September 21, 1861: Harry Wright plays his first base ball game as a professional

In the early 1860s, issues of the New York Clipper, the self-proclaimed…

May 12, 1866: Atlanta’s first recorded game of base ball

Photo entitled “Famous Gate City Baseball Club of 1867”…

February 4, 1861: Brooklyn Atlantics win a baseball game on ice

“Yesterday the hazardous feat of playing a match of base ball…

September 3, 1869: Inter-racial baseball in Philadelphia

Frederick Douglass said no city was more prejudiced against colored…

August 26, 1869: Cincinnati Red Stockings: Unbeaten, But Tied

By August 1869 the Cincinnati Red Stockings had become the top…

June 15, 1869: A cunning play saves Cincinnati’s streak

Tuesday dawned gray and damp in New York City. But the sun broke…

October 7, 1867: Candy Cummings debuts the curve

One of the oldest, most venerable weapons in the pitcher’s…

October 3, 1867: “The First Colored Baseball Championship”

"Championship” is often a fluid concept when applied to 19th-century…

July 25, 1867: The most important game in baseball history?

After the famous tour of the Brooklyn Excelsiors in 1860, which…

October 1866: A return on their investment

The Brooklyn vs. New York All-Star series held in Flushing during…

July 16, 1866: Lipman Pike’s home run record

On July 16, 1866, the Athletics of Philadelphia played a ballgame…

September 28, 1865: The first fixed baseball game

The crowd at Elysian Fields in Hoboken, New Jersey, assembled…

October 14, 1862: The Martyrdom of Jim Creighton

He has been called baseball’s first superstar, its first professional,…

September 18, 1862: The ‘Silver Ball’ Game

By 1862, the unofficial title of “champion” senior club in…

July 4, 1862: The Civil War POW Game

The ballfield was surrounded by stately oak trees, sweet-water…

September 1860: The Grand Excursion, part 2: Excelsiors of South Brooklyn

Following the success of their July 1860 swing through upstate…

July 24, 1860: The first enclosed ballpark

Determining the first enclosed baseball field is a matter for…

August 23, 1860: No gentlemen’s game, Excelsior vs. Atlantic

The unofficial concept of a local “champion” among the senior…

July 1860: The Grand Excursion of the South Brooklyn Excelsiors

In the spring of 1860, the Excelsior Club of South Brooklyn laid…