1916 Successful Farming Set (M101-5)

‘It’s In The Details’
Title | Successful Farming M101-5 |
Year | 1916 |
Size | 1 5/8″ x 3″ |
Images | Black and White |
Type | Publications |
Number in Set |
200 |
1916 Successful Farming M101-5 Overview
The 1916 Successful Farming cards are practically the same as the M101-5 cards but with no card numbers. The backs include an advertisement for the Successful Farming publication.
Fronts of the cards featured black and white images of players with their name, position, and team at the bottom. In reality, there are actually two different Successful Farming sets.
Promotional Set
The first one was a promotional issue that was a precursor to the main set. And as was learned several years ago, the set was actually free to anyone who asked.
Free.
That set is ultra rare. In 2012, the only known complete set sold for more than $26,000 at an auction. That set referenced a second, larger set that could be obtained. Cards in it were the same as regular M101-5 cards but without a card number and with the Successful Farming ad on the back.
Primary Set
The second set was the main issue and contained 200 cards. While other promotions encouraged collectors to trade an entire set of cards for a premium, the Successful Farming cards explained how to get an entire set. The publication offered cards in exchange for subscriptions to their publication.
This larger set paralleled the M101-5 set using the same players and card numbers. These cards are rare, but far more common than the six-card promo issue. They were obtained by buying a subscription.
Differentiating the Sets
The two Successful Farming sets are basically the same. Same pictures, same font, same back advertisement. So how can collectors tell them apart? After all, the promotional cards are significantly rarer and much more valuable.
The easiest way is the lower border area on the front. The promotional cards didn’t have any card numbers printed on them. Meanwhile, the regular M101-5 cards from the 200-card Successful Farming set did.
The promo cards were likely printed without numbers because they jumped all over the place. Joe Jackson, for example, was card No. 86. That wouldn’t have made sense if there were only six cards in the set. It would lead collectors to believe that there were at least 86 different cards. The card numbers did not appear in the promo set either because they did not yet exist or in an effort to not confuse collectors as to how many cards were in the issue.
Subscription Details
If you purchased a subscription to Successful Farming, you would receive cards from the company. How many you got depended entirely on how long your subscription was.
The first two levels were simple. For a one-year subscription, collectors would receive 50 different cards. For two one-year subscriptions OR a three-year subscription, he/she would receive 100 different cards.
There were multiple options to receive more cards. 150 different cards would be given for three one-year subscriptions, a one-year subscription and a three-year subscription, or (keep up, here) one five-year subscription. Subscriptions totaling $1.00 would earn a complete 200-card set.
All of that might seem like a lot, but when you see the total amount to secure a total set, it really wasn’t much. A complete set would be given for subscriptions amounting to $1.00, which was a seven-year subscription. Five-year subscriptions cost only $.75, three-year subscriptions were $.50, and one-year subscriptions were $.25.
About the M101-5 Set
These cards utilized the same pictures and checklist of the M101-5 set.
The M101-5 set was 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 Successful Farming, distributed these cards as well.
You can find more on the various companies using these cards here.
1916 Successful Farming M101-5 Checklist
- Babe Adams
- Sam Agnew
- Eddie Ainsworth
- Grover Alexander
- Leon Ames
- Jimmy Archer
- Jimmy Austin
- Home Run Baker
- Dave Bancroft
- Jack Barry
- Zinn Beck
- Beals Becker / Lute Boone
- Joe Benz
- Bob Bescher
- Al Betzel
- Roger Bresnahan
- Eddie Burns
- George J. Burns
- Joe Bush
- Owen Bush
- Art Butler
- Bobby Byrne
- Mordecai Brown / Forrest Cady
- Jimmy Callahan
- Ray Caldwell
- Max Carey
- George Chalmers
- Frank Chance
- Ray Chapman
- Larry Cheney
- Eddie Cicotte
- Tom Clarke
- Eddie Collins
- Shauno Collins
- Charles Comiskey
- Joe Connolly
- Luther Cook
- Jack Coombs
- Dan Costello
- Harry Coveleski
- Gavvy Cravath
- Sam Crawford
- Jean Dale
- Jake Daubert
- George Davis
- Charles Deal
- Al Demaree
- William Doak
- Bill Donovan
- Red Dooin
- Mike Doolan
- Larry Doyle
- Jean Dubuc
- Oscar Dugey
- Johnny Evers
- Red Faber
- Happy Felsch
- Bill Fischer
- Ray Fisher
- Max Flack
- Art Fletcher
- Eddie Foster
- Jacques Fournier
- Del Gainor
- Larry Gardner
- Joe Gedeon
- Gus Getz
- George Gibson
- Wilbur Goode
- Hank Gowdy
- John Graney
- Tom Griffith
- Heinie Groh
- Earl Hamilton
- Bob Harmon
- Roy Hartzell
- Claude Hendrix
- Olaf Henriksen
- John Henry
- Buck Herzog
- Hugh High
- Dick Hoblitzell
- Harry Hooper
- Ivan Howard
- Miller Huggins
- Joe Jackson
- William James
- Harold Janvrin
- Hughie Jennings
- Walter Johnson
- Fielder Jones
- Bennie Kauff
- Bill Killefer
- Ed Konetchy
- Nap Lajoie
- Jack Lapp
- John Lavan
- Jimmy Lavender
- Nemo Leibold
- H.B. Leonard
- Duffy Lewis
- Hans Lobert
- Tom Long
- Fred Luderus
- Connie Mack
- Lee Magee
- Al Mamaux
- Leslie Mann
- Rabbit Maranville
- Rube Marquard
- Armando Marsans
- Erskine Mayer
- George McBride
- John McGraw
- Jack McInnis
- Fred Merkle
- Chief Meyers
- Clyde Milan
- Otto Miller
- Willie Mitchell
- Fred Mollwitz
- Herbie Moran
- Pat Moran
- Ray Morgan
- George Moriarty
- Guy Morton
- Ed Murphy
- John Murray
- Hy Myers
- J.A. Niehoff
- Les Nunamaker
- Rube Oldring
- Oliver O’Mara
- Steve O’Neill
- Dode Paskert
- Roger Peckinpaugh
- E.J. Pfeffer
- George Pierce
- Wally Pipp
- Derril Pratt
- Bill Rariden
- Eppa Rixey
- Davey Robertson
- Wilbert Robinson
- Bob Roth
- Edd Roush
- Clarence Rowland
- Nap Rucker
- Dick Rudolph
- Reb Russell
- Babe Ruth
- Vic Saier
- Slim Sallee
- Germany Schaefer
- Ray Schalk
- Wally Schang
- Charles Schmidt
- Frank Schulte
- Everett Scott
- Jim Scott
- Tom Seaton
- Howard Shanks
- Bob Shawkey
- Ernie Shore
- Burt Shotton
- George Sisler
- J. Carlisle Smith
- Fred Snodgrass
- George Stallings
- Oscar Stanage
- Casey Stengel
- Milton Stock
- Amos Strunk
- Billy Sullivan
- Charles Tesreau
- Jim Thorpe
- Joe Tinker
- Fred Toney
- Terry Turner
- Jim Vaughn
- Bob Veach
- James Viox
- Oscar Vitt
- Honus Wagner
- Clarence Walker
- Bobby Wallace
- Zack Wheat
- Buck Weaver
- Carl Weilman
- George Whitted
- Fred Williams
- Art Wilson
- Owen Wilson
- Ivy Wingo
- Mel Wolfgang
- Smoky Joe Wood
- Steve Yerkes
- Rollie Zeider
- Heinie Zimmerman
- Ed Zwilling
Follow Pre-War Cards on Twitter and also be sure to like our page on Facebook.