Chalmer Cissell - 1933 Goudey #26
1933 Goudey #26 Chalmer Cissell
Low number: this card was printed on press sheets 1-2 (#1-40 plus #45-52), which saw shorter distribution than the rest of the 1933 run — low numbers are noticeably scarcer.
About Chalmer Cissell
Chalmer "Bill" Cissell was born January 3, 1904, in Perry County, Missouri, and broke into pro ball after his Army cavalry service, when Des Moines Demons owner Lee Keyser signed him out of Fort Des Moines in 1925. A strong .323 season with the Portland Beavers in 1927 made him a hot commodity, and the Chicago White Sox paid a reported $75,000-plus in cash and players to land him — a price that saddled him with the nickname "baseball's costliest player" (and, later, "the $123,000 Lemon") that he could never quite live up to. A right-handed infielder, Cissell played shortstop for the White Sox from 1928-1932, his best year coming in 1929 (.280, 62 RBI), then moved to Cleveland's second-base job in a 1932 trade, where he hit .320 with a career-high 98 RBI. That was the peak: by his 1933 Goudey card season, still with the Indians, his average had cratered to .230, and he drifted on to Boston (1934), Philadelphia's Athletics (1937), and a final major-league stop with the 1938 New York Giants. Over nine seasons he batted .267 with 990 hits, 29 home runs, 423 RBI, and 113 stolen bases in 956 games. After baseball he worked odd jobs and later as an electrician at Comiskey Park; found gravely ill and penniless in a Chicago apartment in 1949, he was aided by his old White Sox organization before dying that March at age 45.
Sources: Wikipedia · Baseball-Reference · SABR
Graded population (PSA & SGC)
| Grader | Total | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 1-4 | Auth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | 258 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 20 | 10 | 54 | 160 | 4 |
| SGC | 127 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 25 | 91 | 4 |
Graded population — a scarcity guide, not a price. Snapshot 2026-07-03. Half-grades fold down (8.5→8). PSA counts are straight-graded.
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Related cards
More Cleveland Indians cards:
- #10 Glenn Myatt
- #27 George Connally
- #75 Willie Kamm
- #96 Willis Hudlin
- #106 Nap Lajoie
- #116 Eddie Morgan
- #171 Charley Jamieson
- #194 Earl Averill
- #218 Wes Ferrell
Frequently asked questions
What is the 1933 Goudey Chalmer Cissell card?
It is card #26 of the 1933 Goudey (R319) Baseball set - the 240-card, 2-3/8 by 2-7/8 inch color-art set issued in 1933 with Big League Chewing Gum. It pictures Chalmer Cissell with the Cleveland Indians.
Is the 1933 Goudey Chalmer Cissell #26 a rookie card?
By modern catalog convention, yes. 1933 Goudey is treated as the hobby's first major nationally distributed gum set, so nearly every card in it carries the rookie-card (RC) designation - a modern label applied retroactively, since many of these players had earlier tobacco, caramel, or strip cards.
How many cards are in the 1933 Goudey set?
240 numbered cards, though collectors usually count 241 collectible cards because #6 Jimmy Dykes exists in an error and a corrected version. Only 239 numbers were in 1933 packs - #106 (Nap Lajoie) was printed in 1934 and issued by mail.
Sources: Trading Card Database, Baseball-Reference, PSA & SGC population reports, and hobby press-sheet research. Card data compiled and maintained by T206Cards.com. Page last updated 2026-07-04.