1860 Beadle’s Dime Base-Ball Player

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In the premier issue of Beadle’s Dime Base-Ball Player, Hall of Famer Henry Chadwick, expresses gratitude to his friend, Dr. Adams. Doc was also listed as delegate to the 1860 National Convention representing the Knickerbockers with his teammate, William Grenelle. As is illustrated by Doc’s name appearing in italics, he still continued to support the ‘catch on the fly’ rule. The rule change was proposed to the NABBP annually by Adams but did not pass. It wasn’t finally instituted in 1864. Doc Adams was elected the presiding officer of the first convention in 1857. The second convention was the birth … Continue reading →

The League That Failed

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“The League That Failed” (by David Quentin Voigt) cuts through the haze that surrounds 19th-century baseball history, and portrays a classic, colorful era when baseball was chaotic, struggled over by players, coaches, sportswriters, fans, and owners. It recounts the stormy atmosphere after the Inter-League Wars of 1890 and 1891, when the victorious National League made a bald-faced bid to monopolize major league baseball in the United States, succeeding for eight years with the self-styled “Big League,” which dominated the game while simultaneously gaining infamous notoriety for such high-handed acts as unilaterally capping players’ salaries, failing to protect umpires from physical … Continue reading →

First Base Ball Game At Elysian Fields

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What is often referred to as the first recorded game played under the Knickerbocker Rules (now believed to be yet another intrasquad game), took place on June 19, 1846. The Knickerbockers lost to the New York Baseball Club (aka “the New York Nine”) 23–1 in four innings. Elysian Fields First Game

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The Bat And Ball Letter

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On June 15, 1832, Doc Adams received a letter from his 11-year old sister that has become known as the “Bat and Ball letter“. In the letter his sister Nancy sent to him at school, she said, “I have not played with your bat and ball as you bid me. I forget it every morning and indeed I have not seen it since you went away”. It is the earliest known evidence of Doc’s interest in the game.

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“The Father of Baseball”: A Biography of Henry Chadwick

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In his book, “”The Father of Baseball”: A Biography of Henry Chadwick”, Andrew J. Schiff states: “At this particular stage, only one other person, Dr. Daniel “Doc” Adams of the Knickerbockers, may have had more influence. Doc Adams was elected presiding officer of the first convention of baseball players and was credited with many of the game’s early innovations.”

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Knickerbocker BBC 1855

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The annual meeting for 1855 was held on the 7th of April. The following officers were elected for the year : A. H. Drummond, President ; E. R. Dupignac, Jr., Vice-President ; Jas. W. Davis, Secretary ; Geo. A. Brown, Treasurer. Directors—D. L. Adams C. S. DeBost, Wm. B. Eager, Jr.

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A Little Knickerbocker Base Ball Club History

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On June 5, 1846, the first honorary members were elected, viz. James Lee and Abraham Tucker, At the same meeting Curry, [Doc] Adams, and Tucker were appointed a committee to arrange the preliminaries, and conclude a match with the New York Base Ball Club. From all the information the writer has been able to gather, it appears that this was not an organized club, but merely a party of gentlemen who played together frequently, and styled themselves the New York Club.  “The Book of American Pastimes”, Charles Peverelly (1866)

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