Baseball cards are widely collected throughout the United States. A baseball card is a small card usually featuring the picture of one baseball player, printed on card stock. Many other sports have similar cards, but baseball cards are the most popular. Many old baseball cards continue to circulate today.

As baseball was growing in popularity in the 1880's, the cigarette manufacturers of the time came across an idea to promote their sales. They decided to insert cards in to the cigarette packs depicting images of baseball players and teams.

Baseball continued to increase in popularity, and thus other companies besides cigarette makers began to enter the baseball card business. Hand-drawn pictures were replaced with photographs as the price and effort required for good photos declined. Card with hand-tinted pictures are now very rare baseball cards, and are valuable and highly prized.

Baseball card production jumped after World War II ended and professional baseball who had fought in the war returned. This was part of the boom in baseball, which also saw attendance soar during this time. Several companies vied to become America's number one baseball card company. One of their cards, produced in 1952, has become the most sought-after card due to its scarcity and value.

Only a few of the original companies rose to the top in baseball card production. One of the production companies began to sell the cards with a pack of gum as a promotional tool. Others included team stickers or small puzzles to entice buyers. Other items have been included in packaging over time, including pieces of fabric from team uniforms, contests, and small cookies.

Today, old baseball cards can be found at estate sales, antique shops, and thrift stores. There are also retail stores that buy and sell old baseball cards, usually as a part of a comic book store. Online auction websites have also become popular places to buy and sell rare baseball cards. It's not uncommon for people to find valuable cards in the belongings of their parents or grandparents. Quite a fortune can be made with the right baseball cards and the right selling venue!