Doc In His Own Words

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A seminal interview of Daniel Lucius Adams, M.D. appeared in The Sporting News on February 29, 1896. This is the only known first-hand account of Doc’s memories of the game. Similar interviews (or excerpts) began to appear in newspapers across the Midwest apparently originating in The Chicago Chronicle on June 23, 1895. These short reels were shared as a “Doc In His Own Words” series. The Chicago Chronicle (June 23, 1895) The Sporting News (February 29,1896)

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2024 Video Memories

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As part of our awareness efforts this year, we shared a number of short videos about Doc Adams events and support. Due to the response, we will continue using this format in the future, Here’s a sample of this year’s videos in case you missed them.

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Classic Baseball Era Committee Doc Adams Research Guide

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Well, we had hoped that Doc Adams would be on a Hall of Fame ballot for the 2nd time. The first time, in 2015 (on the 2016 Pre-integration Era ballot), Adams missed election by just 2 votes! The Classic Baseball Era Committee has a short time to get to know the 8 candidates. They have a brief time to discuss them as a group and are heavily dependent on the historian(s) on the committee. With previous reports of the process, we thought we would try to help the committee with their research. Although that is no longer necessary since the … Continue reading →

Doc Adams Moves To Ridgefield

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In late 1865, Doc and Cornelia moved to Ridgefield, Connecticut and in 1866 the first of their four surviving children, Catharine, was born. In a family tape recording made in late 1961 by their youngest and last surviving child, Roger Cook Adams (1874-1962), explains that Ridgefield was chosen because of the “altitude” and for “my mother’s health”. In a December 1865 letter, Cornelia wrote to a cousin: We have hung some of the pictures – have the Resolutions [*] as large as life in the dining room – the glass was cracked in coming up –the only one that was … Continue reading →

Open Letter To The National Baseball Hall Of Fame

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To the National Baseball Hall of Fame, It was disappointing to see the BBWAA-appointed Historical Overview Committee strike out once again. “One of the first things that I recognized was that we couldn’t wait until 2031 to look at some of these candidates,” said Rawich, referring to those from the Negro Leagues and Early Baseball period. “Having gone through it this last time around, we saw some great conversation around various candidates.” “The Hall of Fame Shakes Up its Era Committee System Yet Again”, Jay Jaffe, FanGraphs (4/26/2022) Obviously the 2025 Classical Baseball Era ballot did not achieve this objective … Continue reading →

Open Letter To The BBWAA-Appointed Historical Overview Committee

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To the National Baseball Hall of Fame Historical Overview Committee, It was disappointing to see the Historical Overview Committee strike out once again. “One of the first things that I recognized was that we couldn’t wait until 2031 to look at some of these candidates,” said Rawich, referring to those from the Negro Leagues and Early Baseball period. “Having gone through it this last time around, we saw some great conversation around various candidates.” The committee obviously didn’t do too well on this front as 6 of the 8 candidates were active post-1960. The other 2 candidates were from the … Continue reading →

#NationalBaseballHallOfFameAndMuseumMoment Video

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In response to a “challenge” post to share a video about the Hall of Fame moment or artifact from the Hall with the tag #nationalbaseballhalloffameandmuseummoment, it was a struggle to find something Doc Adams related. The only artifact that came to mind was the Fashion Race Course game ball since Doc Adams umpired the third and deciding game of the series (September 10, 1858). There is no mention of Adams anywhere in the Hall, including in relation to this artifact. The Fashion Race Course games were the first All-Star series and were also the first games where admission was charged. … Continue reading →

Base Ball 1845-1871 By Seymour R. Church

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Written and published by San Francisco historian Seymour R. Church in 1902, “Base Ball 1845-1871” details the history and origins of baseball, from the formation of the New York Knickerbockers in 1845 through the establishment of the first professional league in 1871. It features numerous portraits of notable figures, including George Wright, shortstop for the Chicago Red Stockings, the country’s first professional team. Though intended as the first part in a larger series, later volumes were never published.  Church dscusses Doc Adams’ role with the Knickerbockers and the 1857 base ball convention that resulted in the birth of The National … Continue reading →

Famous First Facts About Sports

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“Famous First Facts About Sports” by Irene M. Franc and David M. Brownstone features more than 5,400 ‘firsts’ in more than 110 sports, covering all of the major and most of the minor sports played in the U.S. Of special interest to us is item #1191 refers to Doc Adams. Fourteen clubs sent three delegates each to the first session. Two additional clubs sent delegates to the second session. Some clubs’ delegations from the first session did not return, so the full 16 clubs never actually met together. The first order of business was for the convention to organize itself … Continue reading →