1869 Peck & Snyder Cincinnati Red Stockings Trade Card

In 1869, the Cincinnati Red Stockings -- the first openly professional baseball team -- embarked on a 12,000-mile coast-to-coast tour. They played before over 200,000 spectators and their exploits did much to popularize the game of baseball. Peck and Snyder, a Manhattan sporting goods store, capitalized on the Red Stockings' popularity by pasting advertisements on the back of the team's photographs.