Z-Cards (Paper Dolls)

Introduction

enameline Paper dolls are exactly what they sound like – paper cutouts of dolls. These were popular in the late 1800s and early 1900s as children sought to amuse themselves. Often, they were available in catalogs where they could be removed and used as toys of a sort or as display pieces.

Various types of paper dolls existed. Some were merely pictures of subjects printed against a background. Others were more complex, including a subject and various cutouts of clothing that could be used as outfits.

While paper dolls are often considered trade cards (H-Cards) by many collectors, technically they do not belong under that classification. Jefferson Burdick called these Z-Cards in his American Card Catalog.

Most paper dolls are non-sports subjects so they don’t get a ton of recognition in the sports card industry. However, some did feature sports subjects and are listed here.

The Enameline basketball issue features a boy from Illinois Wesleyan, which did have an actual team at the time of production of that set.

While there are several pre-war basketball cards out there, by comparison, they are relatively few compared to other sports.