The Lost in Space Topps Gum Card set came on the scene in 1966. The set consisted of 55 black & white photos with narration on the back in pink ink. Photos depicted are based on scenes from the LIS pilot and first seven episodes from the first season. There is no mention of Lost in Space on any of the cards, front or back.

According to text on the back of the cards, the set is supposed to tell the story of the first episode of Lost in Space called "The Reluctant Stowaway." However, the set actually depicts not only scenes from the series premiere but also scenes drawn from other early first season episodes such as "The Hungary Sea" and "Welcome Stranger." Two cards from the set are particularly noteworthy: card #53 ("The Battle Begins") showing John Robinson using his rocket belt circling the cyclops and card #54 ("In Death's Grip") where John is shown being held by the cyclops. These two cards depict scenes that existed neither in the pilot or the TV series. It is believed that they were scenes from the pilot which ended up on the cutting-room floor.

In 1987 there was a major find of Lost in Space in a mid-western city (believed to be either Chicago or Detroit). Apparently between 1 to 3 cases of unopened boxes were found in an old candy warehouse. Although initially the incredible find appeared to affect the prices of LIS cards and boxes, it has now been completely absorbed into the market. In fact, the original LIS card set is now one of the most sought after LIS collectibles. Today putting together a mint LIS set is becoming increasingly more difficult. Indeed when mint sets do hit the market they invariably sell for well in excess of $US1000. Full boxes are hardly ever seen and even empty boxes are hard to come by.

Two unauthorized sets of Topps reprints have also been issued. The first one appeared around 1990 and was printed on fairly cheap card stock. An identifying feature of this set is that the backs of the cards were printed in black rather than the pink of the originals. The second limited edition set was issued in 1995 and was printed on better card stock and featured much sharper images. The main identifying feature of this set is that there are no drawn cartoon-style illustrations on the back. Two promotional limited edition sets of 4 cards were also issued with the second set.