In Mackinac Island in 1871

From Protoball
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Pre-pro Baseball
Magnolia-ball-club.png

Add a Ballgame
Add a Predecessor Game
Add a Field
Add a Club
Add a Player
Add a Game Official

Base Ball Firsts
Add a Base Ball First

About Pre-pro
Waff's Game Tabulation
Bob Tholkes RIM Tabulation

Awaiting Review
Date of Game 1871
Location Mackinac Island, MI, United States
Description

"First popular on the East Coast, baseball spread west during the Civil War as Union ball players (“ballists”) shared their favorite game with other soldiers.  The game first appeared on Mackinac Island in 1871 when soldiers from Captain Leslie Smith’s 1st Regiment of Infantry, many of whom were Civil War veterans, received permission to play the game (“match”) in their spare time.  Over the next two decades baseball grew in popularity across the country and, with liberal amounts of free time and officers who encouraged physical fitness, Fort Mackinac soldiers enthusiastically joined in.

Lieutenant Edward Pratt helped form the Fort Mackinac Base Ball Club in 1885.  The thirty-two-year old lieutenant became the team captain and contributed the first four dollars to the club fund that paid for two new bats at forty-cents each and a “League” baseball which cost one-dollar and twenty-five cents.  By mid summer the team had several bats and balls, three bases, a catcher’s mask and a carefully laid out diamond on the large parade ground behind the fort.  With a copy of Spaulding’s Base Ball Guide in hand, Pratt and his men took the field."

from www.mackinacparks.com

Displays at the National Historic site, Fort Holmes, Mackinac Island, says the soldiers were playing baseball here in 1885, and soon organized a team that played other local towns, such as Mackinaw City and Cheyboygan.

Comment Edit with form to add a comment
Query Edit with form to add a query
Found by Bruce Allardice
Entered by Bruce Allardice



Comments

<comments voting="Plus" />