Completing the Monster - 518 T206 Cards in Hand

Over the last week or so, I've hinted at the fact that I had completed purchased to complete my T206 set to 518 cards in just under 31 months.  After waiting for a money order to make its way to Buffalo, the last two groups of cards I ordered arrived today.  One card was MIA for about a week, leading me to conduct one search of my apartment and two searches of my collection, in the fear I didn't realize it arrived.  Fortunately, as I was about to start looking for a replacement 518th card, it arrived today.  We will show old Solly Hofman later on.  Today, is about the last card I purchased for my set.



Fred Merkle Throwing.  Merkle, as you likely know, was most famous for failing to touch second base in 1908 on a force play which scored the winning run against the Cubs.  A tussle ensued and amidst a crowd on the field, the ball was retrieved by the Cubs, and Merkle was forced out.  The play became known as Merkle's Boner, forced a replay of the game at the end of the season, allowing the Cubs to win the National League pennant and their last World Series. 

The card itself is in spectacular condition, with only some weakness in the corners.  As the last card in my set, I went a little higher in grade.  I talked about doing so with myself a few weeks beforehand, finishing the set with a bang.  Also, I figured I would get to one card left, only be able to find overpriced versions of the card on eBay, priced at three times the grade or one that was a fair deal higher in grade than the rest of my set at the same price. So, I bit the bullet and finished my set with flair and the far nicest card in my set.