These incredible die cut counter display pieces were auctioned off in May 2011 by
Robert Edwards, one of the premier sports collectibles auction houses.
They all come from the New Hampshire sporting goods manufacturer, Draper-Maynard. Jason Draper and John Maynard began producing baseball gloves in 1881. It's said that D&M was the first company to produce gloves for specific fielding positions.
Around 1900 D&M introduced what is probably their most famous trademark, the "Lucky Dog." The image was actually Maynard's bird dog, Nick.
The first group of five is circa 1913
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Walter Johnson |
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"Shoeless" Joe Jackson |
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Bob Bescher |
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"Big Ed" Konetchy |
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Henie Zimmerman |
The next lot of four is from 1930.
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Pat Collins |
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Lew Fonseca |
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Hugh Critz |
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Al Simmons |
The company closed in 1937 after Maynard's death. That same year, Goldsmith and Sons purchased the rights to produce sporting goods with the Draper-Maynard name and the "Lucky Dog" mark. This went on until 1962 when they merged with McGregor Sporting Goods.
The name Draper-Maynard is still around today. However, it's more of a novelty thing than an actual sporting goods company. The company bearing it's name only offers t-shirts on their website which can be found
here.
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Nick, the "Lucky Dog" |