Monthly Archives: July 2025

Doc Adams – SABR’s Overlooked 19th Century Baseball Legend

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On July 31, 2014, Daniel Lucius “Doc” Adams (1814 – 1899) was selected as the 19th Century Overlooked Baseball Legend by the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR). This recognition came in the bi-centennial of his birth. Each year SABR honors a 19th century player, manager, executive or other baseball personality not yet inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Adams joined the New York Base Ball Club in 1840. By 1845, he became a member of the famed Knickerbocker Base Ball Club and was elected as its president two years later. In 1848, he … Continue reading →

Annual Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival This Weekend

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The 28th installment of the Annual Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival will take place tomorrow and Sunday, August 2-3, at Old Bethpage Village Restoration. In 2015, this longest running annual vintage base ball festival of its kind was renamed in honor of Daniel Lucius ‘Doc’ Adams. The festival is a must for baseball fans, history buffs, and anyone looking for a a day of outdoor fun. This year, The Kickerbocker Experience will be making its 3rd appearance at the festival. The club’s goal is to provide a memorable “Experience” that honors Doc Adams and the Knickerbockers. If you … Continue reading →

Annual Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival Next Weekend, August 2-3

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The 28th installment of the Annual Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival will take place next weekend, August 2-3, at Old Bethpage Village Restoration. In 2015, this longest running annual vintage base ball festival of its kind was renamed in honor of Daniel Lucius ‘Doc’ Adams. The festival is a must for baseball fans, history buffs, and anyone looking for a day of outdoor fun. If you are in the area, come on down and step back in time and watch how base ball was played in its infancy. If you’re not in the immediate area, it’s worth the trip. … Continue reading →

Reminiscing About The Hall Of Fame Class of 2022

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July 25, 2022, the Class of 2022 was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. The inductees were: Bud Fowler, Gil Hodges, Jim Kaat, Minnie Miñoso, and Buck O’Neil, Tony Oliva, and David Ortiz, as well as Tim Kurkjian (BBWAA’s Career Excellence Award} and Jack Graney (Ford C. Frick Award). For many, it was a long wait; for some, a very long wait. On the occasion that we had hoped we would see Doc Adams’ contributions and accomplishments finally honored in Cooperstown, I reflected on how we got to that point and what might be next. … Continue reading →

Are You Experienced?

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The Knickerbocker Base Ball Club has been recreated with the advent of The Knickerbocker Experience. They debuted at the Gettysburg National 19th Century Base Ball Festival in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in 2022. With the club’s special attention to historical accuracy, the debut was both fun and meaningful for ballists and cranks alike. A total of 32 clubs battled in a single elimination tournament. Once a team was eliminated from the tournament, they continued to face other clubs in festival play. The Flat Rock Bear Clan BBC of Michigan emerged victorious, defeating the Rising Sun BBC of Maryland 23-11 for the championship. … Continue reading →

In Memory Of Nancy Adams Downey

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It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Nancy Adams Downey, great-granddaughter of Daniel Lucius “Doc” Adams. She was the sister of the late Marjorie Adams, whom she helped conduct a mission to raise awareness of her great-grandfather’s contributions to the early development of our National Pastime. This, with the hope of seeing him recognized with a plaque in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. In 2021, Nancy was preceded in death by her younger sister Marjorie Adams, who spent years educating the world about their great-grand- father, Daniel “Doc” Adams, M.D., who wrote the Laws of … Continue reading →

Baseball Americana At The Library Of Congress

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In 2018, The Library of Congress hosted the Baseball Americana exhibition.  The ‘Laws of  Base Ball” authored by Doc Adams was the centerpiece of this major, year-long exhibition. The exhibition explored baseball’s past and present and how the game forged a sense of community for players and fans across the country. “The founding documents of baseball that would shape the modern game as our national pastime were ironed out in January and February 1857 at a convention called by the Knickerbockers Base Ball Club in New York City. Corrections were made by hand as the details were negotiated by New … Continue reading →

The Baseball “Patronym” Defined

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Baseball Almanac, the “official baseball history site”, has added a “Definition of Father Of Baseball” from the Dickson Baseball Dictionary. The Dictionary has been “hailed as ‘a staggering piece of scholarship’ (Wall Street Journal) and “an indispensable guide to the language of baseball” (San Diego Union-Tribune), The Dickson Baseball Dictionary has become an invaluable resource for those who love the game.” Of the 4 definitions of the “Father of Baseball”, two are of particular interest to us. 2. Patronym sometimes applied to baseball missionary Alexander Joy Cartwright (1820-1892), a bank teller and bookseller, who helped organize the Knickerbocker Base Ball … Continue reading →

Mark Your Calendar: Annual Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival

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The 28th installment of the Annual Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival will take place on August 2-3, at Old Bethpage Village Restoration. In 2015, this longest running annual vintage base ball festival of its kind was renamed in honor of Daniel Lucius ‘Doc’ Adams. The festival is a must for baseball fans, history buffs, and anyone looking for a a day of outdoor fun. Mark your calendar! Plan on coming down and step back in time and watch how base ball was played in its infancy. Even if you’re not in the immediate area, it’s worth the trip. Don’t … Continue reading →

Ridgefield Road Trip

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In 1865, Doc and Cornelia moved to a home in Ridgefield, CT on Main Street (demolished in the 1950s to make way for Ballard Park). Between 1866 and 1874, Cornelia and Doc had four children: two boys and two girls. “For the higher altitude, … for my mother’s health”. Roger Cook Adams (Doc’s son) on why his family moved to Ridgefield While no longer practicing medicine, Doc became active in his new community. In 1870, he was elected to the State House of Representatives and was also the first treasurer of the Ridgefield Library in 1871. In the same year, … Continue reading →