1888 Bailey Championship Prize - Sterling Silver Plaque 18”x 15”

[mjkm90]

I thought the same thing Mark, but upon closer inspection it appears to be a racket sport perhaps.

[doug.goodman]

Fantastic piece. Fantastic post. Thank you.

Doug

[vintagesportflips]

Amazing looking piece Carlton, and the suspense within your tale of acquiring it was great!

[olsport]

Amazing piece Carlton. The find of a Lifetime! The Font of the lettering looks very much like that on the Temple Cup baseball trophy from the 1800s, and also one of the fancy sterling silver lifetime passes for MLB that has the stadium scene on it. I am so amazed that the piece was just sitting around somewhere for over 100 years.

[CarltonHendricks]

Thanks one and all for your kind words.

My friend Mike, who’s grandfather owned Dieges and Clust sent the link below to the Bailey Banks and Biddle history, very informative, lots of history.
http://www.baileybanksandbiddle.com/...y/history.html
Mike told me he actually dated one of the Biddle girls back in the mid-1970's, while they were in Gemology school together.

Mark PerezFan, I knew I’d hear from you on this piece!…Hey by the way I hear you’re really tear’n it up!!!! Congrats!

Shawn, whoa!!!…what the…keep’um coming buddy, those are fantastic…Please post everything in your power….I’m VERY anxious to see EVERYTHING you have!!!!!! But can you please include the periodical and date they came out of? Would really appreciate it….Shawn’s the man!!! Thanks much.

Please welcome Paul “olsport”…I sent him a link to this thread and he‘s now a member….Paul was a regular at the old PMA show in San Mateo back in “ol” the days before everything got eBayed…likes the antique stuff!
-Carlton

[BrockJacob]

Hows the ole National story coming along Carlton?

[olsport]

Yes, I'm a rookie on here, but not in the field of antique sports memorabilia. I have been collecting for close to 20 years. What got me started in Old Sports memorabilia was when a friend I worked with showed me some of his old baseball memorabilia at his house and I was shockingly excited about most of it! He had a single 5 x 7" sheet of paper with Ty Cobb's autograph signed over and over all over it like 25 times! The story was Ty visited an orphanage and signed like 2 sheets,to cut out single autographs for each child. Well apparently everyone got one and these were left over and never seperated after all these years! He started me on old baseball photos after I saw his amazing 1890s Mamouth plate Eclipse baseball team photo in the original victorian frame! Many years later he sold me that very piece that inspired me to start collecting! Jack DeStories is his name and I have no idea where he is or what he's up to?
Great find Carlton on the Bailey Plaque!!! A piece you will cherish the rest of your life, like I do, every time I see my Eclipse Photo!

[CarltonHendricks]

Brock..it's not but I'm having fun with this thing for now...get to it later

Paul "olsport" ..you're welcome...you're gonna have a blast on this site.

I almost forgot about this below...check this out...culled from an 1890 NY Times...Apparently the Bailey plaque was very coveted. I'm very interested to see what else Shawn England comes up with also.


Detroit Athletic Club and the Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library
John Owen Jr., right, and Michael C. Murphy, his notoriously strict coach and trainer at the Detroit Athletic Club, at a photo studio start line. Owen became the first amateur to break 10 seconds in the 100-yard dash.

The Old Detroit’s Sleek New Model
The New York Times
October 11, 1890
WASHINGTON-Now is the time for the Manhattan Athletic Club of New York to crow, and her representatives are taking advantage of their turn to whoop things up. Several hundred men wearing the pretty "cherry diamond" of the club are having a jollification here tonight over the result of the National Amateur Athletic Union's championship of the United States, contested on the grounds of the Columbia Athletic Club. The Manhattans are now the undisputed champions of the country, and while many thought before the games began that this club would defeat the New York Athletic Club in the race for the Bailey, Banks & Biddle plaque, representing the championship of clubs, no one believed the margin between them to-night would be as large as it is.

The New York Athletic Club won the plaque two years in succession, but the past year was the first time the Manhattans competed for it. Three world's amateur records were surpassed in the contests. The most notable feat was the running of John Owen, Jr., Detroit Athletic Club, in the 100-yard dash, who covered the distance in 94û5 seconds. The record heretofore both in this country and in England was 10 seconds, this time having been made by a number of runners. Owen's performance equals the professional record, and was the most wonderful exhibition of sprinting ever seen in amateur contests. L.H. Cary of the Manhattan Athletic Club was second to Owen by about 18 inches, while Fred Westing, Manhattan Athletic Club, was third by 26 inches. All three finished close together and all were within even time, 10 seconds. Owen won the championship last year, and had a ten-second record before.

The track was in the best possible condition for the contest, and went far toward establishing this new record. There is a claim made that the ground was not level, but if there is any incline it is very slight, and a member of the Record Committee of the Amateur Athletic Union said tonight that he thinks the record will be allowed.

The timing in each event was excellent. It was done by C.C. Hughes, Manhattan Athletic Club; C.A. Reed, Boston Athletic Association, and M.B. Bishop, Staten Island Athletic Club. In the heat where Owen made his 100-yard record, Mr. Hughes's watch failed to stop, but the other two agreed.

John Owen's record of 9.8 seconds in the 100-yard dash stood for 31 years until it was broken by Charles Paddock of the Los Angeles Athletic Club in 9.6. The 100-yard dash gave way to the 100- meter competition in most major athletic meets during the 1930's.
http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html...rts/10.11.html