Cuba (1864-1908): The Origins of Modern Baseball
 

Link: https://davidbussellarchive.substack...gins-of-modern

I've just published a deep historical text that goes into the fabric of what constitutes modern baseball, how, and why; determined that what we consider to be the contemporary nature of baseball originates in Cuba at the hands of a college student who returns from the American South in the middle of the Civil War and introduces baseball to an emerging Cuban nation -- locked in a decades long struggle for sovereignty with the Spanish colonial government.

From and through this 50 year period emerges a radically integrated professional baseball league which regularly proves itself capable of defeating the best the American circuit has to offer, so much so that Ban Johnson attempts to prevent American teams from participating in exhibitions with the Cuban integrated league.

Rube Foster, founder of the Negro Leagues in America in the 1920's, has a formative experience in this league; notably with the Habana Club -- the founding club of the Cuban professional circuit in the 1800's; the first to integrate at the turn of the 20th century. In the radical political atmosphere of abolitionist, nationally sovereign and liberated Cuba, you have the emergence of a truly modern league: one in which some of the greatest Black American baseball players of all time like Pop Lloyd and Oscar Charleston play alongside the best Cuba has to offer across racial and ethnic lines.

In writing this text, it was my work to reclaim this critical aspect of baseball history and restore Cuba to its fundamental historical position as the cradle of baseball's birth into modernity.

I hope you enjoy if you choose to read; would love to hear your thoughts.

My best,

David

Cover:

As a fellow cuban bravo gracias

Thank you Octavio -- I'm not Cuban, but I felt deeply, deeply drawn to this story and helping to unearth and excavate and reclaim the truth of this history beneath the surface. I would love to hear your feedback on the essay if you read into it.

I can't claim to be an expert on the topic by any means, but I am a cultural historian who seeks for truth beneath the surface of the established and assumed narratives and stories about history and how history functions and works. To me, that is the most important thing; a critical and crucial part of stepping into a better informed and more knowledgable and considerate collective reality.

Without a real interrogation into the truth, we can't possibly hope to be well enough equipped to truly understand reality.

My best
David

Cuban Baseball
 

David, I have read your two posts concerning Cuban baseball. I would like to thank you for your efforts to bring out the importance of Baseball in Cuba during the formative years of modern baseball. I look forward to reading your Substack article. What I have seen so far from your posts and glancing over your article tells me you are very thorough and passionate about your research. We Cubans are very proud of our contribution to baseball's advancement. And I am jubilant to see that historians like yourself are discovering the importance of that contribution. Keep up the great work. And since we like images here I have added Pete Hills' Cabanas baseball card and Home Run Johnson's photo from and early Cuban baseball periodical.

Cesar -- thank you for leaving a comment. This is beautiful; I really appreciate your note. I do hope you enjoy the article.

I am very passionate; deeply passionate about the truth and telling the truth. The history of your country's relationship to baseball and the importance of the Cuban contribution in baseball's global story simply cannot be understated; hopefully we are at a point in time in history that baseball and world historical scholarship at large is ready to receive the real understanding of its importance.

It became quite clear to me through my research how deep of a heritage there is in Cuba. And I do not think you can even begin to consider the possibility of today's game without what the professional league did with its integration at the outset of the 1900s. It set the stage for everything the game was ready, willing, and able to become.

These are just fantastic cards you have shared here with me. Thank you for doing so! I would love to see more of your collection and your archives of Cuban baseball; hear stories you may wish to share. Please feel free to message me anytime -- I would deeply welcome the dialogue.

Thank you again; my best regards,
David

Cesar, is there still only one example known of the Cabanas Pete Hill?

I only know of one.

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Great card Cesar, love Cabanas.
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As a Cuban and collector of Cuban baseball cards, I truly appreciate your research. Thank you so much, Orlando
My YouTube channel has some of my collection
https://youtube.com/@acollectorsdrea...hsVcKVBiqRYOFV

Hello Orlando --

Thank you very much for your reply. You have done a great service to the hobby and to your fellow collectors and historical researchers yourself in your videos, especially your series where you went through your guide to collecting pre-war cards. I am as well grateful to make a contribution to our collective and to hopefully honor Cuban baseball; the wonderful heritage, tradition, history, and culture emergent from your country. I can only hope that more and more people begin to recognize the power and importance therein and the contribution Cuba has made to changing baseball forever, for the better, for everyone.

I also am aware that you were very ill lately; it is great to hear that you are on the mend and healing up. Thank you for your work as well; you have many people in the community and in the baseball world at large rooting for you and who greatly enjoy and appreciate who you are and what you do.

Thank you; my best,
David

Very nice article David, thanks for posting.

Muy buena esa historia del béisbol cubano, gracias por publicar.

In 1864 Nemesio Guilló returned to Cuba with his brother Ernesto and Porto, after finishing his studies in the United States brought a ball and a bat in his suitcase, and the next day the three began to practice among themselves, and other young people began to join in those practices, so he began to play baseball in Cuba, between 1865 and 1866 the Habana team was organized with two teams that played among themselves.

Gracias Rolando -- I hope to do a service to Cuba + Cuban baseball history by helping and doing my part to raise awareness of the true foundations of modern baseball. Nemesio and his brothers is such a fantastic story, including how he worked with Sabourin and Bellan together to form the Habana team. The history is so rich, all the way up through Foster, Hill, and Johnson joining the team in 1908. Its such a powerful stage that is set through all of Cuba's massive cultural, social, and political changes -- all reflected in how innovative and revolutionary their baseball league is, was, and became.

Thank you Phil! I'm really glad you enjoyed it. Would love to hear any thoughts or musings you have on the themes therein.

My best; hoping you are having a great day
David

I love, love those Cabanas cards above. Wow, on the Hill.

My only one currently.

https://luckeycards.com/cabanas.jpg