This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 4/25/2021
Journal Gazette Magnetic Player BoardThis is a rare original 1919 World Series Player Board photograph depicting this innovative and novel device developed by the Address Standard Ball Player company of New Bedford, Mass. From a bygone era, their Magnetic Baseball Player Board would be displayed on the side of buildings in cities throughout the country (and overseas) to transmit live game and scoring activity to legions of fans who would stand in the streets below to “watch” the World Series.
It was a simpler time during the early part of the twentieth century when before radio, baseball fans would get game scores from the late or next day editions of newspapers. In the case of the World Series, fans often clamored to know what was happening at the moment, and in answer to their demands a magnetic player board was developed. The board itself was an elaborate machine that featured the team's lineups on either side of the board with a diamond in the middle and the scoreboard on top. Balls, strikes, and outs were also listed, usually along the bottom. A metal ball on the surface of the diamond, controlled magnetically from behind, would be pitched, batted, and fielded, mimicking the actions of what was actually transpiring on the real field. These large boards, normally sponsored by the local newspaper, would be prominently placed in the center of town or mounted from the news building where they could be seen by thousands of people. The scoreboard in this photograph depicts a game of the 1919 World Series played out as it was happening before the eyes of eager fans lining the street below. This, of course, was the infamous series which was thrown by the "Black Sox" and all of the familiar names are clearly discernable including Shoeless “Joe” Jackson, Chick Gandil, Buck Weaver, Swede Risberg, and Ed Cicotte. The 7 X 6 photograph is mounted to a black paper from a page removed from a salesman sample album of similar photographs. A photograph mounted on verso depicts a street scene from Canton, Ohio of hundreds of fans “watching” a 1919 World Series game on such a board. Good condition. This is a rare opportunity to acquire such an archive of great historical significance. Comes with a certificate that unconditionally guarantees the authenticity of this item.