While it is our policy not to offer opinions on items we have not physically inspected, we do try to be as helpful as possible in answering questions. There is a Cincinnati Reds travel bag currently listed on E-Bay by Keith Knabe of Husker Twin Vintage Sports. In some correspondence with Keith, I informed him I thought the bag was from the late 1960s to the early 1970s.
The bag is manufactured by the by Priesmeyer Bros. Trunk Co. St. Louis, MO. This is same manufacturer for the 1950s Ted Kluszewski bag I own. When I bought my Klu bag, some folks did not bid on it because they felt it could have been one that belonged to Walt Dropo, Cliff Cook, or Gordy Coleman as they were #18 after Klu left the Reds. The thing I knew was that Klu took his bag with him.
Years back, in looking through Ted’s player photo file at Cooperstown, I found this wire photo dated August 26 1959 and identified as Forbes Field as the location. I knew this could not have been a mislabeled photo since Klu could have been at Forbes field as a Red at an earlier time. If you notice in the locker for Kluszewski, it features a Pirates cap. The bag in the photo and mine share some very striking points of reference…the easiest to identify is the tape residue outline around the “18”. There are others that don’t show up as clearly in this scanned copied image.
Getting back to Keith’s bag, I suggested 1967 through the early 1970s for a couple of reasons. The crest style on the bag is the one that begins to appear in 1967 with the change of uniforms from the vested products. I also noticed that in the photo of Clay Carrol form 1975, the style of crest on the bag is different. I don’t think the bag is later than the 1975 period as the Reds began to use heavy nylon bags. I do know that the Reds held onto stuff for years based on what came out for sale when they began to demolish Riverfront. Keith’s bag could have been used later than the early 1970s, but my focus was when it most likely would have been obtained by the Reds.
Keith is the sort of seller I like to see on E-Bay. In his listing, he makes note of the fact that there is no zip code on the Priesmeyer Bros tag. He also included dating information for zip codes. I bring this up as I mentioned this a while back for Ted Williams jersey that was supposed to have been from the late 1950s. That jersey featured a McAuliffe Tag with a zip code.
For clarification, the bag that Keith is offering is not one I have ever owned nor do I have any personal, professional or financial history or interest with it. I bring this up to highlight a few things… we do answer questions when we can and that locker room shots are great sources of information.
As always, collect what you enjoy and enjoy what you collect.
MEARS Auth, LLC
For questions or comments about this article, please feel free to drop me a line at DaveGrob1@aol.com