1902 Ogden’s Tabs Sportsmen Set and Checklist
‘It’s In The Details’
| Title | Ogden Tab Cigarettes Sportsmen |
| Year | 1902 |
| Size | 1 5/8″ x 2 7/16″ |
| Images | Black and White |
| Type | Tobacco |
| Number in Set |
Unknown |
1902 Ogden’s Tabs Sportsmen Overview
T
he Ogden Tab Cigarettes Sportsmen set is one of many multi-sport releases from Ogden’s, a UK tobacco company.
Like many of their other early 1900s sets, the cards have black borders and include the Ogden’s name at the bottom. Black and white photos of athletes are used and their name is printed at the bottom. Backs of the card are blank and they do not include card numbers.
The set does not include athletes from any of the four major American sports. However, it does include golfers as well as soccer players and some other athletes. The golfers are the feature of the set and the big names are those of Tom Morris, Harry Vardon, James Braid, and H.H. Hilton. Braid and Vardon, in particular, are two of the earliest golf stars and they were preceded by Old Tom Morris, who is also in the set. The game certainly existed well before Morris but he was one of the earliest (if not the earliest) golfer that is known on early trading cards.
In addition to the golfers, English wrestler George Steadman is also in the set.
Like other tobacco cards, you can sometimes find these trimmed. Many collectors, apparently wanting to distance the cards from the tobacco company, removed the Ogden’s Cigarettes name from them.
Other Similar Ogden’s Sets
It is important to note that Ogden’s created several separate sets with the same design at the same time. That has led to all sorts of confusion as to what sets exist.
In addition to the Sportsmen’s set, Ogden created two General Interest sets for their Tabs cigarettes product. One set is spread out over six series’ (A, B, C, D, E, and F) and a second set is also called the General Interest set but is not related to any one of those six subsets.
Another set features only boxers and is called Heroes of the Ring and, also printed in 1901, is much rarer than the boxing cards from the General Interest issue. Boxers appearing in both sets share most (if not all) of the same images, making them difficult to distinguish from only the fronts.
One distinguishing characteristic is that these cards are slightly bigger than the General Interest and Heroes of the Ring cards, though it is worth pointing out that sizes can vary slightly in all three sets.
1902 Ogden’s Tabs Sportsmen Checklist
A complete checklist is unknown. However, the golfers and wrestler are presented below as those sports are featured on this site. All are golf unless indicated below.
- Miss Armstrong
- J. Ball
- James Braid
- Braid and Vardon (measuring)
- Braid and Vardon (putting)
- John Graham
- Harold Hilton
- Doug McEwen
- Tom Morris
- Issette Pearson
- R. Richardson
- Ben Sayers
- George Steadman (wrestler)
- Lieutenant Tait
- Harry Vardon (hitting)
- Harry Vardon (non-action)
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