1947 Bond Bread Jackie Robinson Set (D302) and Checklist

Posted on December 20, 2016 by Pre-War Cards

‘It’s In The Details’

Title	Bond Bread Jackie Robinson (D302)
Year	1947 – ?
Size	2 1/4″ x 3 1/2″
Images	Black and White
Type	Bakery
Number in Set	13

1947 Bond Bread Jackie Robinson Set Overview

D302 Bond Bread Jackie Robinson Awaiting Pitch While Jackie Robinson debuted in 1947 with the Brooklyn Dodgers, he didn’t have many traditional rookie cards, per se. But one of the sets he appears in is the Bond Bread Jackie Robinson set. In fact, he is in there a total of 13 times as this particular set focused only on him.

The set is listed in the American Card Catalog as D302. However, a mistake was made in that book as only six cards are listed as being in the set. Today, we know of 13 cards that belong in it. Interestingly, the cards are priced in that book (at fifteen cents each) the same as common cards are in Bond Bread’s other, larger 1947 set. Today, of course, given Robinson’s immense popularity and the fact that these are rookie cards, the cards from this set are worth much more.

Most of the cards are action shots but the most common one is his large headshot/portrait card that also boasts a replica signature. That card also includes a biography on Robinson on the back — it is the only card in the set with that characteristic. The autograph and the biography make it easy to see why that one would have been heavily produced.

The set would have been somewhat of a bold venture at the time. While Robinson was popular as the Major League Baseball’s first African American player, he was also hated by many that wanted to see the sport remain segregated. Producing an entire set around Robinson in 1947 at the time the color barrier was only just then being broken was no doubt somewhat controversial.

These cards are a bit larger than many pre-war issues, measuring just a little narrower than today’s standard 2 1/2″ by 3 1/2″ cards. The cards are black and white with various poses of Robinson on the front while the backs were assorted, including some sort of advertisement for Bond along with quotes and/or images of Robinson.

The cards have risen dramatically in value over the years. Low-grade examples generally start in the $800-$1,000 range.

Dating Issues

These cards are listed almost exclusively as 1947 cards elsewhere. However, they were almost certainly not all printed that year.

This Net54 thread indicates that the cards had to have produced beyond 1947 because some of the pictures used to create them were not taken until after that date.

A more likely scenario is that the cards were issued over more than one year. The exact years of each card, however, is a mystery.