Pre-War Cards

‘It’s In The Details’

Title	Youth’s Companion Stamps
Year	1917
Size	1 3/4″ x 2 1/2″
Images	Color
Type	Stamps
Number in Set	Unknown

1917 Youth’s Companion Stamps Overview

The 1917 Youth’s Companion Stamps set originated from the publication with the same name. Youth’s Companion was a Boston-based children’s magazine that spanned from 1827 from 1929 until merging with The American Boy in 1929.

The publication produced a number of collectible stamps which, presumably, were distributed with the magazine.

A number of subjects were covered but of most interest to sports collectors are the baseball, football, and hockey stamps. The hockey stamp doesn’t have much controversy surrounding it as it simply depicts a hockey scene with the caption ‘Seasonable Sports’ on it along with the Youth’s Companion name.

The baseball stamp has had some controversy surrounding it.

Babe Ruth or Rube Marquard?

The baseball stamp depicts an unnamed pitcher and therein lies the problem.

For many years, it was assumed to be Babe Ruth. PSA even slabbed them as such with The Babe’s name on them and they were widely accepted to be an early issue of the Hall of Famer, leading to increased interest. However, the stamp is now mostly considered to depict Rube Marquard, as stated in the Standard Catalog, which cites the picture as being the same one used in an actual Marquard photograph.

Here’s a much more in-depth look at the controversial issue. The image is seen on other collectibles for Marquard, including the supplement found in the May 18, 1912 issue of the Police Gazette.

Today, the issue is more accepted as a Marquard stamp, despite the fact that sellers will often peddle it as a Babe Ruth collectible.

Follow Pre-War Cards on Twitter and also be sure to like our page on Facebook.