Wings "Friend or Foe" military aircraft trading cards
Call Number
Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
Color, illustrated trading cards issued by the Topps Chewing Gum company in 1952, depicting American and foreign military aircraft used during World War II and into the Korea war era, such as bombers, jet fighters, attack planes, flying boats, and transport helicopters.
Arrangement
The cards are filed in numerical order in protective sheets that each hold four cards. The sheets are grouped five to a folder.
Scope and Contents
Topp's Wings "Friend or Foe" military aircraft trading cards were issued in 1952 and sold in 1- or 5-cent packs of chewing gum. This was the company's first non-sports themed series of trading cards. A complete set consists of 200 numbered cards. (The present collection lacks 11 cards. See the inventory of this finding aid for details.) The front of each card displays a color image of a plane or other aircraft based on photographs supplied by the New York Herald Tribune. The planes and helicopters were in use during World War II and into the Korean War era by the armed forces of Argentina, Australia, Canada, Czechoslovakia, England, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, Sweden, and Turkey, with the majority belonging to the United States. The back of each card carries statistics on the aircraft depicted on the front, such as its wing spread, length, ceiling, maximum speed, weight, number of crew, and number of engines. Also appearing on the back of each card is the silhouette of a different aircraft, displayed below the phrase "Name This Plane" and above the question "Friend or Foe?" The quiz answers are revealed on a different card, the number of which follows the question.
Subjects
Access Restrictions
This collection is stored offsite. To arrange to view it, please go to www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.
Use Restrictions
Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff. Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282. Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: www.nyhistory.org/rights-and-reproductions.
Preferred Citation
This collection should be cited as Wings "Friend or Foe" military aircraft trading cards, PR 463, Department of Prints, Photographs, and Architectural Collections, New-York Historical Society.
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Accession information is lacking for this collection. It was discovered in 2023 during a project to address unprocessed materials in the New-York Historical Society's library stacks.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Archivist Joseph Ditta arranged and described this collection in September 2023.