Sentinels of Liberty 1942 membership card... a new find! 1 1

[HistoryBuffalo]

Hi all,

As many other on here have probably known seeing from my other posts, I had spent years (a decade to be exact) trying to hunt down a Sentinels of Liberty club badge before acquiring one summer of last year. I'm ecstatic to share here that I've recently added an original membership card now as well! I came across the membership card not long ago and knowing how scarcely they come to market, made a big push for it and went all in. I feel that I made out alright on it but am not 100% sure. Nonetheless, I wanted to share it with others upon its discovery and acquisition!

The card is of the second type of design which was most likely produced in 1942 following the departure of Simon and Kirby from the series as it features a completely redrawn image of Captain America with a slightly tweaked layout. The card here is numbered #72799 and was signed by Joe Sanderlin Jr. in pencil. After doing some more digging, I was abler to find a Joe Sanderlin Jr. on the 1940 census who lis recorded as having been born in 1931 in Arkansas and being 9 years old. Therefore, we know that he would have been 10 or 11 when sending away for his membership in 1942. This age would also have fit squarely within the target demographic of Timely. Unfortunately when looking into Joe, I came across an obituary for a man named Joseph Garrett Sanderlin Jr. who passed away at the age of 90 in Virginia earlier this year. Virginia also happens to be the location that the membership card came out of upon my purchase of it. Therefore, I think we can safely assume that Joe Sanderlin Jr, of both Arkansas and Virginia and who signed the card are all one in the same. Knowing that he passed is saddening and probably explains why his card has just know become known and was put up for sale. However, Mr. Sanderlin's card also carries a bit of inspiration as well as he most likely held onto it after all these decades since becoming a member in 1942. In fact the extensive wear makes the card seem as if it indeed spent a lifetime in a wallet or billfold. Who knows... after all these years Mr. Sanderlin may still have been inspired by Cap? Pretty neat when you think about it and at the very least, he was an original fan.

I did have some questions however as there are a few differences with my card which I haven't seen before. First, there appears to be a small rectangle shaped indentation on the bottom right portion of the card's front as well as on the bottom left of the card's reverse. It almost looks like it was held on something at one point, perhaps a wallet or money clip but I'm not sure? Also, the word "FORTY" as well as a "dot" are printed in red italicized lettering above Mr. Sanderlin's signature which again, is something I haden't seen before?

Regardless, the card is an incredible piece of history and even more amazing when you consider that it is a paper medium that survived all these years, the addition of which now completes my trifecta along with my original badge and recruiting ad from Cap #5!

I hope you enjoy!

Edited July 7, 2022 by HistoryBuffalo

[MattTheDuck]

Yep, that's a real cool piece you've picked up!  Where did you find this?

I don't know if you've considered trying to contact any of Mr. Sanderlin's surviving children, but you might get a good story or two.  They might appreciate a personal letter about your joy in having this piece in your collection.

[HistoryBuffalo]

On 7/6/2022 at 1:25 PM, MattTheDuck said:

Yep, that's a real cool piece you've picked up!  Where did you find this?

I don't know if you've considered trying to contact any of Mr. Sanderlin's surviving children, but you might get a good story or two.  They might appreciate a personal letter about your joy in having this piece in your collection.

That's a great idea! I was thinking about it the other day, it would definitely be worth it to try!

[MattTheDuck]

I've done this kind of thing in an organization or two I've been part of in trying to piece together some history of the group.  It can be quite rewarding for you and them.  Good luck!

[shadroch]

On 7/6/2022 at 12:25 PM, MattTheDuck said:

Yep, that's a real cool piece you've picked up!  Where did you find this?

I don't know if you've considered trying to contact any of Mr. Sanderlin's surviving children, but you might get a good story or two.  They might appreciate a personal letter about your joy in having this piece in your collection.

Be sure to ask  if they found any old comics.

[OtherEric]

What an awesome find!

[HistoryBuffalo]

On 7/6/2022 at 5:00 PM, shadroch said:

Be sure to ask  if they found any old comics.

None were to be found. Per the seller who was very kind, the card was purchased through a recent estate sale and was found buried in a box of ephemera along with post cards, roadmaps, theatre tickets and so on. The seller had purchased the box because of an interest in a baseball ticket that was within and this was essentially an extra item. They also informed me that the estate sale was indeed in Virgina as well, so my hunch was correct.

Edited July 7, 2022 by HistoryBuffalo

[HistoryBuffalo]

On 7/6/2022 at 10:10 PM, OtherEric said:

What an awesome find!

Thank you! I almost couldn’t believe it when I saw it! I’m super stoked!

[BuckFlash]

So you're the one the beat me out at the last minute! Congratulations to you. It would have gone nicely with my badge. Love you did the research on the owner. Very cool. Best wishes. There is a premium group on FB (1) RADIO PREMIUMS | Facebook that would have answers to your questions. There has been a Captain America post before. 

[Robot Man]

On 7/7/2022 at 5:14 AM, BuckFlash said:

So you're the one the beat me out at the last minute! Congratulations to you. It would have gone nicely with my badge. Love you did the research on the owner. Very cool. Best wishes. There is a premium group on FB (1) RADIO PREMIUMS | Facebook that would have answers to your questions. There has been a Captain America post before. 

@BuckFlash

Howdy Buck. Welcome to the boards. Good to see another premium collector here. Check out my recent post in the Fawcett thread in Gold. You might also enjoy my thread “Son of my 50 year junk Obsecession”  also in Gold. Feel free to post or talk about premiums there.

Thanks for the FB link. I recognized a lot of old names I haven’t heard from in a while. I still run into John Gothold from time to time. Great guy.

I have hesitated to join FB for years but actually might have to consider it. Here is a recent picture with John on the right, EC God Grant Geissman on the left, and my long time comic buddy John Koukisakis in the middle. Lot of knowledge and history in those brains! 

[pemart1966]

I have a new name and membership number to add to my list.  I've been hunting down names and numbers for several years now.  This is the highest numbered card that I've come across thus far.

I also note the offset printing of the membership number.  I've never seen that before.

As for the "Forty" - this could have been done post facto...for a litany of reasons.

That's awfully neat pencilmanship for a 10-11 year old.  That could have been signed by mom...

Great acquisition and great story too.  He must have prized it if he kept it for 80 odd years...

 

Edited July 10, 2022 by pemart1966

[HistoryBuffalo]

On 7/7/2022 at 6:06 PM, pemart1966 said:

I have a new name and membership number to add to my list.  I've been hunting down names and numbers for several years now.  This is the highest numbered card that I've come across thus far.

I also not the offset printing of the membership number.  I've never seen that before.

As for the "Forty" - this could have been done post facto...for a litany of reasons.

That's awfully neat pencilmanship for a 10-11 year old.  That could have been signed by mom...

Great acquisition and great story too.  He must have prized it if he kept it for 80 odd years...

 

Thanks! Glad there’s a new one that you can add to the list. There is a higher numbered card though, I had come across the information for a past eBay listing on worthpoint in which a card sold that belonged to a Lee Richards and is numbered 73445.

https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/extremely-captain-america-1941-2026455525

[Dr. Balls]

The penmanship of 10 year olds back then. 

[pemart1966]

On 7/8/2022 at 11:49 PM, Dr. Balls said:

The penmanship of 10 year olds back then. 

Looks more like mom's handwriting than 10-11 year old Joe's...

Edited July 9, 2022 by pemart1966

[pemart1966]

On 7/8/2022 at 5:49 PM, HistoryBuffalo said:

Thanks! Glad there’s a new one that you can add to the list. There is a higher numbered card though, I had come across the information for a past eBay listing on worthpoint in which a card sold that belonged to a Lee Richards and is numbered 73445.

https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/extremely-captain-america-1941-2026455525

Terrific!  Thanks for posting this.  Now I need to find some with less than 5 digits...

[HistoryBuffalo]

On 7/9/2022 at 5:40 AM, pemart1966 said:

Terrific!  Thanks for posting this.  Now I need to find some with less than 5 digits...

Haven’t seen any that low… 12327 is the lowest I could find.

https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/vintage-captain-america-club-membership-card

[HistoryBuffalo]

On 7/7/2022 at 6:06 PM, pemart1966 said:

I also not the offset printing of the membership number.  I've never seen that before.

 

I’ve seen a few that are a little offset but no other with the degree of severity as the in last 9 in the membership number on my card.

Edited July 9, 2022 by HistoryBuffalo

[pemart1966]

On 7/9/2022 at 7:38 PM, HistoryBuffalo said:

Haven’t seen any that low… 12327 is the lowest I could find.

https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/vintage-captain-america-club-membership-card

Thanks!  I must really be slipping.  This is another new one on me.  That's 3 in a row.    I obviously have to start haunting worthpoint.  

 

[HistoryBuffalo]

On 7/9/2022 at 5:51 PM, pemart1966 said:

Thanks!  I must really be slipping.  This is another new one on me.  That's 3 in a row.    I obviously have to start haunting worthpoint.  

 

How many total memberships have you been able to record? I’d be really interested in seeing your list!

[Cat-Man_America]

On 7/9/2022 at 6:40 PM, HistoryBuffalo said:

I’ve seen a few that are a little offset but no other with the degree of severity as the in last 9 in the membership number on my card.

Having checked out the link with the earliest known card the number is blue with a "No." prefix; that changed to red dropping the prefix (at least by 34648 which is the card in my collection).  

On 7/9/2022 at 9:46 PM, HistoryBuffalo said:

How many total memberships have you been able to record? I’d be really interested in seeing your list!

If I were betting on this, my money would be on Martin Goodman starting the numbering at 10,000 so it that the first kids joining would feel like their dimes were well spent and they were part of a very big club.  I doubt there was ever a master list of kids who joined, but that would be an awesome discovery if one did exist.

PS: Such a cool collectible; big congrats on obtaining one of these rare membership cards! 

Edited July 10, 2022 by Cat-Man_America
addendum, & ale, as usual!