Cigarette Collection provides a valuable resource for scholars investigating the categories of visual imagery created, associated with, and manipulated by the tobacco industry. The cigarette packages themselves provide an excellent opportunity to examine the design of packaging and its evolution over time for nearly every brand marketed in the United States and internationally, as well as the changes in advertising campaigns.URL :https://nativecigarettes.com/cigarettes

The cigarette card, a thin printed piece of paper that could be inserted into cigarettes, was introduced by manufacturers in the late 19th century as an advertising gimmick designed to promote brand loyalty. Initially blank, the cards soon featured brand advertisements and then numbered series on various themes including beauty (famous actresses and film stars), sporters (mainly baseball in the U.S, and football and cricket in the rest of the world), heraldry, locomotives, city views, and military heroes and uniforms. The cards also offered a range of other premiums, such as flannel, felts and silks, to further lure smokers into purchasing their products.

Building Your Perfect Collection: Tips for Cigarette Enthusiasts

Many of the cigarette cards are housed in their original packets, boxes, and tins while others are arranged by theme in special archival albums. NMAH also maintains an extensive collection of the popular and authoritative Murray’s Guide to Cigarette and Trade Cards, published by dealer Murray since 1967. These publications have become the standard reference for collectors of cigarette cards and have provided a window into the cigarette card hobby. This collection includes both individual and sets of cigarette cards as well as related ephemera.