Cigar Store Figure: Ball Player c. 1939

Albert Ryder created this watercolor painting of a cigar store figure of a baseball player some time in the 20th century. Cigar store figures are rare examples of American folk art that served as commercial signage. In a society where literacy wasn’t universal, these figures acted as visual cues to attract customers, and tell them something about the wares inside. The baseball player, with the word "punch" emblazoned on the plinth, suggests that the baseball-playing customer identifies with the kind of virile masculinity and competitive spirit associated with sports heroes. Was it a cigar brand, or something else? The figure tells us that the cigar shop owners of the time understood the appeal of baseball in America. As historians, we can ask more questions about the figure and its wider cultural context. What social classes did baseball appeal to at the time? How did advertisers use it to sell products? Finding answers in archives and libraries can deepen our understanding of what baseball meant to consumers of the early 20th century.