Criger, St. Louis, American League, from the White Border series (T206) for the American Tobacco Company

Art Historical Context

Step into the early 20th-century world of America's pastime with *Criger, St. Louis, American*, a gem from the renowned T206 White Border series produced by the American Tobacco Company 1909 and 1911. This petite commercial lithograph (just 2 5/8 x 1 7/16 inches) captures Lou Criger, a skilled catcher for the St. Browns of the American League, in a portrait pose. Issued as inserts in cigarette packs, these cards were savvy marketing tools that fueled the growing baseball craze while promoting tobacco products—ephemera that transformed into priceless collectibles. Lithography, the medium here, enabled vibrant color printing on a mass scale, making detailed athlete portraits accessible and visually striking fans. The T206 set, with its clean white borders and over 500 variations, stands as a cornerstone of sports memorabilia, documenting stars of the Deadball Era when strategic play dominated. Criger's card exemplifies this era's blend of commerce and culture, bridging everyday smoking habits with hero worship. Today, housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, it highlights how humble prints preserve athletic history. A tiny window into 1910s fandom, it reminds us how passion for the game—and clever advertising—created enduring icons.

About the Artist

American Tobacco Company · 1826–1909

**American Tobacco Company (1890–1911)** Founded on January 31, 1890, in Durham, North Carolina, by James Buchanan Duke, the American Tobacco Company emerged from the consolidation of five major U.S. tobacco manufacturers: W. Duke & Sons, Allen & Ginter, Goodwin & Company, W.S. Kimball & Co., and Kinney Brothers. Under Duke's aggressive leadership, it rapidly achieved monopoly status, controlling...