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Central City of Syracuse
Like so many of the clubs formed during the post-war
baseball boom, the Central City Base Ball Club of Syracuse experienced many ups
and downs between their formation in 1865 and their demise at the close of the
1869 season.
A meeting to organize the new club was held in April of
1865, within days of Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Court House. A few days
later, potential members were invited to stop by the Central City Bank and affix
their name to the new club’s constitution and by-laws. Although in many ways a
continuation of the pre-war Syracuse Base Ball Club, it was decided to select a
new name and the choice was Central City – a name that served as their city’s
informal nickname and also paid tribute to the bank that initially served as the
club’s headquarters. (Syracuse Journal, April 15, 1865)
The announcement of the new club’s existence appeared on
the same day as the death of President Lincoln. A country longing to return to
normalcy the long civil war was plunged back into mourning, and it was not until
late May before Syracuse’s new ball club was heard from again. When the Central
City Club did begin in earnest, they did so with a series of intrasquad games at
Armory Park between the married and single members of the club. Somewhat
surprisingly, these games attracted large crowds and “considerable interest … as
to the result,” which spurred the new club on to begin arranging matches against
clubs from other towns. (Syracuse Journal, May 27 and June 20, 1865)
The first such match was played in Syracuse on June 2,
1865, and the opponents were the Utica Base Ball Club. Not surprisingly, the
more experienced visiting side won by the decisive margin of 38-17. But the
result was not discouraging because, as the Utica Telegraph explained,
“The Central City is a newly organized Club, and, as yet, have had but little
practice. They have the material for a good club, and it only needs practice to
secure for themselves a first class organization.” (Utica Telegraph,
reprinted in the Syracuse Journal, June 7, 1865)
A more noteworthy element of the day’s events was the
post-match feast. Such meals had been a prominent feature of antebellum
matches, but the visitors from Utica “made it a condition of their trip not to
accept or expect any of the usual club entertainments after the game, believing
it to be for the best interest and support of the national game, which should be
generally adopted.” But the Central City Club “insisted that Utica money was
not good in Syracuse, and handsomely entertained their visitors at the Sherman
House” after the match. (Utica Telegraph, reprinted in the Syracuse
Journal, June 7, 1865) The intriguing exchange was a portent of things to
come, as many of the cherished rituals associated with pre-war baseball would
prove impractical and have to be abandoned.
The Central Citys faced several other outside clubs in
1865, including the Nationals of Oswego, the Monitors of Homer, and the Mutuals
of Rochester. Yet the most notable aspect of the season’s competition was the
difficulty that the club had in arranging matches. On several occasions, the
club was forced to decline challenges because players were out of town or
unavailable, while another match was delayed when one of the nine failed to show
up. (Syracuse Journal, September 14 and October 12, 1865)
Efforts to arrange a rematch against the Utica Base Ball
Club proved especially messy. The shared feast after the June 2nd
match had inspired expectations of “a lasting and endearing friendship between
the respective clubs.” (Utica Telegraph, reprinted in the Syracuse
Journal, June 7, 1865) Instead, the men from Utica became increasingly
frustrated as the Central City Club captain J. W. Yale made excuses that “the
greater portion of the men are absent from town.”
The underlying problem was not an unwillingness to contest
matches. Rather the first nine of the Central City Club included many holdovers
from the prewar Syracuse Base Ball Club and these men had now reached an age
where there were many other claims on their time. Finally, the Central City
Club offered to send their nine to play Utica’s second nine. But what point was
there to having a first nine at all if only the second nine was available for
matches? (Syracuse Journal, undated clipping)
It had become clear by the end of the 1865 season that some
of the Central City Club’s veterans had to be replaced with young blood. As a
result, the most important match that the club played that year was probably one
against a nine from Hamilton College of Syracuse. While eking out a 12-10 win,
the Central City players became very impressed by the performances of two of the
collegians, pitcher Byron Baker and left fielder George Porter. Over the
winter, the club bowed to the inevitable and began bringing in younger players,
with Baker and Porter being two of the new men who were enlisted. In addition,
a junior club called the Olympics acted as a feeder club for the Central Citys,
providing fresh young talent whenever needed. (Charles E. Colton, “Saltine Town
Early Power in Diamond,” Syracuse Post-Standard, January 3, 1910)
Thus the 1866 campaign began with several new players who
brought renewed enthusiasm and energy. The season got off to an early start
with the election of new officers and selection of practice days taking place in
the first week of April, followed soon afterward by the first practice. (Syracuse
Journal, April 7 and 18, 1866)
When the club began to face outside competition, it appeared that there was good
basis for optimism. After warming up against the Arctics, a local junior club,
the Central Citys faced their first major challenge of 1866 on June 23rd
when they hosted the Pacifics of Rochester. The Pacifics were billed as the
champions on Monroe County, so a large crowd turned out for the match and they
were rewarded with an impressive 18-7 win for the home nine.
The match afforded more evidence that the pre-war emphasis
on baseball matches as ceremonies was being threatened by the emergence of a new
outlook. The Central City Club did its best to uphold the gentlemanly
traditions, meeting their guests at the station the night before and escorting
them to their hotels, then joining them in post-match cheers (“three rousers and
a tiger”) and a hearty match. Yet, ominously, a game account also noted that
“considerable money changed hands on the result.” (Syracuse Journal, June
25, 1866 (copied from the Standard))
Beating a strong club like the Pacifics was impressive
enough, but still more striking was the fact that the Central Citys had held
their opponents to only seven runs and had blanked them in five of the nine
innings. These were remarkable accomplishments by the rules of the day and much
of the credit went to the battery of catcher David Sanford, who was charged with
only two passed balls, and new pitcher Byron Baker.
Despite the restrictions of the day, which forced pitchers
to deliver the ball with a strict underhand motion and without bending their
arms, an account in a Rochester paper claimed that Baker gave “a great bias
[spin] to the ball, and at the same time it is slowly delivered, so as to drop
on the bat, and the consequence is, that, unless the ball is struck fairly, its
twist throws it in the air, giving, of course, a greater chance to the out
fielders.” In later articles, Baker would be described as having used “the
modern twists and curves now so common in the pitchers of to-day” and even as
“the first man to pitch a curve ball in Syracuse.” (Syracuse Sunday Times,
August 18, 1878, Syracuse Journal, November 2, 1906) These two
assertions must be taken with skepticism in light of the delivery restrictions
of the time, but it seems clear that Baker was able to put an amount of twist or
spin on his pitches that was very unusual for the time.
Sadly, however, the match against the Pacifics would be
Baker’s last. He contracted typhoid fever and died on August 26, only a few
months after having graduated with honors from Hamilton College.
The Central Citys were forced to regroup again and when
they took the field again the results were disappointing. In a lopsided
September loss to the Excelsiors of Rochester, several players were absent and
the play of those who were was “decidedly ‘muffy,’ it being the poorest game we
ever remember to have seen played by that Club.” (Syracuse Journal,
September 14, 1866) The club concluded the season by entering a tournament in
Auburn where first place was a gold ball that was to become the symbol of
regional supremacy over the next three years. George Porter of the Central
Citys won a prize at the tournament for being the best fielder, but the club
itself did not distinguish itself, being eliminated after a 44-29 loss to the
Pacifics of Rochester. The lopsided loss to the same club that Baker had held
to seven runs just a few months earlier saw another reminder of what a
devastating loss Baker’s death had been to the Central Citys.
This disheartening ending to a season that had begun so
promisingly meant that the winter of 1866-1867 was a second straight off-season
of reflection. One local journalist had very pointed advice for the Central
City club, writing that, “There are some very instructive lessons to be drawn
from the contests which have just closed. … a first class club must, if we may
so express ourselves, possess a certain amount of homogeneousness. Its members
must be somewhere nearly of an age, somewhere nearly of equal size and strength,
somewhere nearly of equal temperaments. Above all, they must be young. At a
certain age it is impossible, except in extraordinary cases, for a person to
possess the requisite quickness and the requisite muscularity to play well. He
may indulge in games for mere pleasure, he may even play in matches of little
importance, but when he comes to be pitted against youthful agility and youthful
strength he fails. The crack clubs of the sea-board cities are all composed of
comparatively young men. The two best clubs on the grounds at Auburn were made
up of players whose similarity of age and stature were evident to every
beholder. One of the Syracuse clubs – and singularly enough the one which
enjoyed the highest reputation – was notoriously unsuccessful. This fact is
mainly owing to the circumstances that the members of its first nine differ so
greatly from each other. The ages of the oldest and youngest are many years
apart; the statures of the tallest and shortest vary by many inches; the weight
of some must exceed the weight of other by as much as three score of pounds.
Under such circumstances it is surely not expected that the nine will pull
together with sufficient strength and uniformity to successfully combat an
association where there are no such differences as these.” (Syracuse Journal,
October 5, 1866)
The writer was just as adamant that the club’s first nine
needed to be chosen from men who were not so busy with business as to be unable
to practice or attend matches. “Our clubs ought already to be making their
arrangements for next summer,” he counseled. “Let each association select with
great care its first nine. In making this selection, let it look with the
utmost circumspection at the physical features and physical capacities of the
nine men upon whom the reputation of the organization must rest. Let it insist
that these men shall devote as much time to practice as possible. Let it insist
that if there be a member who can do better in any position on the grounds than
the one who holds the place, then the possessor shall gracefully give way. Let
no man be allowed to retain a post on the bases or in the field, merely because
he is a good fellow, or because he is warmly interested in the game. If he be
not the right man in the right place, he should make room for his successor.” (Syracuse
Journal, October 5, 1866)
The Central City Club’s decision-makers seem to have
reached a similar conclusion, so when the spring of 1867 rolled around several
of the older members of the first nine had been replaced by younger men. The
result of the decision was that the club had its most stable lineup that season,
rarely having to replace one of its first nine. Not surprisingly, the young
players had some early struggles, including two losses to Auburn and one to
Utica. But then the squad began to gel and produced the best season in the
club’s history.
On September 30th, the Central Citys embarked on
a five-day, five-city tour that turned out to be one of the highlights of the
club’s existence. After wins in Binghamton, Owego and Erie, Pennsylvania, the
club arrived in Buffalo to contest for the gold ball – and left town as
possessors of the coveted trophy after a thrilling 39-27. The Central Citys
completed their tour with an impressive victory over the Excelsiors of
Rochester, then returned home and successfully defended the gold ball against
the Knickerbockers of Albany.
The great winning streak and the capture of the gold ball
“raised ‘base ball excitement’ to fever heat” in Syracuse and the nine men who
became known as the “champion nine” – David Sanford, Ed Yale, Will Cruttenden,
George Porter, new pitcher Fred Dodge, Jimmy Johnson, Eugene Boswell, Teddy
Adams and Will Telford – were the toast of the town. The new champions were
treated to a sumptuous banquet at the “Plymouth Rock” and feted with speeches.
(Syracuse Journal, October 7, 1867) Local poet John Albro even
commemorated the victors in a lengthy poem that began, “Honor to the ‘Central
Citys!’/ Shout it long and loud;/ They’re the champion players/ Of which we may
be proud.” (Syracuse Journal, October 22, 1867)
Yet even in their moment of greatest triumph, there were
ominous signs of trouble ahead. At the banquet in their honor, club captain
George Porter was asked to say a few words and he had a blunt message to
deliver. Porter compared the gold ball to “a ‘white elephant,’ and the question
of holding it remained with our citizens. He stated that the financial
condition of the club was such that a proper fixing up of the grounds of the
club was out of the question, and unless something was done the ‘white elephant’
might take its departure.” (Syracuse Journal, October 7, 1867)
In response to Captain Porter’s challenge, the banquet
attendees donated $125 to replenish the club’s purse and a committee was formed
to raise additional funds. Nevertheless, Porter’s words ensured that the winter
would not merely be spent exulting in the triumph of the Central Citys, but
would also witness concern about whether the club could adapt to the changes
being brought by the sport’s shift to professionalism.
At least, for the only time in the club’s existence, the
Central City Club didn’t have to worry about its playing lineup for 1868 that
off-season – it had the luxury of knowing that its young and talented “champion
nine” would return intact. So instead the club was able to focus on the
off-field challenges it was about to face.
The 1868 annual meeting of the Central Citys was held on
April Fools’ Day and for the first time a slate of board of directors was
elected along with the other officers. This was no doubt a sign that the club
was serious about addressing its financial challenges and its need for a new
home site, but the meeting also produced some worrisome signs. Alfred
Wilkinson, a local businessman who had been involved in the local baseball scene
since before the war, was re-elected as president but declined to serve. Porter
was chosen in his stead, but he too would step down after a month. (Syracuse
Journal, April 2 and May 8, 1868)
Despite the unsettled leadership, the club pressed ahead to
address its key needs. The first priority was finding a suitable place to
play. While the Central Citys had had no trouble getting youngsters to come
watch them play at Armory Park, attracting older citizens had been a problem.
As George Geer recalled, “The crowds that attended the games [at Armory Park]
never knew or heard of the luxury of a grand stand – no, not even a bleacher, --
and all stood up through the entire nine innings of play. Occasionally some
gallant would appear on the ground with a camp stool, which he would place in
the shade of some tree for his lady, but this was a rare sight, as the crowd
would interfere with persons so situated, and it was the regular rule that if
you desired to see the game you had to stand up.” (George H. Geer, “Old Central
City Nine,” Syracuse Evening Telegram, March 22, 1900)
It was thus essential to find a more commodious place to
play, and the club’s selection was a ten-acre site on West Onondaga Street on
the outskirts of town. (The precise locale, according to a 1900 article by
Geer, was “the lowlands on the south side of Onondaga street just below its
present junction with Delaware street.” (George H. Geer, “Old Central City
Nine,” Syracuse Evening Telegram, March 22, 1900)) Choosing such a
remote site raised the obvious question of whether spectators would find it
convenient to attend. In response, the initial article that announced the
club’s move stressed that the field was only a short distance from the terminus
of the Fifth Ward streetcar, while a follow-up piece noted that passengers were
dropped off within “forty rods” of the field. (Syracuse Journal, May 23
and June 12, 1868)
The new site did have the great advantage of a level tract
of ground measuring 450 feet by 700 feet, but even so there were a great deal of
preparations to attend to in the three weeks between the lease-signing and the
home opener. Work began immediately on rolling the ground to remove
imperfections and the field was enclosed with an eleven-foot fence. Seating was
hastily constructed, and as opening day neared it was confidently announced that
there was seating for 3,000 and that the arrangements for carriages and
standing-room spectators would accommodate a crowd of 10,000. (Syracuse
Journal, May 23, June 10, and June 12, 1868)
All of this industry forced the club’s hands on two other
fronts. The first was to begin charging a hefty admission to home matches – the
club announced that all spectators would have to pay twenty-five cents to
attend, with “the season tickets of last year” not being accepted. The wording
suggests that some sort of admission fee had been charged the previous year, but
it seems likely that this was only for special seating arrangements. Now
spectators had to pay twenty-five cents just to get in, even though most of them
would have to stand around the field and hope to be able to see the action. An
additional quarter was to be charged to anyone who chose to watch the match from
a carriage. (Syracuse Journal, June 10, 1868)
These were considerable sums to expect spectators to fork
over, which meant that the Central Citys would have to schedule matches against
national powerhouses. As a result, the opponent scheduled for the home opener
on June 13th was the mighty Atlantics of Brooklyn. Scheduling
opponents of this caliber was a necessity in conjunction with the move to a new
home park, but it remained a decision that was full of risk. There were
countless logistical issues to surmount in making the new site comfortable and
convenient to spectators, and there was always the threat that bad weather could
ruin the best of preparations. Perhaps of greatest concern, the Central City
Club had never before faced one of the country’s best clubs and there was no way
to be sure that the players were up to the challenge.
Anticipation was high in Syracuse as the visit of the
Atlantics approached. The Ontario Club of Oswego chartered a special train to
Syracuse to witness the match and brought 800 Oswego residents to the new
field. “Large delegations” from many other nearby surrounding towns poured into
Syracuse and of course locals turned out for the big event. “The capacity of
the grounds of the C. C. Club,” predicted the Syracuse Journal, “will
probably be tested to its fullest extent this afternoon.” (Syracuse Journal,
June 10, 12 and 13, 1868)
Overall, the opening of the new field was a success. There
were no major problems with the arrangements and the weather – which had forced
the Atlantics’ game in Albany on the previous day – proved accommodating. The
Central Citys didn’t win the match, but they proved very competitive in a 20-14
loss to the Atlantics.
Yet after this promising beginning, the 1868 season soon
began to go downhill. The club’s ambitious plans had been fueled by the faith
that “the ‘Champion Nine’ of the Central City in full” would again represent the
club. (Syracuse Journal, June 13, 1868) Instead, one of the club’s vital
cogs, catcher David Sanford, who had earned national acclaim for his work behind
the plate, was missing from the club’s lineup in all of the club’s early
matches. The specific reason for his absence was never stated, but one article
predicted that Sanford would rejoin the Central Citys “at the urgent request of
his many friends,” an assertion that strongly implies that his decision was
voluntary and suggests that he may have been expecting more money. (Syracuse
Journal, July 3, 1868)
Whatever the reason, Sanford’s absence continued and it was
not until an Independence Day game against the Nationals of Albany that the star
catcher made his first appearance and finally enabled the Central Citys to
present their celebrated “champion nine.” (Syracuse Journal, July 6,
1868) When the Central Citys next faced a top club, Sanford was once again
conspicuously missing, “contrary to the expectation of every one present.” (Syracuse
Journal, July 10, 1868) He was back in the lineup by the end of the month,
but then suffered a string of injuries. He had to be removed from one game on
the orders of a doctor, and was unable to play at all in most other contests. (Syracuse
Journal, July 31 and September 29, 1868)
Having to play without Sanford was a devastating blow to
the Central Citys. The catcher’s position had become far and away the game’s
most crucial one, because without a capable man behind the plate a pitcher was
unable to use his best offerings (since they would go to the backstop and allow
the batter to reach first base even on a strikeout). Worse, his absence forced
the club to move another fielder behind the plate and thereby weakened another
defensive spot. Making matters worse, Telford and Boswell also disappeared from
the club’s lineup. No reason for their absence was given, but there were
several references to the club being crippled with injuries so presumably that
was the explanation.
The play of the shorthanded Central Citys deteriorated
quickly after the match against the Atlantics and the season proved a major
disappointment. While Sanford’s absence was the most glaring reason for this
turn of events, it was far from the only one. Judging from game accounts, the
performance of other players was subpar. It also seems likely that the
expectations of the club had been unrealistic from the outset. This was, after
all, a club that had never previously faced top competition, and indeed the
Central City Club won most of its 1868 matches against its traditional rivals
from towns like Oswego, Fulton, and Albany.
But that was no longer good enough, as the expectation had
been created that Syracuse was ready to emerge on the national baseball stage.
Instead, every match against a top-flight opponent produced not just defeat but
embarrassment for the Central Citys: a 41-12 thrashing by the Athletics of
Philadelphia, a 34-7 manhandling by the Unions of Morrisania, and lopsided
losses by 48-6 and 35-14 margins at the hands of the Unions of Lansingburgh
(Haymakers of Troy). As the losses mounted, dissatisfaction in Syracuse grew
and things began to unravel.
This was most noticeable in newspaper coverage of the
club. The Syracuse Journal, which had previously been supportive and
even a cheerleader for the Central Citys, changed its tone entirely. In the
club’s first match of the season, its performance was described as “not up its
usual standard, except in one or two cases.” (Syracuse Journal, May 16,
1868) Once the losses began, the coverage became increasingly harsh. Game
accounts began to be dotted with statements such as “several bad plays … made by
the C. C.’s … which should not have been, and in closely contested games are
hardly justified” and “We do not remember of having seen a game in which so much
poor infielding was done by the Central Citys as that of yesterday.” (Syracuse
Journal, July 6, August 14, 1868) Occasionally the comments took on a
personal tone. One report noted, “The loose playing of the Central City and
also their muffing continued during the game, with occasionally an exception. …
Several of the members of the C. C.’s seemed to take delight in muffing
everything that came to their hands.” (Syracuse Journal, July 10, 1868)
In addition to the grumbles in game accounts, the
Journal published one lengthy essay that expressed concern that baseball had
“become the means of a system of gambling only rivaled by the monte table and
dice boxes of professional sports.” The writer maintained that “base ball as
base ball alone, is noble; but when base ball is sold to the highest bidder, it
becomes degrading.” He then turned to the Central Citys, and while he made no
specific accusations, his comments left no doubt of his disapproval: “During the
present summer our city has been honored – we believe that is the term – by the
presence of foreign clubs. The first were met and hotly contested; the second
achieved an easy victory; while they have also been unable, from reasons
unknown, to hold their own against obscure clubs from the east. We had hoped,
for the honor of Central New York, that our city would have been able to retain
its reputation. We have no comments to make upon the playing of the home club,
further than that we consider it unfortunate that it is so crippled in its
selection of men. As it now stands, the olive crown has departed, prestige
gone, and the relaxation of energy taken the place of earnest action.” (Syracuse
Journal, July 13, 1868)
As the mood in Syracuse soured, a similar dissatisfaction
began to become evident among the players. During the trouncing at the hands of
the Athletics, “they became more ‘demoralized’ than was the Union army at the
battle of Bull Run.” (Syracuse Journal, July 2, 1868) After another
match, the Central City players were chastised for indulging in “chin music” –
which presumably meant arguing with the umpire. (Syracuse Journal, July
10, 1868) Captain George Porter, who had already resigned the club presidency,
now stepped down as captain and was replaced by Ed Yale. (Syracuse Journal,
July 25, 1868)
The conduct of spectators at the matches also became a
concern. A group of “young roughs” began climbing the trees near the field to
watch the game for free and then directing “insulting epithets, hisses, groans,
et cetera” toward the visiting players. (Syracuse Journal, July 10,
1868) The club was forced to saw off the lower branches of these trees near
the field and to tar the trunks. (Syracuse Journal, July 28, 1868)
Some of the paying spectators also joined in the catcalls,
but a much more serious problem was convincing these people to continue
attending games. The match against the Athletics attracted a sizable crowd, but
a “large portion of the spectators left the ground about the middle of the game,
having become disgusted with the loose work on the part of the C. C.’s.” (Syracuse
Journal, July 2, 1868) Naturally, those who made early exits were not
inclined to return to future matches.
The decrease in attendance at the expensive new park had a
predictable effect on the club’s finances. The club president was forced to
place a statement in the local paper to the effect that only members of a
three-man committee were authorized to make contracts for the Central Citys and
that no other bills would be honored. (Syracuse Journal, June 26, 1868)
The club did not stand idly by as the season unraveled, and
indeed tried several different approaches to try to revive local baseball
enthusiasm. The most obvious course was to bring in imported professionals, but
the club’s directors appear to have concluded that the mood in Syracuse to such
new arrivals would be too hostile. Indeed, throughout the club’s five-year
existence, it frequently enlisted players from surrounding towns – pitcher Fred
Dodge from Skaneateles, Baker from Lafayette by way of Hamilton College, Will
Cruttenden from Cazenovia and Leonard Fancher from Baldwinsville – but never
once brought in a player from any greater distance.
The wisdom of this decision was revealed when the club
began using Patrick Grace to fill the huge hole left behind the plate as a
result of Sanford’s absence. Grace appears to have grown up in Syracuse – he
was living there with his parents and younger siblings as of 1870 – but he had
played for the Knickerbockers of Albany in 1867. He joined the Central Citys in
June of 1868 and although at the time there was no allusion to his being a
professional, his obituary acknowledged that a business position in Syracuse had
been found for him. His change of clubs prompted a complaint from his old club,
although the Syracuse Journal insisted that Grace had resigned from the
Knickerbockers in October of 1867 and become a member of the Central Citys on
June 26, 1868. (Syracuse Journal, August 12 and 14, 1868) The
controversy soon died down, but the fact that even the use of a local like Grace
could raise ire made it very clear that Syracuse would not accept outside
professionals.
So the Central City Club began looking at other options to
revive their sagging fortunes. One of the first proposals was to schedule a
tour, an idea that had worked so successfully the previous season. Arrangements
got far enough that tentative plans for a fourteen-game, three-week tour that
would take the club to Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago, Milwaukee, Madison.
Rockford, St. Louis, Cincinnati and Pittburgh were announced. (Syracuse
Journal, August 5 and 13, 1868) But for unknown reasons, the tour was
cancelled.
A variety of other ideas were considered, including even
discussion of changing to a new uniform. (No contemporaneous description of the
uniform of the Central Citys has been found, but a later account described it as
“a deep plaid black and white check flannel with a red ‘C. C.’ monogram on the
breast.” (Syracuse Sunday Times, August 18, 1878)) Eventually, however,
the club ceased playing national powers and refocused its attention on the gold
ball that symbolized supremacy of Central and Western New York. By doing so,
they were able to revive some of the lost enthusiasm for baseball in Syracuse,
though their success was mixed.
The Central Citys successfully defended the gold ball on
July 30 with a 33-21 win over the trophy’s previous holders, the Niagaras of
Buffalo. Just as important, more than 1200 spectators flocked to the club’s new
grounds to watch the match, and the next day’s Syracuse Journal published
a long and laudatory account. (Syracuse Journal, July 31, 1868) Things
were looking up again.
In their next title defense, however, the Central Citys
fell victim to “overconfidence.” Against the visiting Ontarios of Oswego, the
Central City Club grabbed a big early lead but then commenced to play in a way
that “would not have reflected credit upon even a ‘juvenile’ club.” Going to
the eighth inning, the home side was still ahead 25-15 but then the bats of the
Ontarios got hot and those of the Central Citys became cold, with the result
that the visitors scored eleven unanswered runs and captured the gold ball by
the margin of a single run. (Syracuse Journal, undated clipping)
The Central Citys immediately issued a challenge for a
rematch, and when the game came off on September 15th it provided a
vivid demonstration of just how much the competition for the gold ball had done
to renew baseball enthusiasm. A special train was run from Syracuse to Oswego
to accommodate the hundreds of spectators anxious to see if the Central Citys
could recapture the prized trophy. Before the game began, there was a dispute
over the intention of the Ontarios to use pitcher Gerrit Miller, a Harvard
student who had recently arrived in Oswego.
Finally, the match was commenced under protest and it
proved a tense, closely fought contest throughout. The Central Citys staved off
a couple of runs by means of “sharp practice” but their effort to use Charles
Colton in relief of a tiring Fred Dodge led to a ruling that he was illegally
“jerking” the ball, with the result that Dodge had to return to the pitcher’s
box. After seven innings, the home side was clinging to a one-run lead but this
time it was the Central Citys who surged ahead in the final two innings to win
by a 30-27 count and reclaim the gold ball. (Syracuse Journal, September
14, 1868; Oswego Advertiser, reprinted in the Syracuse Journal,
September 17, 1868; Syracuse Journal, September 16 (?), 1868)
The Central Citys made one final defense of the gold ball
in October against the Excelsiors of Rochester but the game ended in rancor.
The Excelsiors held a commanding 30-16 lead after completing their at bats in
the top half of the fifth inning, but it proved too dark at that point to
complete the fifth inning and make the game official. The result was that the
Central Citys retained the gold ball, while the Rochester papers angrily accused
the Syracuse players of having deliberately “jockeyed the game until darkness
came on and it had to be called.” (Rochester Democrat, reprinted in the
Syracuse Journal, October 9, 1868)
It was an unfortunate way to end the 1868 campaign, but in
some ways an appropriate coda to a season that had fallen far short of the lofty
expectations of the Central Citys, but which had at least seen a significant
revival in interest during the final two months as a result of the increased
emphasis on the gold ball.
The up and down 1868 season ensured that the winter would
be another one in which the club’s direction would be subjected to
reexamination. Quite a bit of thought appears to have gone into the matter,
with one meeting of the board of directors even taking place in mid-February. (Syracuse
Journal, February 19, 1869) By the time the spring rolled around, a
decision had been made.
The Central Citys reorganized for the 1869 season in the
middle of April and announced a new board of directors, a new captain (Jim
Johnson), a new practice schedule and a new direction – the club adopted a
resolution to henceforth be “strictly an amateur organization.” (Syracuse
Journal, April 24, 1869) Precisely what was meant by this resolution cannot
be determined because we cannot be sure of the extent to which professionalism
had infiltrated the club in 1868. It is known that Grace was offered a position
in Syracuse, and it seems likely that Sanford’s mysterious absences had a
financial component. But beyond that lie nothing but questions: Were the
players dividing the gate receipts? Were those proceeds divided evenly or based
on ability? Were any or all of the players receiving supplementary income or
preferential treatment at work? Were such payments, if they occurred, looked
upon as reimbursements for expenses and lost wages or as a salary?
Since there is no way to definitively answer these questions, it is impossible
to be certain of the extent to which the new policy represented a change. But
it is clear that the new direction was taken seriously by the club, as a
three-man committee of Alfred Wilkinson, F. A. March and Park Wheeler – all of
whom had served as club president – was appointed to “carry out the sense of the
resolution.” (Syracuse Journal, April 24, 1869) In addition, however far
the Central City Club had gone down the road toward professionalism in 1868,
that fact that the club was now retreating from professionalism was an important
statement.
Yet even while the club was redefining itself as a purely
amateur organization, it was reaffirming its intention to remain active. Plans
were announced to host a “grand tournament” in June, with the celebrated gold
ball as a reward to the victors. (Syracuse Journal, April 24, 1869)
The plan to revert to strict amateurism was met with
initial optimism that the result would be “a return to the old feeling of
interest which characterized the club in the palmy days of yore.” (Syracuse
Journal, June 20, 1869) One early-season game account reported that the
club’s play was again beginning to resemble “that done two years since.” (Syracuse
Journal, undated clipping) Instead, once the 1869 season got under way it
more closely resembled the disastrous first two months of the preceding
campaign.
The first scheduled match of the year was to be a marquee
showdown in which the Central Citys were to host the Red Stockings of
Cincinnati, at the outset of the first road trip of their historic undefeated
season. But in a portent of things to come, that match was rained out, while
the planned tournament was also canceled for reasons unknown. When the Central
Citys finally did play their first match of the season the opponents were the
Pastimes of Little Falls, New York. It was quite a comedown from playing the
Red Stockings – especially when the club from Little Falls won.
Baseball matters in Syracuse remained sluggish until
mid-June, when the Central City Club held a meeting and elected a first nine for
the season. Gone were stalwarts like Dodge, Cruttenden, Yale, Telford and
Sanford (although all but the final two did play for the club that season). In
their places were a slew of new faces, including teenagers liked Horatio White
and Herbert Stark. It was the latest youth movement for the Central Citys, and
it would prove to be their last.
The new lineup made its debut on July 2, 1869, and the game
ended in disappointment when the Alerts of Rochester staged a ninth-inning rally
to send the Central Citys to another loss. The opponents in the club’s next
outing were the Shermans of Utica, but this match ended in a tie, leaving the
Central Citys still winless for 1869. Undeterred, the club set out on a tour –
only to lose in Buffalo, lose in Cleveland, lose in Detroit, and lose twice in
Cincinnati before finally beating the Niagaras of Buffalo 18-15 on August 7th
to finally record the elusive first win of the season.
The club returned home and soon discovered that Syracuse
had lost all interest in their doings. They played two more matches against
top-flight nines, but neither produced satisfactory results. A match against
the Eckfords of Brooklyn resulted in a 41-13 loss that prompted the Journal
to write, “The Central City Club won no laurels by their playing of yesterday,
and with several exceptions, we seldom saw more ‘muffs’ and ‘logy’ actions than
were exhibited yesterday.” (Syracuse Journal, August 11, 1869) One final
attempt was made, but the 39-11 loss at the hands of the Forest Citys of
Cleveland was wearily described as “one of the poorest we ever saw them play.” (Syracuse
Journal, September 15, 1869)
In 1868, the Central City Club’s lackluster performances
against top-notch clubs had been partially offset by renewed enthusiasm over the
gold ball. By contrast, the 1869 season saw little local interest in anything
the club did. In August, for example, the club again announced its intention to
host a tournament, only to again see the plans fall through. (Syracuse
Journal, August 23, 1869) Even when the club played a benefit game for the
victims of a catastrophic fire at a Pennsylvania mine, the turnout “was
disgraceful to the people of Syracuse, considering the charitable uses for which
the receipts are intended.” (Syracuse Journal, October 2, 1869)
Meanwhile the few fans who did turn out were being constantly berated for their
conduct, whether it was for “getting inside the barriers” or for “the hoots and
yells of mischievous boys and loaferish men.” (Syracuse Journal,
September 1 and August 11, 1869, also September 13, 1869)
Toward the end of the season, the Central Citys finally
managed to string together a few wins before closing their season with a contest
against the Ontarios of Oswego on October 9th. The game proved
tightly fought, with the Ontarios finally pulling out a 29-27 victory. It was
the last match ever played by the Central City Base Ball Club of Syracuse.
That winter the Central Citys passed quietly out of
existence, but Syracuse was not without a marquee baseball club for long. The
city was full of “young Syracusans who stood about Armory park and watched the
Central Citys play ball” and then formed their own junior clubs. (George H.
Geer, “Old Central City Nine,” Syracuse Evening Telegram, March 22,
1900) One of these clubs, the Stars, stepped into the void left by the demise
of the Central Citys and by the mid-1870s had acquired a national reputation.
The final two campaigns of the Central City Club had been
difficult ones and over the next few years it appears there was some bitterness
over the way things ended. Eventually, however, any ill will faded and locals
began to look back on the Central Citys with nostalgia.
In particular, reminiscences about the whereabouts of the
gold ball began to abound. An 1878 article boasted that “the ball is still the
property of the C. C.’s and remains ‘on deposit’ in one of our banks. At the
time of its coming into possession of the Central Citys, we learn that one of
our jewelers pronounced it worth nearly $500.” (Syracuse Sunday Times,
August 18, 1878) Around 1889, the gold ball resurfaced when it was used to pay
a bill at a Syracuse hotel, though by then much if not all of the original gold
had disappeared. (Tony Kissel, “The Pumpkin and Cabbage Tournament of 1866,”
Baseball Research Journal 24 (1995), 33) By 1900, the ball had come into
the possession of a cigar dealer named Homer A. Ostrander. There was still no
gold and the ball now looked “badly dilapidated,” but Ostrander did placed it in
an attractive new case to show it off to local baseball enthusiasts. (George H.
Geer, “Old Central City Nine,” Syracuse Evening Telegram, March 22, 1900)
And as of 1920, the ball had passed into the possession of Will Cruttenden.
In addition, many who remembered the Central Citys soon
forgot the club’s struggles while the good times remained treasured memories.
For example, Charles Colton, by then a renowned architect, reminisced about the
club in 1910 and some of the details he provided cannot be reconciled with
contemporary accounts. Nonetheless, he surely captured an essential truth when
he wrote, “Those were halcyon days for local pride over baseball victories.
Great crowds surrounded the telegraph office to hear the results by innings and
good news was the signal for gladsome shouting.” (Charles E. Colton, “Saltine
Town Early Power in Diamond,” Syracuse Post-Standard, January 3, 1910)
Sources: The Onondaga Historical Association has an
excellent collection of clippings from the Syracuse Journal during the
five-year existence of the Central Citys that are the primary source of this
piece. The articles are hand-dated, which is why some dates are unknown and
others questionable. Several very helpful retrospective accounts of the club’s
doings appeared in later years: an article in the Syracuse Sunday Times,
August 18, 1878, a reminiscence by Charles Colton in the Syracuse
Post-Standard of January 3, 1910, and a reminiscence by an unidentified
member of a Syracuse amateur club that appeared in the Syracuse Journal
on November 2, 1906. Tony Kissel’s “The Pumpkin and Cabbage Tournament of
1866,” in the Baseball Research Journal 24 (1995), 30-33, offers a fine
summary of the tournament at which the gold ball was first offered. Also of use
was a long club history by George Geer in the Syracuse Telegram of March
22, 1900. Unfortunately, Geer’s account includes many details that appear to be
simply fiction – most notably a tie game that the Central Citys supposedly
played against the Red Stockings of Cincinnati – so I have used it with great
caution. Charles E. Colton’s “Saltine Town Early Power in Diamond,” from the
Syracuse Post-Standard, January 3, 1910, is also marred by questionable
statements, but useful at capturing the spirit of the club. Obituaries of
several club members filled in additional details. Special thanks to Larry
McCray and Craig Potkay for their help.
CLUB MEMBERS
Teddy Adams: Ted or Teddy Adams is the most baffling
mystery among the players of the Central Citys. He became the club’s shortstop
in 1865 and was a fixture there for most of the club’s existence, with the
exception of the 1866 season. George Geer later called him “the famous Ted
Adams” and maintained that “the press of the country had it that Adams played
the [shortstop] position second to none,” even comparing him to George Wright.
No doubt this was an exaggeration, but Adams was deemed good enough to spark
rumors he would sign with the professional Troy Haymakers after the Central
Citys gave up baseball in 1870. An 1878 article reported that he was still
living in the area, and in 1900 George Geer wrote, “Shortstop Ted Adams is still
residing here, and likes to talk over old days with the present generation.”
Then a 1908 piece reported that he was living in Rochester. But the only
Theodore Adams who ever appears in the census in Syracuse is much too young to
be the ballplayer, and doesn’t match any of the other known facts.
Byron W. Baker: Baker was born on December 15, 1842, in
Lafayette, and in 1862 he entered Hamilton College in Syracuse. During his four
years there, he became known for his skill in oratory and for his work as the
pitcher for the baseball nine. He pitched so well in an 1865 contest against
the Central City Club that that club soon enlisted his services and that of
teammate George Porter. Baker earned his degree from Hamilton College with
honors in the spring of 1866 and became the pitcher of the Central City Club.
He did brilliantly in his first match and, as described in the club history, was
credited with using some sort of predecessor of the curveball. But shortly
thereafter he contracted typhoid fever and returned to his home in Lafayette,
where he died on August 26, 1866. His death prompted the Sigma Phi Society of
Hamilton College and the Central City Base Ball Club to meet and pass
resolutions in honor of his memory. The members of the ball club also resolved
to wear badges of mourning for the next thirty days.
Charles Barnes: Charles Barnes was born in Tenterden,
England, on May 22, 1837, and followed his brother to Syracuse while still
young. In March of 1865, he graduated from the Philadelphia Dental College and
returned to Syracuse to practice dentistry. He became a regular for the Central
City Club in 1865 and 1866. But by then he was nearly thirty and no doubt he
was one of the players that a local sportswriter was thinking of when he
counseled the club that it was time to begin using younger players. Barnes was
used only as a replacement in 1867 and not at all thereafter. He helped
organize the Dental Society of the State of New York and served as its secretary
for many years. His health began to fail in 1894 and he died on June 3, 1894,
in Middletown, New York.
George Barnes: George Barnes was born in Tenterden,
England, on October 1, 1827. He began working in the office of a local
solicitor at the age of 13, then four years later was convinced by his uncle to
emigrate to the United States. Upon arriving in Syracuse, he worked as a mason
and as a clerk before obtaining a good position with the Syracuse and Utica
Railroad. In 1856, he moved to Ohio to work for the Marietta and Cincinnati
Railroad, but that railway soon experienced financial setbacks and Barnes soon
returned to Syracuse. It was over the next few years that he was an active
member of the Syracuse Base Ball Club. In 1860, he and a partner opened a
business that manufactured mower and reaper knives and cast steel. Eventually
the two parts of the business were divided, and Barnes created a knife-making
firm that became highly successful, employing some 1,500 workers and doing
business all over the world. George Barnes also helped found that State Bank of
Syracuse and the Trust and Deposit company of Onondaga County. Barnes was a
large, powerfully built man who retained an interest in baseball and cricket
throughout his life. During the 1880s, however, he became afflicted by
locomotor ataxia, a disease that left him in constant pain. He died on October
17, 1892, in New York City, while returning home from a trip to Europe that he
had taken in hope of reviving his flagging health.
Eugene S. Boswell: Eugene “Buzzy” Boswell was born around
1851 and became a prominent part of the Central City club’s 1867 youth
movement. While playing for the club, he worked as a postal clerk and route
agent. In 1870, he went into business in Syracuse, but before long he decided
to move west. He ran a hotel in Denver for many years, and as of 1920, he was
living in Long Beach, Califonia.
Frank Manley Bonta: Bonta was the club’s longtime scorer
and also played for the second nine. He was born on April 14, 1845, in Amber,
New York, and eventually moved to the nearby city of Syracuse, where he became a
teller for the Salts Springs National Bank. He was still alive as late as 1930,
living in Manhattan at the time.
Oscar L. Brownell: Oscar Brownell was born in Solon,
Cortland County, on June 9, 1841. He moved to Syracuse and opened a grocery
store at the corner of James and Warren Streets, while also serving as recording
secretary and one of the principal decision-makers for the Central Citys. He
retained an interest in baseball and played a major role in the transition of
the Syracuse Stars to fully professional status in the mid-1870s. Brownell
later ran a Syracuse hotel. He died on April 21, 1900.
George G. Campbell: George Campbell was born around 1845 in
New York State. He became a saloon keeper in Syracuse and was prominently
involved in the management of the Syracuse Stars of the 1870s and of several of
the minor league clubs that represented the city in the mid-1880s. He later
moved to Manhattan, where he was living as of 1910. He appears to have died
around 1920.
Francis Edward Carroll: Frank Carroll, the first president
of the Central City Club, was born in Philadelphia on November 16, 1830, the son
of Irish immigrants. He moved to Syracuse in 1849 and opened a store that sold
gas fixtures and plumbing supplies. He served as an alderman during the 1860s
and then was elected mayor in 1871. After serving two one-year terms, he
returned to private life but his business had suffered while he was mayor and he
was forced to close the store. He became a plumber and remained in Syracuse
until his death on April 16, 1912.
Charles Erastus Colton: Charles Colton was born in Syracuse
on November 12, 1847. He saw some action for the Central Citys in 1865, then
played for another local club called the Arctics in 1866 and 1867 before
rejoining the Central City Club for its final two seasons. In the mid-1870s, he
began to study in the office of local architect. He became one of Syracuse’s
best-known architects, designing City Hall and many other public buildings,
schools and fire houses. He was eventually offered the position of state
architect by New York Governor David Hill but declined. In 1910, Colton wrote a
reminiscent article about the “halcyon days” when he played baseball for the
Arctic and Central City clubs. Around then his health began to fail and he died
in Syracuse on July 18, 1914.
William Henry Cruttenden: Will Cruttenden was born in May
of 1843 and grew up in Cazenovia. He briefly attended seminary, but then moved
to Syracuse to learn the jewelry trade in the store of Syracuse jeweler and
watchmaker Dennis Valentine. While there, he became a regular for the Central
Citys during their youth movement of 1867 and remained on the first nine for the
next two years. He worked as a jeweler in several cities over the next few
years, but in 1870 he returned to Cazenovia and opened a jewelry store. He
became one of the city’s best-known merchants, and in 1920 celebrated his golden
anniversary of doing business in Cazenovia. He was also a prominent civic
leader, serving as president, clerk, trustee and treasurer of the village
offices and as chief of the volunteer fire department, while also leading and
being drum major in a twenty-four man town band. In addition, Cruttenden
retained his interest in baseball, managing the Cazenovia town team and
frequently returning to Syracuse to cheer on the minor-league Stars. A 1920
article stated that Cruttenden had become the possessor of the famous gold ball
from the 1866 Auburn Tournament. He lived a long life and had the misfortune of
outliving his wife and both of his children before dying in Cazenovia on March
28, 1928.
Fredric Dodge: Fred Dodge was born around 1845 and was a
native of Skaneateles. After pitching for a club called the Lake Shores, he
became the Central City Club’s pitcher in 1867 after the death of Byron Baker.
He was the club’s primary pitcher for two years, but returned to Skaneateles for
good in 1869. There he worked as a printer and as the manager and editor of
Skaneateles Democrat. He died unexpectedly on September 5, 1886, of an
apparent heart attack.
Patrick A. Grace: Patrick Grace was born in Ireland around
1847 but moved to the States while young. He appears to have grown up in
Syracuse but was playing for the Knickerbockers of Albany in 1867 when his fine
work behind the plate caught the eye of members of the Central City Club. He
soon joined the Central Citys, in a move that created considerable controversy.
At the time there was no overt admission that he was a professional, but his
obituary was a bit more forthright, stating that “a business position was found
for him in Syracuse.” In 1874, Grace moved to California where he worked for
the next twelve years. Shortly after returning to Syracuse, his health failed
and he died there on December 18, 1886, leaving a wife and five young children.
John E. Harwood: John Harwood was born around 1846 and
served in the Civil War. He became the pitcher of the Central Citys in 1869,
then later owned an engraving store in Syracuse. He died around 1929.
James T. Johnson: Born in 1845 and raised in Syracuse, Jim
Johnson became one of the mainstays of the Central City Club. A later article
described Johnson as “the famous batsman of the team, and it was the regular
thing for the favorite Jimmy to hit that ball clean over the old armory building
and into the old creek in the rear.” He was one of the few members of the first
nine to be involved in the club’s business affairs, serving as the club’s
treasurer in 1868. Johnson was the son of the local grocer and he was being
groomed to take over the business. But he died on September 13, 1875, at the
age of 30.
James G. Noakes: James Noakes was born on February 4, 1840,
in Sussex, England. After emigrating to the U.S., he married a Syracuse woman
in 1862. He served in the Civil War as a musician for the 149th New
York and was taken prisoner at Chancellorville. After the war, he became a
regular in the outfield of the Central Citys in 1868, and later played for a
local cricket club. He worked as the foreman of a picture frame shop and was
still living in Syracuse at the turn of the century. The exact date of his
death is not known, but his wife filed for a Civil War’s widow pension and the
date on the application appears to read July 31, 1909.
George A. Porter: George Porter was born in Syracuse around
1846 and attended Hamilton College. When the Hamilton College nine played the
Central Citys in 1865, the play of two collegians – pitcher Byron Baker and
Porter in left field – attracted attention and both were asked to join the
Central City Club. Upon graduation, he joined his father in the salt business.
He and his father also established a successful foundry, with George Porter
becoming its treasurer and general manager. He was also the longtime organist
of Syracuse’s First Presbyterian Church and a member of the National Guard. He
moved to Chicago in 1889 and died there two years later, on October 5, 1891, of
Bright’s disease, leaving a wife and five children.
David Sanford: David Sanford was born on December 20, 1845,
in Glens Falls, New York. His father was a well-to-do lumber dealer and the
family moved to Syracuse in 1857. David Sanford became the Central City Club’s
regular catcher in 1865 and his work behind the plate made him the club’s most
celebrated player. In 1900, George Geer maintained that, “Sanford is said to
have been the first player in the country who stood up close behind the batsman
to catch the ball. On the occasion of Sanford’s first attempt at this new mode
of catching there was great amazement expressed by the players of both clubs and
the onlookers, and there were those present who were certain that Dave Sanford
had gone clean crazy. Fred Dodge, the Central City’s pitcher, refused to pitch
the ball unless Sanford went back to his old position near the backstop. The
police came onto the ground and notified Dave that he would be placed under
arrest if he persisted in catching up close to the batsman. The police insisted
that Sanford was attempting suicide. After much persuasion Sanford was
prevailed upon to forego the attempt for the time being, but after the game was
over Dave induced Jimmy Johnson to pitch to him, and one of the other players
took a bat, and it was only a few moments before Sanford convinced those present
that the trick could be done.” Geer claimed that Sanford’s picture appeared on
the front page of the New York Clipper with the inscription, ‘David
Sanford, Champion Catcher’ while another article reported that Sanford was
featured in Frank Leslie’s magazine. But as discussed in the club history,
Sanford played only a few games after the triumphant 1867 season and his absence
was one of the reasons for the club’s decline. After his playing days ended,
Sanford worked for a local picture framer. On the evening of Saturday, December
3, 1893, he went to a local tavern for an evening of heavy drinking. In the wee
hours, he fell down a flight of stairs and by morning he had died from his
injuries.
Herbert Stark: Herbert Stark was born in 1853 and was a
member of the Stars before joining the Central Citys for the 1869 season. He
later moved to Trinidad, Colorado, and reported in 1882 that he was a
confectionary manufacturer, the holder of the city seal, foreman of a volunteer
fire company, end man in a church choir, and captain of the Trinidad Base Ball
Club. As of 1887, he was postmaster of Trinidad.
William L. Telford: Will Telford was born in Iowa around
1847 but moved to Syracuse at a young age with his widowed mother. He became
known as a great all-around athlete and was one of the Central City club’s
mainstays in 1867. In the late 1870s, he moved with his wife and daughter to
Emmetsburg, Iowa, where he worked as a law clerk. He died there on December 31,
1897.
Horatio Stevens White: Horatio White was born in Syracuse
in 1852 and became the catcher of the Central Citys in 1869. He then enrolled
at Harvard, where he captained the baseball nine for three straight years
(1871-73). A few years later, another Harvard catcher would introduce the
catcher’s mask, but White had no protection at all except, as he later recalled,
he “was accustomed to bite upon a large rubber eraser, to prevent dental
demolition, with a surreptitious supplementary duplicate to lend to envious and
suppliant professional backstops. But this was the principle concession made for
defensive armor.” Horatio White’s catching at Harvard was so skillful that it
was later claimed that Harry Wright offered him a generous contract to play
professional ball for the Boston Red Stockings. But White was more interested
in continuing his education, which he did at the University of Glasgow, earning
an LL.D. He then joined the faculty at Cornell University in 1876, teaching
German and Latin and becoming the dean in 1888. After a quarter-century on the
Cornell faculty, he returned to his alma mater in 1902. White had continued to
take a great interest in athletics during his years at Cornell and he also did
so upon his return to Harvard, serving as chairman of the Athletic Committee –
thus effectively being the school’s athletic director. He also taught German
and found time to publish a number of books, including Elementary German,
Deutsche Volkslieder: A Selection from German Folk-Songs, Selections from
Heine’s Poems and Memorials of Willard Fiske. White retired in 1919
but remained in Cambridge as a professor emeritus until his death on December
12, 1934.
A. E. Yale: Ed Yale was a prominent member of the Central
Citys, and George Geer would later rave, “Yale was known as ‘Old Bushel Basket’
on account of the size of his hands. It seemed almost an impossibility for Yale
to miss a thrown ball.” Information on him is nonetheless scarce. He was a
younger brother of John W. Yale who was born around 1835 and whose full name
appears to have been Andrews Edward Yale. He was living in Harrison, New
Jersey, as of 1910.
John Wesley Yale: John W. Yale was born on December 17,
1832, in Scipio, New York. During the war, he moved to Syracuse and became a
very successful wallpaper merchant. He was also prominent in Democratic politics
and served as a Colonel in the National Guard. Yale remained involved in the
activities of Syracuse’s professional clubs during the 1880s and of his
daughters married George Frazier, manager of Syracuse’s National League club.
The marriage, however, ended in divorce and with Frazier suing his father-in-law
for alienation of affection. Yale died in Syracuse on June 26, 1900.
Also: Jerome Clark (player in 1866; Lyman Clark, proprietor
of the St. Charles Hotel, was also involved but was not a player), Leonard
Fancher, Henry Farrer, T. W. Fitch, T. H. Gilbert, W. H. Graves, H. Loomis, F.
A. Marsh (club president in 1866), Levi Mayo (of SBBC), Franklin D. Mosher,
Matthew J. Myers, Will Page (manager), John Ryan, Schoeffel, Sedgwick, Stone, W.
P. Stewart, Frank Waggoner, E. E. Weiskotter, Major Park Wheeler (club
president), Alfred Wilkinson, D. P. Wilkinson
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