittsburgh Sporting Goods Store. All of the matches remain in this 3 3/8” x 4 ¼” book of matches with Wagner’s image on the cover and a drawing of Forbes Field in the background. The inside of the cover presents information on Wagner’s Hall of Fame career. With fellow-Pirate Pie Traynor, Wagner opened the Pittsburgh store in 1919. Beginning in 1928, other owners operated the store, although Wagner’s name remained until the store closed in 2011. The front of the matchbook is ex. Two indentations and a crease are visible on the back.
Winning Bid $83.
Lot 45. Circa 1950 Ashtray Featuring Honus Wagner and Chewing Tobacco. A sepia image of Wagner holding a chew of loose leaf tobacco fills the center of the ashtray, which is 4.5” in diameter. A gold rim outlines the ashtray, and a decorative embossed design surrounds Wagner’s image. Nm and interesting given the famous story of the T206 card and Wagner’s view of being associated with tobacco!
Winning Bid $279.
Lot 46. 10 Pittsburgh Pirates Yearbooks, 1951-60. These yearbooks take the Pirates from the Rickey Dink years to a world championship. Losers of at least 100 games and occupants of the National League basement, the 1952-54 Pirates were dubbed the “Rickey Dinks” in denigration of Branch Rickey, the team’s general manager. The 1951 yearbook was the Pirates’ first. It is vg+ to ex with “50¢” written on the front cover. Here is information on the other issues: 1952, cover by award-winning Pittsburgh “Post-Gazette” cartoonist Cy Hungerford, ex-m; 1953, Ralph Kiner, Joe Garagiola and the O’Brien twins pictured inside, ex-m; 1954, Curt Roberts, Pittsburgh’s first black player pictured, and the Honus Wagner statue on the front cover, ex; 1955, Roberto Clemente’s first appearance, vg-ex; 1956, Bill Mazeroski’s inaugural issue, vg-ex; 1957, ex; 1958, the Pirates’ first winning season of the 1950s, vg-ex, minor writing on front cover and 1” spine split; 1959, ex-m, and 1960, the Pirates’ world championship season, ex-m to nm. The 1956 yearbook is especially worth noting. It contains a one-page tribute to Wagner, who died in December 1955. The page has an illustration of Wagner – holding a cigar!
Winning Bid $291.
