Thursday, March 1, 2012

Trading Cards for Girls in the 1960s

Trading Cards for Girls in the 1960s
Where are the Cards Now?

While the guys put Micky Mantle on the spokes of their bicycles, my girlfriends and I collected horses, dogs, cats, flowers, and country scenes.  These were sold at the five and dime in our town in Maryland and have no markings to indicate their manufacturer.  I've searched the Internet and antique stores and never found any of them.  Either they had a very limited distribution or my friends still keep their cards in a shoebox, too.

The trading cards are the size of playing cards and have rounded edges. There were many traditions associated with the cards.   For example, most of us organized them by category, horses first.  Then dogs, cats, flowers, outdoor scenes, and boats.  There were some that looked like miniatures of  the Dutch grand masters, but they may have been made by another company.

The horses above were not the "best," though the one of the mother and foal in the middle was close to the top.  With the same line of thought boys employed when they put baseball cards on spokes, we put our favorite cards on top of the pile, and secured them with a rubber band.  Can you say wrinkled?  This was long before plastic sleeves, of course.

Within each group of cards were the favorites among dogs, cats, flowers, etc.  For example, these terriers were often on top of the dog pile, so to speak, and were often followed by spaniels or setters.

I'm curious about these cards.  Do you have any?  Do you know who produced them?  Though I write mysteries, I cannot fathom the solution for this one.

15 comments:

  1. It might have been some sort of local company, because I never saw these. I would have loved them.

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  2. I think you might be right. I assumed they had a broader distribution until I couldn't find ANY references to them. I'll let you know what I find out.
    e

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  3. Elaine...I live in CT and we ( my sister and I) got trading cards at a store, I thought was called Jimmy's and my sister said it was Vinnie's. Anyway, I too have been looking around for them and I too have Encountered that most people don't know what I am talking about.
    We got ours in the early 1950's.
    I remember some of my favorites were ballerinas and flowers ( roses?) and I am pretty sure they were on a black background.
    However when I saw yours, my heart leapt because I recognized them as
    well...I am 64 and we used to get them on the way home from to school and it had to be when I was in Kindergarten and 1st grade. My sister is 6 years older and she has fond memories of them as well.
    Linda

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    1. There were lots of roses. I always wanted he horses. :) Elaine

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  4. I am so glad I found this site. No one else I talk to remembers these. I had loads of them as did my friends in the 1950's and 1960's. Trading cards and paper dolls were my favorite things back then. I am 62 years old and grew up in Lincolnwood, Illinois. They were big with the girls there back in those days. I sure wish I could come across some of the best of the old ones.

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    1. Can you describe the ones you are thinking of? I would share :)

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  5. I've been searching for people who collected these for years. I think they were sold by Western Publishing Co. and they came in mixed packs possibly with gum. Girls tended to collect specific categories and trade for them. My sister and I loved the dogs but there were sailing ships, Old Masters, still lives, flowers, cartoons, all kinds of things. Wonderful!

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    1. Thanks for your comment. I never knew who published them. I bought them at "Mister Victor's" in downtown Kensington, MD. Mostly we traded at my elementary school. Do you still have any?

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    2. Yes I have a few although my mother threw away most of ours. I would LOVE to get more. We bought them at the local stationery store in Hastings on Hudson NY. It does seem as though the cards had a very limited run. Most people have no clue when I mention them!

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  6. I just found a whole box of these cards. Does anyone want them?

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  7. If you still have these I would love them.
    Email me at jodyheyward@gmail.com

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  8. I had these do you know where i could get some?

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  9. great memories, my friends and i used to trade them!

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    1. I'm sorry I didn't see your note earlier. I loved those cards. Glad to know others did, too. Elaine

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