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

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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

  1. Babe Adams
  2. Sam Agnew
  3. Eddie Ainsworth
  4. Grover Alexander
  5. Leon Ames
  6. Jimmy Archer
  7. Jimmy Austin
  8. Home Run Baker
  9. Dave Bancroft
  10. Jack Barry
  11. Zinn Beck
  12. Beals Becker / Lute Boone
  13. Joe Benz
  14. Bob Bescher
  15. Al Betzel
  16. Roger Bresnahan
  17. Eddie Burns
  18. George J. Burns
  19. Joe Bush
  20. Owen Bush
  21. Art Butler
  22. Bobby Byrne
  23. Mordecai Brown / Forrest Cady
  24. Jimmy Callahan
  25. Ray Caldwell
  26. Max Carey
  27. George Chalmers
  28. Frank Chance
  29. Ray Chapman
  30. Larry Cheney
  31. Eddie Cicotte
  32. Tom Clarke
  33. Eddie Collins
  34. Shauno Collins
  35. Charles Comiskey
  36. Joe Connolly
  37. Luther Cook
  38. Jack Coombs
  39. Dan Costello
  40. Harry Coveleski
  41. Gavvy Cravath
  42. Sam Crawford
  43. Jean Dale
  44. Jake Daubert
  45. George Davis
  46. Charles Deal
  47. Al Demaree
  48. William Doak
  49. Bill Donovan
  50. Red Dooin
  51. Mike Doolan
  52. Larry Doyle
  53. Jean Dubuc
  54. Oscar Dugey
  55. Johnny Evers
  56. Red Faber
  57. Happy Felsch
  58. Bill Fischer
  59. Ray Fisher
  60. Max Flack
  61. Art Fletcher
  62. Eddie Foster
  63. Jacques Fournier
  64. Del Gainor
  65. Larry Gardner
  66. Joe Gedeon
  67. Gus Getz
  68. George Gibson
  69. Wilbur Goode
  70. Hank Gowdy
  71. John Graney
  72. Tom Griffith
  73. Heinie Groh
  74. Earl Hamilton
  75. Bob Harmon
  76. Roy Hartzell
  77. Claude Hendrix
  78. Olaf Henriksen
  79. John Henry
  80. Buck Herzog
  81. Hugh High
  82. Dick Hoblitzell
  83. Harry Hooper
  84. Ivan Howard
  85. Miller Huggins
  86. Joe Jackson
  87. William James
  88. Harold Janvrin
  89. Hughie Jennings
  90. Walter Johnson
  91. Fielder Jones
  92. Bennie Kauff
  93. Bill Killefer
  94. Ed Konetchy
  95. Nap Lajoie
  96. Jack Lapp
  97. John Lavan
  98. Jimmy Lavender
  99. Nemo Leibold
  100. H.B. Leonard
  101. Duffy Lewis
  102. Hans Lobert
  103. Tom Long
  104. Fred Luderus
  105. Connie Mack
  106. Lee Magee
  107. Al Mamaux
  108. Leslie Mann
  109. Rabbit Maranville
  110. Rube Marquard
  111. Armando Marsans
  112. Erskine Mayer
  113. George McBride
  114. John McGraw
  115. Jack McInnis
  116. Fred Merkle
  117. Chief Meyers
  118. Clyde Milan
  119. Otto Miller
  120. Willie Mitchell
  121. Fred Mollwitz
  122. Herbie Moran
  123. Pat Moran
  124. Ray Morgan
  125. George Moriarty
  126. Guy Morton
  127. Ed Murphy
  128. John Murray
  129. Hy Myers
  130. J.A. Niehoff
  131. Les Nunamaker
  132. Rube Oldring
  133. Oliver O’Mara
  134. Steve O’Neill
  135. Dode Paskert
  136. Roger Peckinpaugh
  137. E.J. Pfeffer
  138. George Pierce
  139. Wally Pipp
  140. Derril Pratt
  141. Bill Rariden
  142. Eppa Rixey
  143. Davey Robertson
  144. Wilbert Robinson
  145. Bob Roth
  146. Edd Roush
  147. Clarence Rowland
  148. Nap Rucker
  149. Dick Rudolph
  150. Reb Russell
  151. Babe Ruth
  152. Vic Saier
  153. Slim Sallee
  154. Germany Schaefer
  155. Ray Schalk
  156. Wally Schang
  157. Charles Schmidt
  158. Frank Schulte
  159. Everett Scott
  160. Jim Scott
  161. Tom Seaton
  162. Howard Shanks
  163. Bob Shawkey
  164. Ernie Shore
  165. Burt Shotton
  166. George Sisler
  167. J. Carlisle Smith
  168. Fred Snodgrass
  169. George Stallings
  170. Oscar Stanage
  171. Casey Stengel
  172. Milton Stock
  173. Amos Strunk
  174. Billy Sullivan
  175. Charles Tesreau
  176. Jim Thorpe
  177. Joe Tinker
  178. Fred Toney
  179. Terry Turner
  180. Jim Vaughn
  181. Bob Veach
  182. James Viox
  183. Oscar Vitt
  184. Honus Wagner
  185. Clarence Walker
  186. Bobby Wallace
  187. Zack Wheat
  188. Buck Weaver
  189. Carl Weilman
  190. George Whitted
  191. Fred Williams
  192. Art Wilson
  193. Owen Wilson
  194. Ivy Wingo
  195. Mel Wolfgang
  196. Smoky Joe Wood
  197. Steve Yerkes
  198. Rollie Zeider
  199. Heinie Zimmerman
  200. Ed Zwilling

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