Historical Hockey Memorabilia Auction Fall 2019
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 11/5/2019
Business partners with fellow Winnipeg legend and superstar Charlie Gardiner until the goaltender’s untimely demise in 1934, Fred “Steamer” Maxwell was an Allan Cup champion in 1915, with several offers to turn professional at the time refused, including with the Toronto Blueshirts and Montreal Canadiens. Originating from the incomparable autograph collection of E. Robert Hamlyn, we have a rare vintage photo signed by the legendary star. At 8” x 10”, the glossy stock image pictures Steamer during his time with the Winnipeg Monarchs, with his large fountain pen signature placed over the bottom right. Rightfully immortalized with HOF enshrinement in 1962, Maxwell would pass away at the age of 85, in 1975.
Signed as “F. G. Steamer Maxwell”, the signature displays well, with the ink originally thick and runny when applied, with a bit of minor ink loss in spots. There are also a few large creases to the photo over the upper section, with typed text on the reverse along with a stamp from photographer Turofsky.
The E. Robert Hamlyn Hockey HOFers Signed Photo and Letter Collection
Beginning life as the passion of one youth growing up in Newfounland during the late-1930s, E. R. Hamlyn was bitten by the collecting bug as a teenager, and began to seek out the signatures of both contemporary and past hockey stars, with his efforts culminating in the world class collection of signed photos and letters that encompass his incomparable autograph collection, with many unique items and extremely rare signatures making up the vast collection.
Through effective letter writing, first to teams, and then when information was received, directly to the players themselves, Hamlyn would request the addressed parties sign a photo he himself would provide, with the overwhelming majority honouring the enthusiastic collector’s wishes. And enamored with the uniforms of both the Montreal Maroons and New York Americans – despite never seeing these teams play in person, Hamlyn had the foresight to seek out the signatures of past retired stars from long forgotten and defunct franchises. The insightful collector also recorded information now invaluable to his collection, with most of the signed letters and photos having dates listed when they were received back signed.
Numerous early Hall of Fame legends make up the one-of-a-kind gathering including signed photos from Dick Irvin, Steamer Maxwell, Frank Patrick, Clint Benedict, Alec Connell, Duke Keats, Frank Foyston, Moose Goheen and others, along with signed letters from Dickie Boon, Harry Hyland, Jack Marshall, Jack Ruttan, Joe Malone, George Hainsworth, Aurele Joliat, Cy Denneny and others. Impossible to duplicate, this is unequivocally the greatest autograph collection that we have handled in our 25 years of service to the collecting community.
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