Victorian Baseball Photo Team ID?

Hello everyone,

Purchased this photo a few days ago and just for fun was gonna see what everyone thought the name of the team was.

To me it looks like it says "----Side" But I'm not sure.

Any guesses would be appreciated!

Thanks as always!

 

I think "--INGSIDE"

 

That's what I was thinking. But wasn't 100%. Guess we will never know the rest. Possibly a school..

 

He looks too old to be playing on a school team IMHO. Lots of towns, small as well as large, had teams.

 

I know there is a Morningside College in Iowa that was founded in 1888. It was first called University of the Northwest, but apparently changed to Morningside College in 1894.

It really could be anything else, but it's the only --INGSIDE I can think of right now.

 

Yes, college age would work, Fig. When I read "school" I was thinking high school. Duh!

 

Interesting that it *looks* like his uniform pants are quilted.

 

I was thinking high school, too... it's just by chance that I mentioned the name of a college because that is the only place I can think of that ends with those letters. Although Morningside has a baseball team now, I haven't found anything that says when it began. They did have a football team early on.

 

I think I've seen photos of quilted pants early on for other sports. Don't remember for baseball, though.

 

Just ask him to turn a bit to his left.

 

Baseball was probably started from the get-go. Baseball was **the** sport back in the late 1800s, the turn of that century. Football wasn't nearly as popular back in "them thar days." What surprises me is the hat he is wearing. I haven't seen that style worn by any early baseball player/team. I had a great uncle who played what might be called today semi-pro baseball for a few years - 1890s. He had quite a collection of baseball memorabilia from the turn of the century up to the early 1950s. When he died, I had a chance at all that memorabilia and I turned it down. I have been kicking myself ever since.


Just thought about the lack of the glove in this picture. Just about every pic of early baseball players holding a ball they also have a glove on. I wonder if this pic was taken before baseball gloves became the norm for players?

I believe protection, gloves of some sort, for catchers came first and for the rest of the players later. According to the following website,

"One of the earliest baseball glove manufacturers was New Hampshire-based Draper & Maynard, which made its first padded glove for a Providence shortstop named Arthur Irwin in 1883."

and

"Rawlings came to the forefront of glove manufacturing in 1919, when St. Louis pitcher Bill Doak went to the company with the idea of putting a web between the thumb and index finger. Known as the Bill Doak glove, it transformed the way a baseball glove was viewed: no longer as a means of protection, but as a tool."

http://www.thepostgame.com/node/1969

BTW, just saw the "Eppie" Friedman Lederer (Ann Landers) was a graduate of Morningside College.

--- Susan

 

So was her twin sister Pauline Phillips, known as Abigail Van Buren or "Dear Abby."

Yesterday, somewhere, I thought I saw a reference to football being played at Morningside College in 1898. Of course, now I can't find it. That seemed extremely early to me.

 

The hat is most certainly odd. The pants on the other hand are rather common. (The photo I've uploaded to this response are not mine, but examples)

The Wisconsin player is from 1910-1920, and the other player C.1880-1890 (or at least so it says online) Both seem to be wearing the diamond padded pants. Seems the pants were used for a wide range of years.

 

Looks like "quilted and baggy" was the style!

 

Guess so - comfortable for easy movement and protective against both chilly weather and collisions.

 

I did purchase these two other baseball photos from the same individual. However, I'm not sure they are related to this photograph. Anywho... I've uploaded them. Sadly a bit faded.

 

I tried editing these last 2 pics in hopes of bringing up detail. The 1st pic clear up well, but I can't see any help in IDing anything. The 2nd pic is useless. Seems to have quite a bit of movement resulting in a blurred pic.

Both picture taken in the same ball park and probably during the same game. The tree line is identical in both pictures.

--- Susan

 

They certainly show that no kind of dedicated ball park is involved.

Maybe it was some kind of traveling show advertising the game.

Once, in high school, a traveling woman's softball team (5 players) showed up to take on all the athletic prowess the school could muster... a full team of gym teachers and top athletes... and whooped them real good. (One of my few fond athletic memories.)