A Brooklyn Dodgers Passport to the 1955 World Series

The little child inside has been wanting to add this little novelty item to my collection for years. Featured here is a, circa 1955, Brooklyn Dodgers Passport.

As you can see, it includes a dark blue passport holder with the Brooklyn Dodger logo emblazoned on it. Tucked inside that is the passport that features an unofficial seal of the team. That includes a requisite baseball at bats, a view of the Brooklyn Bridge, the Dodger "Bum" himself, and the "Tree of Heaven Ailanthus Altissima." At bottom is the Latin phrase "Sigillum Civitatis Breuckelen," or the Seal of the City of Brooklyn.

Before I go further I thought I would do my best to explain what the "tree" part above is all about. From my understanding, this is in reference to a 1943 book by Betty Smith named 'A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.' In this book the 'tree of heaven' is a metaphor for the ability to thrive in an difficult environment.

There's a tree that grows in Brooklyn. Some people call it the Tree of Heaven. No matter where its seed falls, it makes a tree which struggles to reach the sky. It grows in boarded up lots and out of neglected rubbish heaps. It grows up out of cellar gratings. It is the only tree that grows out of cement. It grows lushly...survives without sun, water, and seemingly earth. It would be considered beautiful except that there are too many of it.
— A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Introduction

In other words, a chief characteristic of Brooklyn is its resiliency and its ability to survive under just about any circumstance.

If you unfold the passport you see everything from an employee and team roster, some statistics and information on the recent 1955 World Series that saw the Dodgers win for the first time. Click on any pic to embiggen.

Unfortunately, my passport was missing one little item. It did not include an envelope that indicates it's origins. You can see an example of it below. It states that these passports were made by Novelty Products Company in Hatboro, PA.

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