1890s Honest Long Cut Tobacco "Buffalo Bill Wild West Show" complete set with all 38 figures, game board, and program

Designated "N143" in the American Card Catalog

This nineteenth-century toy is rarely found and rarely as a complete all-original set.

This was an elaborate premium offered by the American Tobacco Co. with its Honest Long Cut brand. The complete set consists of 38 die-cut cards, 6 “Act” cards, a program, and a base piece that the die-cuts fit into via tabs. You would have to write or call your dealer to order the play board and program – then you would collect each piece by buying a 2 oz pack of Honest Cut tobacco. One die-cut figure was included in each pack. The figures were intended to be assembled on a slotted cardboard "stage" to produce six acts, similar to the Wild West Show. Blank tabs on the bottom of each piece had a number or letter indicating when and where the pieces were to be placed on the stage.

Please see the website https://vintagecards.wordpress.com/category/american-tobacco-company/ for a checklist of all the original pieces. Note that this toy did not come with consecutively numbered pieces. The numbers it came with are also indicated on the playing board which comes with this set (see photos)

Playing board

Program

All pieces

Note that these bottom tabs, which were intended to be folded for placement, were especially susceptible to damage or loss. See list:

Slotted, lithographed Play Board – Complete with all slots, (standing edges are broken as shown in photo)

Original program that came with the set - VG condition - see photo