In Volume 9 of “Base Ball – A Journal of the Early Game” [2016], Theodore A Frank, Jr. (a pseudonym) performed an analysis of the “Laws of Base Ball.” Doc Adams’ handwritten “Laws of Base Ball” were written in 1857, auctioned first in 1999, and re-discovered and auctioned again in 2016. This article evaluates the document’s content and historical significance. The following are excerpts from the a…
Continue reading →In 2016, Doc Adams’ handwritten “Laws of Base Ball” was re-discovered after being “lost” for 159 years since they were presented at the first baseball convention in 1857. The documents would be sold at auction for $3.26 million and subsequently being exhibited to the public on multiple occasions at multiple venues. Here are three questions about public displays of the “Laws of Base Ball”…
Continue reading →The long-awaited return of the “Laws of Base Ball” happens tomorrow at the National Baseball Hall of Fame. As part of the Hall of Fame’s Memorial Day Weekend, Doc Adams’ handwritten “Laws of Base Ball” will debut as part of the Taking the Field exhibit. The Hall passed on an opportunity to obtain the documents in 1967. It’s interesting that they had no interest in the docum…
Continue reading →Do You Know Doc Adams? He was a more than a player, wrote the ‘Laws of Base Ball’, and his legacy lives on. Chapter 3: His Legacy Lives On.
Continue reading →Thoughts about Doc Adams:
“He’s the true father of baseball and you’ve never heard of him.”
“Well you know Doc saved baseball.”
“I indulge the hope that the ‘spirit’ you express of being with us always, may be accompanied by t…
Continue reading →In one week, as part of the Hall of Fame’s Memorial Day Weekend, Doc Adams’ handwritten “Laws of Base Ball” debuted in the Taking the Field exhibit. The “Laws of Base Ball” will be on long-term loan and on display in the National Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY thanks to their owner, Hayden Trubitt. The documents have been described by the Hall of Fame as follows: The r…
Continue reading →Do You Know Doc Adams? He was a more than a player, wrote the ‘Laws of Base Ball’, and his legacy lives on. Chapter 2: The ‘Laws of Base Ball’.
Continue reading →An article “Exhibit Traces Local Pastime” by Brad Parks in the Ridgefield Press described a Ridgefield exhibit that detailed local ties to baseball. Of particular interest is that the exhibit included Doc Adams. Adams lived in Ridgefield from about 1865 to 1888 and was an active member of the community during that time, He was the first President of the Ridgefield Savings Bank, was involved on the Town School Committee (Board of Education), helped form the Land Improvement Association of Ridgefield, was a founder of the Ridgefield Library Association, was elected to the Connecticut State House of Representatives, and served … Continue reading →
On January 14, 1899, The New York Clipper reported the passing of Dr. Daniel Lucius “Doc” Adams—recognizing that he “took a prominent part in arranging the new codes of playing rules.” That wasn’t hindsight. That was written then— by those who witnessed the game’s formation in real time. Now, more than a century later, history speaks again. With the imminent debut at …
Continue reading →Do You Know Doc Adams? He was a more than a player, wrote the ‘Laws of Base Ball’, and his legacy lives on. Chapter 1: He Was More Than A Player.
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