1910 Turkey Red Automobile Series (T37)

The 1910 Turkey Red Automobile Series (T37) is a classic early tobacco issue produced by the American Tobacco Company and distributed with packs of Turkey Red Turkish Cigarettes. The set consists of 50 unnumbered cards, each measuring approximately 2″ x 2 5/8″ (about 51 mm x 67 mm), featuring vibrant color illustrations of early automobiles in scenic driving settings on the front, with the brand name in large red lettering and a full checklist of the set printed on the back. Issued around 1910–1911, the cards capture the dawn of the automobile era, showcasing a mix of production cars, luxury models, electric vehicles, and high-performance machines from American and European manufacturers, making it one of the earliest dedicated automotive trading card sets and a key piece of pre-war non-sport card history.

While the majority of the cards depict everyday or touring automobiles, a notable subset directly highlights racing-oriented vehicles, often labeled explicitly as “Racer” models. These include standout subjects like the Acme Racer, Benz-Racer, Chadwick Racer, Fiat-Racer, Mercedes Racer, and others that represent the pioneering era of automobile competition around the turn of the century. These racing-related cards are especially prized by collectors for their historical connection to the birth of motorsport and are the ones most commonly highlighted when focusing on auto racing ties within the set.

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The backs of all cards in the 1910 T37 Turkey Red Automobile Series are identical, featuring a simple design printed primarily in red ink with prominent “Turkey Red” branding, promotional text for the Turkish Cigarettes, and—most notably—a complete checklist of all 50 subjects in the set, which was an uncommon but practical feature for tobacco issues of the era that helped collectors track their progress toward a full series.

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