Set Description:
In 2014 I was commissioned by a sports memorabilia company to create a series of 1915 Cracker Jack inspired art cards featuring 40 Federal League players who were not included in the original Crack Jack series. The project was part of a planned 2015 promotion to mark the 100th anniversary of the Federal League’s demise in 1915. Six cards into the project, the company abandoned the idea. The cards then collected virtual dust in my virtual attic for nearly three years and somehow escaped being discarded by my virtual mom.
In an effort to empty my vaults at the close of 2016, I decided to issue the cards as a small series of art cards called the Jim Dandie Feds.
While I originally planned to release the six original cards as a complete set, I ultimately decided to expand the series for two reasons:
- The original six cards represented only four of the nine Federal League teams that existed from 1914 to 1915, so I thought it would be fun to expand the series to include at least one player from every Federal League team
- The original six cards featured some pretty obscure players, so I thought it would be fun to create a more attractive balance in the series by including a few better-known names
The Jim Dandie Feds series is now complete at 12 cards. Here is the checklist:
The Original Six from 2014 (these players were not represented in the original Cracker Jack series)
- Joe Agler: Buffalo Blues
- Charlie Deal: St. Louis Terriers
- Howard Ehmke: Buffalo Blues
- Max Flack: Chicago Whales
- Mike Menosky: Pittsburgh Rebels
- Jack Tobin: St. Louis Terriers
Two New Additions in 2016 (like the Original Six, these players were also excluded from the original Cracker Jack series)
- Bill Bradley: Kansas City Packers
- Jimmy Esmond: Indianapolis Hoosiers*
Four More New Additions (these four players were represented in the original Cracker Jack series)
- Lee Magee: Brooklyn Tip-Tops
- Edd Roush: Newark Peppers*
- Chief Bender: Baltimore Terrapins
- Eddie Plank: St. Louis Terriers
* The Indianapolis Hoosiers and Newark Peppers were the same club, having relocated from Indianapolis in 1914 to Newark in 1915
Card Reverses:
Size, Weight, Design, History & Status
- Dimensions: 2 3/8” x 3 1/8“
- Thickness: 24 pts
- GSM: 300
- Complete Set: 12 cards
- Inspiration: 1915 Cracker Jack (E 145-2)
- Designed: February, 2014
- Introduced: December, 2016
- Completed: August, 2017
- Current Status: Active
- Current Frequency of Release: One of each card per year
- Trivia: The aborted 2014 project was not without its silver lining . . . . the Ars Longa: Diamond Heads ’15 series arose rather quickly from its ashes
Most Popular Cards:
- The five most popular Jim Dandie Feds cards are presented here in reverse order by average winning bid
- This list is updated whenever changes are necessary
- Last updated: November 25, 2024