Happy President's Day

Had a great family weekend in Las Vegas and just got back today.  Yes you can have family fun in Vegas but it was a little strange explaining to my 10 and 7 year old boys while a half naked women was dancing in the middle of the pit surrounding the gaming tables.  A big part of the reason we were able to take the trip was the boys 4-day weekend in honor of President's Day.  I am a big US President history buff, I have read several biographies and have reading one per president on my bucket list.  I have toyed with the idea of collecting all cards with Presidents on them but I have way too many collections.  However, I ran into a couple sellers on Sportlots who auctioned off some cards from the 1956 Topps US Presidents set and decided to pounce.  I have also discovered that a set was produced in 1952 by Bowman that have the same fronts and different backs.  Another set with the same front was also released in 1972 with some different numbering and an extended set to include the Presidents that had been elected in the prior 16 years.

I thought on this day of Presidential remembrance I would share my progress on the set.  On the off chance that you have some of these for trade, my want list is on my Set Want List link.

 In addition to the President cards, there are 3 others that showcase an important moment in history.  I have the Washington Takes Command card and the Burning of the White House. I still need card #2 that celebrates the Signing of the Declaration of Independence.  In addition to the picture of the president, there are some cool scenes in the background.  I think my favorite in this grouping is the battle scene behind Andrew Jackson.

 A great selection of cards here with one of the greatest, if not the greatest in history, Honest Abe Lincoln.  I am also partial to Ulysses S. Grant, I am a direct descendent of his on the side of my maternal grandmother - her maiden name is Grant.  In all honesty he wasn't the greatest President but is high on the greatest General list.  My favorite background has to be Teddy Roosevelt rough riding into battle.

The final 6 I currently have in my collection are also the last 6 in the set.  Dwight Eisenhower was the sitting President when this set was issued and would remain in office until 1961.  Sticking with my theme of battle scenes being my favorite backdrops, I would say Truman and Eisenhower's cards tie for my favorite out of this group.

There you have it, the 24 cards I currently possess in this set of 36.  I haven't done much searching to fill in the gaps of the set but maybe now is the time to see if I can inch closer.  Happy President's Day to all!