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GaryPassamonte

09-02-2015, 11:22 AM

How about showing the oldest piece you have. Mine is an 1860 "hop" ticket from Newark NJ.

btcarfagno

09-02-2015, 11:34 AM

http://i792.photobucket.com/albums/yy203/collectiblesgains/collectiblesgains104/tintype_zpsyqrneh36.jpg

Tom C

Leon

09-02-2015, 12:51 PM

Currently, I think this is it.

GaryPassamonte

09-02-2015, 01:07 PM

Leon- I still have potential upgrades available.

aquarius31

09-02-2015, 02:10 PM

Gary, this is a great thread topic and that Newark BBC ticket is awesome! I'm not sure about the age of the below tintype but looks to be 1860's. I also have 2 other CDVs from 1860's that I'll post later. Would love to see some more old stuff!

- 1841 Gift of Friendship by S. Babcock (picked up here a long time ago)
- 1857 Spirit of the Times - The Eagles and Gothams Playing Their Great Match At The Elysian Fields
- 1860's half-plate tintype

Scott Garner

09-02-2015, 02:54 PM

I've shown this ticket on net54 before, but here is a very early White Stockings baseball season ticket from 1874.
Condition is pretty remarkable considering age...

John V

09-02-2015, 02:57 PM

I believe this is my oldest. I just don't know how old.

vintagesportscollector

09-02-2015, 04:53 PM

Not baseball, but this booklet from 1872 chronicles the first ever intercollegiate rowing regatta in 1871.

203132

jpop43

09-02-2015, 04:54 PM

Some of our oldest oldies...

1. c. 1840's- 1850's Lemon Peel Style Ball (small)
2. c. 1850's- 1860's H- stitch or belted ball (full size)
3. c. 1860's CDV of a ball player taken at a Baltimore photography studio

vintagesportscollector

09-02-2015, 05:05 PM

I'll toss in my 1860s H-pattern ball, as well.

203136

JLange

09-02-2015, 05:29 PM

...but still the oldest thing I own.

1893 children's book with baseball and football motif.

bobfreedman

09-02-2015, 05:38 PM

My to oldest piece from 1889

khkco4bls

09-02-2015, 08:13 PM

Some bats 1870s owned by R.C. Reed. 1866 Molitor baseball club pieces. 1860s Civil War collapsible drinking cup probably my favorite. Six sided lemon peel 1860s.

khkco4bls

09-02-2015, 08:16 PM

Various lemon peels and "H" style balls.

bbpostcards

09-02-2015, 09:58 PM

1. c. 1866 Oregon CDV of Portland Pioneer Base Ball Club player Joseph Wiley. The bottom CDV includes him several years later.

2. 1866 invitation for the First Grand Ball of the Arena Base Ball Club held on November 15 at Masonic Hall in Manayunk, a Philadelphia neighborhood.

3. First Anniversary Ball of the St. Charles, Missouri Base Ball Club held at the New York Hall on September 30, 1867.

4. The St. Charles, Missouri Base Ball Club held its second annual Calico Dress Ball on February 14, 1868.

5. 1870 Oregon CDV of Portland Pioneer Base Ball Club members. Joseph Buchtel (the team's founder) is at the top. Joseph Wiley (the person in the first CDV) is at the bottom left.

Information about these and related images is on the website below.

bmarlowe1

09-02-2015, 11:01 PM

I've shown this ticket on net54 before, but here is a very early Chicago White Stockings baseball season ticket from 1874.
Condition is pretty remarkable considering age...

Scott - nice item. I have no expertise in tickets, but are you saying that this is a Chicago White Stockings National Association ticket? Thanks.

gnaz01

09-03-2015, 01:07 AM

Mine

Scott Garner

09-03-2015, 04:31 AM

Delete

Scott Garner

09-03-2015, 04:34 AM

Scott - nice item. I have no expertise in tickets, but are you saying that this is a Chicago White Stockings National Association ticket? Thanks.

Hi Mark,
To the best of my knowledge, I believe it is the White Stockings of the National Association.

From my research, The White Stockings began in 1871, but a fire burned down their original stadium in 1871. They re-entered the league in 1874 and I believe that this ticket originates from this season. On the back of the ticket it also makes reference to the Junior White Stockings and the the Resolutes, which may have played at their ball field as well.

I hope this helps.

iwantitiwinit

09-03-2015, 06:55 AM

203279

bobfreedman

09-03-2015, 07:18 AM

1892 Cleveland Spiders Schedule with Cy Young

murphusa

09-03-2015, 07:27 AM

1865 leather wrapped bat and an early Victor Bat

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y207/murphyusa/096_zps9c1eb495.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/murphyusa/media/096_zps9c1eb495.jpg.html)http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y207/murphyusa/DSC_0003-3.jpg (http://s6.photobucket.com/user/murphyusa/media/DSC_0003-3.jpg.html)

bmarlowe1

09-03-2015, 08:27 AM

Hi Mark,
To the best of my knowledge, I believe it is the White Stockings of the National Association.

From my research, The White Stockings began in 1871, but a fire burned down their original stadium in 1871. They re-entered the league in 1874 and I believe that this ticket originates from this season. On the back of the ticket it also makes reference to the Junior White Stockings and the the Resolutes, which may have played at their ball field as well.

I hope this helps.

 Well, not really. If this was as claimed, it would be, to say the least, a very significant item. But there is absolutely nothing on the ticket that references Chicago, Illinois, the 23rd Street Grounds (AKA State Street Grounds), or the National Association or even just "Association." The “series of games both junior and senior” could mean anything. There is nothing here to support the contention that “senior” means “National Association.”

Any number of town team could have called themselves the "White Stockings," and team names (often based on hosiery color) were a very fluid thing. Of the two Philadelphia entries in the 1873 NA, one was called the White Stockings (changed to Pearls in 1874).

All you seem to being saying here is that it is an 1874 baseball season ticket (it surely is), the Chicago White Stockings NA club played in 1874 (they surely did), therefore this is a Chicago NA ticket. There are some big logical steps missing.

The signature looks like "H. A. Jackson." Did you find that he had some connection to the Chi NA club?

jpop43

09-03-2015, 08:33 AM

Some of our early bats...

1. c. 1860s tiger maple baseball bat (36" and presentation quality)
2. c. 1860s -1870s leather handled baseball bat; Both Peck & Snyder, and Ward B. Snyder marketed these bats from the 1860's to around 1875.
3. c. 1860s -1870s presentation/trophy bat

All of our 19th century baseball collection can be viewed on our website...

http://dugouttreasures.com/product.cfm?sID=4

Great thread! Many thanks to Gary for getting it started!

Jonathan
www.dugouttreasures.com

seattlerainiers

09-03-2015, 08:36 AM

Not my oldest baseball item, but apropos for the thread:
1885 Chicago White Stocking silver trophy ball that belonged to Billy Sunday.

GaryPassamonte

09-03-2015, 12:10 PM

Some great stuff posted. Silver trophy ball-wow! Jonathan- those bats look familiar. I think you'll remember this 1867 Fulton NY trophy ball.

jpop43

09-03-2015, 12:28 PM

I do and I LOVE it! Simply wonderful piece.

aquarius31

09-03-2015, 12:41 PM

Mine

Very nice Greg! As you probably know, this is the earliest woodcut depiction of Cap Anson dating to July 5, 1873.

Scott Garner

09-03-2015, 01:05 PM

Well, not really. If this was as claimed, it would be, to say the least, a very significant item. But there is absolutely nothing on the ticket that references Chicago, Illinois, the 23rd Street Grounds (AKA State Street Grounds), or the National Association or even just "Association." The “series of games both junior and senior” could mean anything. There is nothing here to support the contention that “senior” means “National Association.”

Any number of town team could have called themselves the "White Stockings," and team names (often based on hosiery color) were a very fluid thing. Of the two Philadelphia entries in the 1873 NA, one was called the White Stockings (changed to Pearls in 1874).

All you seem to being saying here is that it is an 1874 baseball season ticket (it surely is), the Chicago White Stockings NA club played in 1874 (they surely did), therefore this is a Chicago NA ticket. There are some big logical steps missing.

The signature looks like "H. A. Jackson." Did you find that he had some connection to the Chi NA club?



Hi Bruce,
FWIW, you may be correct, because the front of the ticket does not state Chicago White Stockings.

FYI, I never was able to nail down the signature on the back when I tried to do some research on it when I bought it from an eBay seller in Illinois (to the best of my recollection) several years ago. In 2010 I did see another one of these season tickets in a catalogue auction, but it was unsigned on the back
There is a book entitled Major League Baseball Expansions and Relocations: A History, 1876-2008 by Frank P. Jozsa, Jr that does make mention of the Resolutes in 1874, but I don't have iron clad proof that the ticket originates from the Chicago White Stockings.

Hell, the ticket is over 140 years old & I just like the damn thing! :D

Beautiful rarities by the other posters. Congrats to all of you that own these beauties!

sicollector1954

09-03-2015, 01:27 PM

Some amazing survivors to say the least….here is my Spalding ring bat…made out of willow and currently weighs only 26 oz. Have it right below an Albert Spalding framed autograph in my sports room.

WWGjohn

09-03-2015, 02:34 PM

A couple of 1850's town ball bats and an 1860's bat.

Top bat is 32" long, 30 oz made of hickory.
Middle bat is 32" long, 30 oz.
Bottom bat is 39" long, 36 oz.

John

gnaz01

09-03-2015, 03:17 PM

Very nice Greg! As you probably know, this is the earliest woodcut depiction of Cap Anson dating to July 5, 1873.

Yes, the reason I bought it :) He looks like a young Matthew Modine :D

jpop43

09-03-2015, 06:04 PM

Here is a great image that a wonderful, CT area photographer took of some of our 19th C. stuff for a calendar he created for 2014...

Two of our lemon peel balls, the presentation bat, a great tin type image, an 1875 program, and the 1860's era belt all made it into this shot.

Runscott

09-03-2015, 07:22 PM

I have a few memorabilia pieces older, but this is currently the oldest baseball piece:

Runscott

09-03-2015, 07:26 PM

For a moment I thought I was looking at a photo from the cryogenics lab where Ted Williams' head was stored, but I guess these are in much better shape.

Various lemon peels and "H" style balls.

http://net54baseball.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=203193&stc=1&d=1441246551

almostdone

09-03-2015, 07:31 PM

My oldest although no where near as cool as all these others. A harpers wood cut from 1879. Got it here on Net54 a few years ago a built the custom frame to hold it. Unfortunately I had a roof leak two years ago and it sustained water damage. It was the only piece in my collection touched by the water.
Drew

khkco4bls

09-03-2015, 07:49 PM

CarltonHendricks

09-03-2015, 09:38 PM

<img src="http://sportsantiques.com/RowingSheetMusicComp/pict5607.jpg">
Here is what I'm pretty sure is my oldest sports antique...an 1838 piece of rowing sheet music...To most it probably doesn't look very exciting...but an 1838 illustration of organized American athletic competition is remarkably rare...And it's pure American...dedicated to all the New York boat clubs...

http://sportsantiques.com/latestacquistions.htm
Below is an excerpt from the page linked above where you can read the whole story of the where when how I found it...you just need to scroll about 80% down the page to get to that part.

<img src="http://i213.photobucket.com/albums/cc120/CarltonHendricks/Our%20Boat%20Sets%20Lightly_zpsdwlku5cd.png" border="0" alt=" photo Our Boat Sets Lightly_zpsdwlku5cd.png"/>

http://www.sportsantiques.com/ice_skate_poster.htm
Before I got the sheet music this 1862 ice skate poster advertising poster below was my oldest piece...above is a link to the full feature page.

<img src="http://www.sportsantiques.com/Ice%20Skate%20Poster%20Circa%201862.JPG">

GoCubsGo32

09-03-2015, 09:51 PM

I have a few memorabilia pieces older, but this is currently the oldest baseball piece:

Chicks dig the long ball!

Killer photo!

Huysmans

09-04-2015, 04:24 AM

mjkm90

09-04-2015, 04:27 AM

http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q304/mjkm90/IMG_2191.jpg (http://s139.photobucket.com/user/mjkm90/media/IMG_2191.jpg.html)

The earliest image I have seen of these was 1881 Edward Miller catalogue Carlton posted. That would make these my earliest pieces with a confirmed date. I have some early bats as well, but can't date them as accurately.;)

smokelessjoe

09-04-2015, 08:28 AM

Easton Base Ball Club "1873"

baseball tourist

09-04-2015, 09:01 AM

Dated 1882 Trophy Ball from game between Lewisburg and Mt. Joy PA.

ScottR81

09-04-2015, 09:23 AM

1885 chicago ball club with Cap Anson

bmarlowe1

09-04-2015, 09:51 AM

Hi Bruce [sic],
FWIW, you may be correct,...I don't have iron clad proof that the ticket originates from the Chicago White Stockings...Hell, the ticket is over 140 years old & I just like the damn thing! :D

I know this thread is intended to be a display of everyone's really nice old stuff, so I thought about this for a while before posting further. But, by my count this is 3rd time you have posted the claim that this is for sure an 1874 NA ticket, which would be to say the least an extremely rare item. I guess it could be considered progress that you are now saying that you don't have "iron clad proof," but that misses the point which is:
there is absolutely no logical reason to think that this is an NA ticket.

Runscott

09-04-2015, 09:53 AM

from the 'General Advertiser', Philadelphia, February 13, 1815

...regarding 'practicing ball during the current season'. Also, my apologies to any who might be descended from this scoundrel John Hastings!

(Also, I realize that Mark will probably argue that this is some other sort of 'ball' that the ladies and gentlemen have been practicing, such as football)

packs

09-04-2015, 09:56 AM

1868:

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m294/madjams/bfb2152e-fa32-4f28-8976-379ca7922871_zps5ef2c539.jpg[/QUOTE]

ksfarmboy

09-04-2015, 11:22 AM

Wow some great items shown. This is the oldest item I have that I know the date of for sure so I'm going with it. 1875 silver trophy ball.

vintagesportscollector

09-04-2015, 11:31 AM

Clint, very cool ball, but wow on the dents :). Did they actually play ball that trophy.:rolleyes:

Scott Garner

09-04-2015, 11:34 AM

I know this thread is intended to be a display of everyone's really nice old stuff, so I thought about this for a while before posting further. But, by my count this is 3rd time you have posted the claim that this is for sure an 1874 NA ticket, which would be to say the least an extremely rare item. I guess it could be considered progress that you are now saying that you don't have "iron clad proof," but that misses the point which is:
there is absolutely no logical reason to think that this is an NA ticket.

Mark,
This is going to be my last post on this topic as well, and it is as you said, an opportunity to share nice old stuff. I don't want this to get into a pissing contest, because I don't really believe anybody likes that kind of thing. I have always enjoyed your posts on net54 and I have no issue with you personally and I truly believe that you bring value to the net54 forum.

FWIW,I sincerely don't ever recall stating that the ticket is "for sure" a NA ticket. When I purchased it originally, I did believe that it was (at least that was my thought process up until your post).
What I did say when you questioned me about it is that I believed it was from the NA White Stockings "to the best of my knowledge". You made the point that it likely wasn't because of a couple of factors. OK, fine. It's not the first time that I've been wrong and certainly not the last time I'm sure.
It's OK to question a person's perception of reality if you believe that it should be reconsidered & I have.

Please don't make it sound like I have done this through conscious misrepresentation, because it was never intended that way.
Enough said. Peace, out!

rjackson44

09-04-2015, 12:42 PM

Picked this up ten years ago pretty

seattlerainiers

09-04-2015, 01:22 PM

One of the earliest surviving artifacts from baseball in the Pacific Northwest:

ramram

09-04-2015, 01:50 PM

1867 scorebook.

Rob M.

203510

203511

203514

bmarlowe1

09-04-2015, 01:59 PM

Mark,
This is going to be my last post on this topic as well, and it is as you said, an opportunity to share nice old stuff. I don't want this to get into a pissing contest, because I don't really believe anybody likes that kind of thing. I have always enjoyed your posts on net54 and I have no issue with you personally and I truly believe that you bring value to the net54 forum.

FWIW,I sincerely don't ever recall stating that the ticket is "for sure" a NA ticket. When I purchased it originally, I did believe that it was (at least that was my thought process up until your post).
What I did say when you questioned me about it is that I believed it was from the NA White Stockings "to the best of my knowledge". You made the point that it likely wasn't because of a couple of factors. OK, fine. It's not the first time that I've been wrong and certainly not the last time I'm sure.
It's OK to question a person's perception of reality if you believe that it should be reconsidered & I have.

Please don't make it sound like I have done this through conscious misrepresentation, because it was never intended that way.
Enough said. Peace, out!

OK, sorry if I misunderstood your intent - have a nice holiday weekend.

Jason19th

09-05-2015, 11:29 AM

Here are my two oldest

1. Woodcut from Potter's History of Greece- section on the ancient Olympic Games (1696)

2. Woodcut from Carver's Boys Book of Sports (1834)

aquarius31

09-05-2015, 02:11 PM

I love this thread and the diversity of items! Here are some more.

1826-1827 boxing prints by S.W. Fores
1860's Collegiate Cricket Club (either Haverford or Penn)
1868 Xenia BBC
1860's Dunkirk, NY BB players

CarltonHendricks

09-05-2015, 02:50 PM

One of the earliest surviving artifacts from baseball in the Pacific Northwest:

For lack of a like button....very cool trophy!! congrats

CarltonHendricks

09-05-2015, 03:07 PM

http://www.sportsantiques.com/ice_skate_poster.htm
Before I got the sheet music this 1862 ice skate poster advertising poster below was my oldest piece...above is a link to the full feature page.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

<img src="http://www.sportsantiques.com/Ice%20Skate%20Poster%20Circa%201862.JPG">

Great pieces as always Carlton!
I'd die for that skate poster![/QUOTE]

Hey thanks Brent...Got it from a big name folk art dealer years ago...took quite a few years to find but I finally got the skates too.

<img src="http://i213.photobucket.com/albums/cc120/CarltonHendricks/CarltonHendricks066/Top_zpshrqbv3h7.png" border="0" alt=" photo Top_zpshrqbv3h7.png"/>
<img src="http://i213.photobucket.com/albums/cc120/CarltonHendricks/CarltonHendricks066/middle_zpss2wei2cm.png" border="0" alt=" photo middle_zpss2wei2cm.png"/>
<img src="http://i213.photobucket.com/albums/cc120/CarltonHendricks/CarltonHendricks066/bottom_zpsubb3hbaf.png" border="0" alt=" photo bottom_zpsubb3hbaf.png"/>

Runscott

09-06-2015, 09:31 AM

Too much great stuff to comment on all of it, but I really like the history behind this group.

The cdv's and tintype images everyone has been posting are just amazing - making me feel 'photo inadequate'. If you guys got together, you could put together a heckuva virtual cdv/tintype museum.

1. c. 1866 Oregon CDV of Portland Pioneer Base Ball Club player Joseph Wiley. The bottom CDV includes him several years later.

.....

5. 1870 Oregon CDV of Portland Pioneer Base Ball Club members. Joseph Buchtel (the team's founder) is at the top. Joseph Wiley (the person in the first CDV) is at the bottom left.

Information about these and related images is on the website below.

http://net54baseball.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=203208&stc=1&d=1441253059
http://net54baseball.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=203212&stc=1&d=1441253083

jpop43

09-07-2015, 12:00 PM

Not our "oldest", but certainly one of the earliest mfg. marked rings bats we're likely to ever see...this is our c.1870's Peck & Snyder bat.

www.dugouttreasures.com

bbpostcards

09-07-2015, 01:10 PM

Before there were postcards there were postal cards. The postal card is from 1875 and on its reverse advertised the wares of the Peck & Snyder sporting goods company. The woodcut image show the fun that lays behind the storefront.

The 1876 trade card below it marks the first time to my knowledge that a baseball scene at a true baseball park (Boston's South End Grounds) was used to promote a product, and is also the earliest panorama of that park. Advertising Washburn & Moen barb wire, the woodcut on the front is captioned, "Barb Fence Armor. - The Boston Base Ball Grounds, enclosed with 'Barb Armed' Fence."

The engraver is John A. Lowell. He was involved in Boston baseball from the late 1850's forward and was so influential that the Boston Lowells was named after him. The message on the reverse is from the president of the Boston Base Ball Association. As the National League was founded in 1876, this image shows South End Grounds, the home of the Boston Red Caps, in its first year as a professional stadium. The detail is interesting. People peeking over the fence. Fans buying tickets. Men, women, kids, all at the ballgame. American flags adorning the grandstands. View of Boston in the distance. The maker of the barbed wire is Wasburn & Moen Manufacturing Co.

More items like these can be viewed on the website below.

Runscott

09-07-2015, 01:12 PM

1866 letter from a student attending college in Kentucky, to his sister. He states that most of the students are 'Unions'.

ValKehl

09-07-2015, 10:43 PM

In 1884, Washington, DC, fielded a team, known both as the Nationals and the Statesmen, in the American Association. After losing a game by a score of 6 - 5 on August 2nd to the eventual league champion NY Metropolitans, the Washington team, with a 12 - 51 record, threw in the towel, as noted on this scorecard for this game and on this 1884 Washington team schedule:

Scott Garner

09-08-2015, 04:48 AM

ValKehl

09-08-2015, 08:23 PM

Thanks, Scott. Although I am mostly a card collector, these two complimentary pieces do fascinate me, having lived in the VA suburbs of Washington all of my life.
Val

vintagesportscollector

09-10-2015, 09:58 AM

The other thread about dating a 1870s tintype based on the cap style reminded me of this 1870s The John Wilkinson Company Uniforms fold-out catalog I have.

http://antiquesportscollector.com/Wilkinson017.jpg

http://antiquesportscollector.com/Wilkinson016.jpg

khkco4bls

09-10-2015, 10:26 AM

vintagesportscollector

09-10-2015, 10:33 AM

ok Joe I will buy it from you:D

I'll keep that in mind Kevin :D. Apologies for the big/wide photos. If you would like to see a close up of any page you can view on this link.

http://antiquesportscollector.com/Wilkinson.html

CarltonHendricks

09-10-2015, 12:51 PM

Huysmans

09-11-2015, 04:25 AM

Sorry, but I had to chime in...
that piece is spectacular Joe!!!
It brings up a question I always wondered about....
What's the earliest catalog known for both Peck & Snyder and Spalding?
I remember REA a few years back had a Spalding from 1889 I believe, but there must be earlier ones in existence.

bgar3

09-11-2015, 07:02 AM

I am sure it is not the oldest spalding catalogue, but I have one from 1879, 4 pages, advertising the new league ball (just adopted) on 1 page, professional bats on another, and the 1879 guide on the back. Sorry, no scanner, but i can send a scan to someone if interested, it would come from a local library.

benjulmag

09-12-2015, 05:24 AM

This poster was an insert to the 1869 Peck & Snyder catalog.

bobfreedman

09-12-2015, 06:15 AM

This poster was an insert to the 1869 Peck & Snyder catalog.

Corey, that is awesome! What size is it?

benjulmag

09-12-2015, 07:12 AM

Bob,

I won't be in a position to measure it until next week, but from memory I would estimate it to be 16'' by 24".

khkco4bls

09-12-2015, 07:55 AM

.baseball in England 1874 prints

68Hawk

09-12-2015, 03:52 PM

1871 Peck & Snider Scorecard Mutuals v Athletics

At least as purported by the 'seemingly contemporary' notations on the scorecard....:D
Nahh. Confident it's as described.

patricka

09-12-2015, 07:13 PM

1871 double-sided Chicago scorecard for September 18th game against the Athletics (Chicago side of scorecard shown). 3 weeks after this game was played much of the City went up in flames. Unlike the team's ballpark and even their uniforms, this items survived the fire.

http://i194.photobucket.com/albums/z210/patrickabc/1871%20Cubs%20Program_zpsbibbzu5x.jpg (http://s194.photobucket.com/user/patrickabc/media/1871%20Cubs%20Program_zpsbibbzu5x.jpg.html)

vintagesportscollector

09-12-2015, 07:40 PM

1871 double-sided Chicago scorecard for September 18th game against the Athletics (Chicago side of scorecard shown). 3 weeks after this game was played much of the City went up in flames. Unlike the team's ballpark and even their uniforms, this items survived the fire.]

Very cool advertisements on the scorecard, especially the Ladies oyster and ice cream parlors. 'Googling' these parlors and the evolution of 19th century eateries provides an interesting history.

khkco4bls

09-13-2015, 07:23 AM

I want the Lyman's self adjusting bat. Very cool

vintagesportscollector

09-13-2015, 08:14 AM

I want the Lyman's self adjusting bat. Very cool

Interesting description...it's a Corked bat.

seattlerainiers

09-17-2015, 11:06 AM

An unremarkable baseball tintype, except for the fact that it is depicts an Alaska ballplayer (and is reversed...unusual in a tintype)

vintagesportscollector

09-17-2015, 11:22 AM

I find it interesting too that he is basically wearing what looks like a modern T-shirt, and the collar and sleeves look like they were drawn on in the photo to add the dark edging.

Runscott

09-17-2015, 02:40 PM

I can't recall ever seeing a tintype with lettering that was NOT reversed - all of mine have been reversed.

bigfanNY

09-17-2015, 02:59 PM

Picked these up this month from a board member. 1878, 1879, 1881. the 1881 vs Chicago With both Anson and Kelly... and board favorite Ross Barnes. I will upload more pics later.

bmarlowe1

09-19-2015, 01:48 AM

I find it interesting too that he is basically wearing what looks like a modern T-shirt, and the collar and sleeves look like they were drawn on in the photo to add the dark edging.

This uniform style was briefly popular in the mid 1870s.

cubman1941

09-19-2015, 06:03 AM

I can't get a good picture but I have an original "The Sunday Times" from April 22, 1877 and on page 3 is the write-up of the "Base-Ball" Opening Game between the Chicagos and the Fairbanks. The better part of the write-up consisted of speaking about the pennant flying from 1876. The Chicagos were referred to as the Whites in the write-up.

bbpostcards

09-30-2015, 11:38 AM

It's not often you get to hold a document penned by someone who in 1860 played in the first true baseball game in Philadelphia, one of America's most important baseball cities, who fought in the Civil War that contributed to his club's demise, and who in the document is seen in his own hand vainly trying to restore the team's pre-war standing.

William H. Litzenberg was the Equity Base Ball Club of Philadelphia's catcher in the historic June 11, 1860 first game between two organized ball clubs played under the New York rules in Philadelphia. Their opponent Winona, another local team, prevailed 39-21. The box score confirms Litzenberg's participation. See New York Clipper, June 30, 1860, p. 85. That contest is "generally given the distinction of being the first match game ever played in Philadelphia under the New York rules." Base Ball Founders (Morris et al., ed.) at p. 242.

The Civil War led the Equitys to suspend play. Litzenberg then fought with the Union Army. After the war the team tried to resurrect itself. In the fall of 1866 the Equitys sent representatives to the National Association of Base Ball Players convention. It was not enough for the team to survive. For these and further details on the team's history, see generally Base Ball Founders, pp. 241-246. In the midst of that unsuccessful rebuilding effort Litzenberg wrote and signed this May 28, 1866 telegraph proposing that Wayne Litzenberg (likely a relative) become a team member and directed it to the Equity team's president, officers, and members.

The Equitys are credited with being one of the clubs that "sparked a major shift from town ball to baseball that took place in 1860" and as having "a strong claim to having been Philadelphia's best prewar club and might well have remained a major force on the city's baseball scene if not for the intervention of the Civil War." Base Ball Founders, pp. 241, 244. Litzenberg was involved at every turn.

ramram

09-30-2015, 03:40 PM

An unremarkable baseball tintype, except for the fact that it is depicts an Alaska ballplayer (and is reversed...unusual in a tintype)

Regarding your tintype, I wonder what the infatuation with Alaska was that there were a fair number of teams named "Alaska" in the 1860's/1870's. I know there was an "Alaska" team from Brooklyn, NY. There was also an "Alaska" team from Fairhaven, Mass that I have in an 1867 scorebook. Probably several others as well. It caused me to look up Alaska in Wiki and I see that the U.S. purchased it in 1867 from Russia which, I suppose, was the reason. Still seems odd that a team would name themselves after a remote, little known, wilderness.

Rob M.

P.S. As Scott alluded to - All tintypes were produced as mirror images (as well as ambrotypes and dags). If you see one that is not reversed, either it's a photo of a photo (a mirror image of a mirror image) or, as is often seen in Civl War images, the photographer made the correction on the original image with overpainting.

206667

sam majors

10-08-2015, 01:11 PM

I will try and post pictures of 2 Harvard Yale baseball score cards. The 1881 is smaller than the 1887. The 1887 has Stagg in the lineup as a pitcher for Yale. It's split at the spine and missing inch and a half of paper on right top front cover. The 1881 is in much better shape. Sam Majors

sam majors

10-08-2015, 01:15 PM

Here is the 1881 Harvard Yale score card.