1909 W555 Strip Card Set

The W555 'Strip Cards', were misidentified by Jefferson Burdick in The American Card Catalog as strip cards, with later year discoveries confirming that the cards were a part of a box, issued by a candy company - Jay S. Meyer Confectioners. 

The cards were a part of a unique box that was designed for kids to replicate a camera.  

Thus, while the cards technically had to be cut, they were not a part of a strip, as initially believed by Burdick. 

The cards might be the ugliest of all the W cards, just for the fact that the print of the player image is really dull, and the cards are basically thick cardboard squares.  

Still, despite being hard to look at it, the appeal comes from the huge star power in the set.  

Believed to have been issued in 1909-1910, these cards represent a relatively affordable way to own cards of some of the best to ever play the game.

It's not to say these cards won't set you back some dollars, but the cost pales in comparison to say any of the same era tobacco (T205, T206) card or any other early caramel issues. 

Note that Cy Young has two cards in the set - one a 'Portrait' issue and another noted as a 'Standing' issue. The 'Portrait' card is actually a photo of Irv Young, something that was eventually figured out and corrected in the set.

These aren't super easy to find, but occasionally you can find some of the bigger stars, ungraded, on eBay for a decent price. Just beware, there are fakes out there on these cards, especially on the Wagner, Cobb and Cy Young.