1916 Gimbels Set (M101-4/M101-5)

Posted on September 5, 2016 by Pre-War Cards

‘It’s In The Details’

Title	Gimbels M101-4/M101-5
Year	1916
Size	1 5/8″ x 3″
Images	Black and White
Type	Miscellaneous
Number in Set	200

1916 Gimbels M101-4/M101-5 Overview

The M101-4 series is one of the more well-known of the M101 Sporting News issues and includes smaller, traditional trading cards. The cards feature black and white images of players along with the name, position, team, and card number on the bottom. The M101-5 series is similar, but has some different players.

While the sets are often called Sporting News sets, numerous advertisers used these cards in their own sets. One of those was Gimbels.

These cards are exactly like the regular M101-4 and M101-5 Sporting News cards but the difference is identified on the back. Instead of a Sporting News advertisement, there is one for Gimbels, a popular department store.

The Gimbels ads on the back have the company’s name as well as two slogans – ‘Popular Prices’ and ‘Everything for Boys of Every Age.’ The intrigue with the Gimbels-backed cards, however, is in the fonts. Several different types have been identified with slightly different font being used in the “Gimbels” name. Here are pictures of the various Gimbels backs.

About the M101-4 and M101-5 Sets

These cards utilized the same pictures and checklist of the M101-4 and M101-5 set.

Both issues were created by Felix Mendelssohn. Mendelssohn produced the set then peddled the issue to various companies for their own distribution. It’s usually called the Sporting News set but that isn’t really accurate.

While Sporting News did use the cards as evidenced by their advertising backs found on some, they were only one company that did so. Many other companies, including Gimbels, distributed these cards as well.

You can find more on the various companies using these cards here.

1916 Gimbels M101-4/M101-5 Checklist

This checklists below are from the M101-4 set and the M101-5 set. Both checklists are provided because Gimbels cards have been found with cards from both sets.

M101-4 Checklist