Knickerbocker and Excelsior Clubs
In a game that the Knickerbockers lost to the Excelsior Club, Doc Adams batted 3rd, played 3rd-base and tallied a run.
Continue reading →Peverelly’s “American Pastimes”: 1849
Doc Adams is mentioned often in Charles A. Peverelly’s 1868 book, “American Pastimes – Containing a History of the Principal Base Ball, Cricket, Rowing, and Yachting Clubs of the United States“. The Book of American Pastimes is an American classic and one of the most significant baseball books ever written and is considered the first “official” baseball history in existence. 180 pages out of 556 are devoted to the game of baseball and team histories. It contains tough to find information regarding rosters and game scores during the 1850’s-60’s.
Continue reading →Marjorie Adams – The Ridgefield Historical Society
Marjorie Adams recently talked with the Ridgefield Historical Society about her great-grandfather, Daniel Lucius ‘Doc’ Adams, M.D. To steal a line from SABR, Marjorie draws on her family archives and ephemera in addition to more traditional sources to provide an in-depth look into the man John Thorn called “the true father of baseball – and you’ve never even heard of him!” The video presentation was posted to the Ridgefield Historical Society yesterday, August 19, 2020 and can be viewed below.
Continue reading →Memories of the Father of Base Ball (part 2)
Buffalo, New York August 1939 Written by: Roger Cook Adams “During the present year when the centennial of the first out-break of base ball is being celebrated at Cooperstown, it may be of interest to record the important part played in the development of the game by an early member of the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club of New York.” … “The first five years of the existence of the Club were evidently the hardest. Enthusiasm waned and attendance lagged. There was no inter-club rivalry, and often Dr. Adams would go to Elysian Fields and find only two or three others … Continue reading →
Heading To The Baseball Hall Of Fame: Profile Of Doc Adams
In their recent edition of “Scott House Journal” the Ridgefield Historical Society mentions Doc Adams and the hope that he will be elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the Early Baseball Era Committee this December. The article also publicizes the video presentation by Marjorie Adams, one of Doc’s great-granddaughters, that will be posted on the Ridgefield Historical Society website on August 20.
Continue reading →Father of Base Ball
The seminal interview of Doc Adams that appeared in the February 29, 1896 Sporting News has surfaced in several places previously. This version appeared in The Daily Republican on August 17, 1895.
Continue reading →Henry Chadwick On The Father of Baseball
On August 16, 1898, Henry Chadwick wrote me responding to my letter congratulating him on the title of Father of Base Ball. Mr. Chadwick wrote: “That title of ‘Father of Base Ball’ is out of place. Base like Topsy ‘never had no fader’ it growed up.” Mr.Chadwick was being modest, however there were others who could share that title. The entire letter can be read here.
Continue reading →New And Improved
The migration to a new server is complete! DocAdamsBaseBall.org is now fully operational, stable, and secure. Thank you for your patience over the last couple of weeks. Sorry again for any inconvenience. We look forward to continuing our mission to educate fans about Dr. Daniel Lucius ‘Doc’ Adams, M.D. and the importance of his contributions to our National Pastime. Thanks for your interest and continued support. We hope this will result in him finally been recognized with enshrinement in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Hopefully, as a member of the Class of 2021. Stay tuned for more information and … Continue reading →
Happy 7th Birthday DocAdamsBaseBall.org!
Doc Adams Base Ball is celebrating it’s 7th birthday! This has been nearly a decade’s long adventure. A lot has happened just since this site was established seven years ago. An engaging and memorable interview of Doc Adams (Marjorie Adams) at SABR’s 6th Annual Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Base Ball Conference in Cooperstown…. Selection of Doc Adams as SABR’s 2014 Overlooked 19th Century Baseball Legend…the longest running Vintage Base Ball festival of its kind renamed the Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival…Doc being named on the 2016 Pre-integration Era Committee Ballot… and sadly, coming up 2 votes shy of … Continue reading →
Oliver Wendell Holmes
While Doc was at Harvard Medical School he made the acquaintance of Oliver Wendell Holmes (Sr.) where they roomed at the same boarding house. In a bit of an interesting twist, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. has a tie to baseball as well. According to John Helyar’s classic, “Lords of the Realm,” baseball’s Reserve Clause dated to 1879, when the eight pro teams at the time opted to “reserve” five of their players apiece each year, preventing high salaries and free agency. The arrangement soon drew heated opposition, including in 1915 when owners of the short-lived Federal League brought an anti-trust … Continue reading →