Demmitt, New York, American League, from the White Border series (T206) for the American Tobacco Company
1909–11
Medium
Commercial lithograph
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 5/8 x 1 7/16 in. (6.7 x 3.7 cm)
Classification
Prints|Ephemera
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Jefferson R. Burdick Collection, Gift of Jefferson R. Burdick
Accession Number
63.350.246.206.108
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the early 20th-century world of baseball fever with *Demmitt, New York American League*, a gem from the iconic T206 White Border series produced by the American Tobacco Company 1909 and 1911. This petite commercial lithograph, measuring just 2⅝ × 1⅞ inches, captures the likeness of Bill Demmitt, a pitcher for the New York Highlanders (precursors to the Yankees) in the American League. Tucked into cigarette packs as promotional inserts, these cards were ephemera designed to hook smokers—and spark a collecting craze among fans. Lithography, the medium here, enabled vibrant, mass-produ...
About the Artist
American Tobacco Company
**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...