As to why we have this card, well it relates to the most recent world record breaking auction result, the sale of a trade card featuring Arthur Wharton. This sale, and a reproduction of the very card, was featured in our printed magazine (which is only available to Society members) but we have reproduced that little section at the very end of this write up.
The amazing story of this man can be read at many sites online but we have selected a really wonderful one, which is maintained by The Arthur Wharton Foundation, a registered charity, actually based in Darlington, England. This contains his story, and and there is also a photo gallery which includes his gravestone. The one thing it does not include is any mention of this card, which I hope to rectify,
These small cards were issued, as it says on the reverse, with several magazines, namely "Adventure", "The Rover", "The Skipper " and "The Wizard", quite randomly, between April and July 1933.
They are often slightly differently sized when stacked together, and this tells you that they were not issued as individual cards, but in small sheets, each containing four of the cards. The ideal measurement of each card should be 45 x 31 m/m. And you can see a checklist at Football Cartophilic Exchange/Thomson Football Teams
The reason for the football in the middle of the reverse baffles some collectors but once you read the original magazines it becomes clear, for the idea was that if you managed to collect an entire set of sixty-four cards you could win an actual football.
Anyway here is that section from our printed magazine, as promised
