1886 Baseball Ticket St. Louis

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Posted By: Dan

My local stamp dealer found this in a collection of covers, and isn't quite sure what to do with this item. It's from fairly early in the history of baseball, but neither he nor I know if this is simply a curiosity piece, or if it has significant value. It is single-sided, and you can see some evidence of previous mildewing along the edges.

Two things that are especially interesting:

1. The use of the phrase "Experts, anxious to play". It implies (to me) that this is fairly early in the development of the game... or was it just marketing hype?

2. Is "Sportmen's Park" a misspelling or predecessor of "Sportsman's Park" where the Cardinals and Browns played?

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Posted By: HW

I am sure that Sportsmen's park and Sportsman's park are the same thing. Sportsman's park is where the great St. Louis American Association team played their games.

Baseball was extremely popular in the 1880's and this ticket is likely from an exhibition game of amateurs from the local clubs.

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Posted By: Joe_G.

Retrosheet boxscores indicate St. Louis Browns played in Baltimore on June 4th, took Saturday off and then played in Louisville on Sunday. Perhaps the ticket you have was between two local teams?