The team that today is known as the San Francisco Giants is the winningest franchise in professional baseball, with more victories than any other, including the New York Yankees. Though not the oldest team in baseball (that distinction goes to the forebears of the Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs, both of which got their start in 1876), the Giants, who played their first two seasons as the Gothams, have been at it since 1883.
Over the years, the New York Giants (1885-1957) and San Francisco Giants (1958-present) have sent plenty of players to the Hall of Fame, from pitcher Christy Mathewson (along with Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb, he was one of the Hall’s original five inductees in 1936) to Willie Mays (inducted in 1979). Other stars whose baseball cards and other memorabilia are quite collectible include Mel Ott, Willie McCovey, Orlando Cepeda, and Juan Marichal.
In addition to autographed baseballs and gloves, Giants fans also look for programs from the club’s 14 World Series appearances in New York and four in San Francisco. Also of interest are pennants, photos, and other ephemera from the team's many parks, which have included the Polo Grounds in New York (all four versions) as well as Seals Stadium (1958-1959), Candlestick Park (1960-1999), and AT&T Park in San Francisco...
Particularly prized, though not especially expensive, are Croix de Candlestick pins, which were given to fans loyal enough to tough it out to the end of an extra-innings night game at Candlestick Park, which can be one of the coldest and windiest spots in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Another even more chilling memento is one of the small pieces of concrete that rained down on some fans just prior to the opening pitch of game three of the 1989 World Series. A magnitude 6.9 earthquake had triggered the stone shower, and the game was postponed for 10 days as the region mourned the victims of the tragedy and struggled to rebuild. The Giants eventually lost that contest to the Oakland A’s, 4-0.
Interviews & Articles
Talking Baseball Memorabilia on Local TV - Our Own Ben Marks!

Collectors Weekly Senior Editor Ben Marks went on TV yesterday... to talk about San Francisco Giants memorabilia for local ABC aff… [more]
World Series Memorabilia Smackdown!

Recently, we published our lists of The 9 Vintage Items No Self-Respecting Giants or Rangers Fan Should Be Without. We've told you… [more]
The 9 Items No Self-Respecting Giants or Rangers Fan Should Be Without

As San Francisco, California, and Arlington, Texas, ready themselves for the 2010 World Series, fans are wondering about things li… [more]
The Secrets of Collecting Baseball, From Cards to Signed Bats and Balls

I played baseball, basketball, and ran track from the time I was eight years old all the way through high school. Like the other k… [more]
Hitting a Home Run with Baseball Cards

I started collecting in 1986. If you’re in Boston and you’re a baseball fan, the Red Sox may take over your life. They take over y… [more]
Now Batting, National Baseball Hall of Fame Curator Tom Shieber

The Baseball Hall of Fame officially opened in 1939, so we’re coming up on our 70th anniversary. If you include baseball cards, we… [more]
How To Build a Killer Baseball Collection: Scouting the Minors With Dave Bloomer

Like most people my age, when I was growing up, baseball memorabilia meant baseball cards. The great thing about baseball cards at… [more]
19th-Century Tobacco Cards

Dave Campbell contacted me after reading a post on The Baseball Card blog. He's been collecting baseball cards non-stop since 1981… [more]
Best of the Web (“Hall of Fame”)
Old Cardboard

Check out this well-organized collection of 500 sets of baseball cards, each over 50 years old. Browsable by type a… [read review or visit site]
The Baseball Card Blog

Ben Henry's lively vintage baseball card blog, started in January 2006, offers hundreds of great posts on (and pict… [read review or visit site]
Cardboard Junkie

Dave Campbell's in-depth blog on old baseball (and some football) cards lives up to it's motto: 'do cards, not drug… [read review or visit site]
Baseball Cards 1887-1914

Roll up your socks for this Library of Congress collection showcasing hundreds of players on colorful early basebal… [read review or visit site]
Baseball Hall of Fame

A home run for baseball collectors, this site features special online exhibits, ranging from a baseball-uniforms da… [read review or visit site]
The Killer Mobile Device for Victorian Women
If These Shirts Could Talk: The Tantalizing Tales Behind Used Clothes
Gloriously Grotesque 19th-Century Pipes
In the Hot Seat: Is Your Antique Windsor a Fake?
Bizarro Beauty Products, from 1889 to Now
Love at First Kite: How Pizza and Pente Led to One Oklahoman's High-Flying Obsession
Pin-Up Queens: Three Female Artists Who Shaped the American Dream Girl
Say Ahhh: An Oral Surgeon's Quest to Reimagine the Garage-Band Guitar
Tokens for Sweethearts, in Times of War
American Picker Dream, Part I: Mike Wolfe On His Love Affair With Bikes

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