Doc is Bank’s 1st President

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In 1871, Doc Adams became the first President of the Ridgefield Savings Bank (now the Fairfield County Bank, a position he would hold in two separate terms for ten of the next fifteen years. In fact, his photo still hangs in the lobby of the main office/ Fairfield County Bank is proud with their affiliation with a Founding Father of our National Pastime and they continue to support our cause as evidenced in their recent Facebook post. To see Ridgefield Bank’s post click here. Hopefully next year Fairfield County Bank will be able to brag that their 1st President is … Continue reading →

Base Ball Arithmetic

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Doc’s father, Daniel Adams MD (1773-1864) was born in Townsend, Massachusetts and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Dartmouth College in 1797 and from the second class of Dartmouth Medical School in 1799. As well as being a practicing physician, he also authored widely used arithmetic and geography textbooks (the former was in use from 1801 to c.1864). In the measurement section of his Arithmetic book, question # 11 (below) is of particular interest. Someone who would have no difficulty solving that problem was his son, Daniel Lucius ‘Doc’ Adams. Doc Adams started playing base ball in 1839. He played for … Continue reading →

Baseball Americana at the Library of Congress

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Two years ago, 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 … Continue reading →

Petition Signatures Exceed 1,250

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Not too long ago, our petition to recognize Daniel Lucius “Doc” Adams’s role as a founding father of our National Pastime exceeded 1,000 signatures. We have now exceeded 1,250! The recognition being sought is his enshrinement in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The show of support via the petition demonstrates that we are successfully telling Doc Adams story. When this journey started, few had heard of the great doctor. “He’s the true father of baseball and you’ve never heard of him,” John Thorn (the Official Baseball Historian of MLB) told The Associated Press in a phone interview. John Thorn‘s … Continue reading →

Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival CANCELLED!

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Sadly, the 23rd Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival that is held at Old Bethpage Village Restoration has been CANCELLED. The Festival has fallen victim to the Coronavirus pandemic. The longest running Vintage Base Ball festival was renamed in honor of Doc Adams in 2015. This is an important year as hopefully Doc will be elected by the Early Base Ball Era Committee in December for induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2021. We’ll look forward to the 2021 Festival!

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Doc Adams and Achieving Excellence

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193 years ago today (July 9, 1827), I was 12 and at the Kimball Union School in Meriden, NH. My father wrote me: “One of your greatest faults as a scholar is the want of perseverance, to struggle with little recurring difficulties; you too readily give up, before making suitable effort to overcome them. This propensity you must correct or you can never attain to anything great or excellent.”

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Knickerbocker BBC vs. the Excelsiors

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An account of a previous Knickerbocker-Excelsior game played on 8 July 1858 reported, regarding post-game activities, that “Our reporter—Mr. Chadwick—was called upon to respond to the toast of ‘The Press,’ but being somewhat diffident of his oratorical powers, he quietly retreated a moment before the call, having previously deputied the gentleman from the Tribune to respond, which duty he ably performed.” Significantly, this same account also included the observation that “The fielding of the Knickerbockers was marked by some excellent catches ‘on the fly.’ Their opponents seemed to prefer the surer, but less skillful method, of taking the ball on … Continue reading →

Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival Is On!

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The 23rd Doc Adams Old Time Base Ball Festival will take place at Old Bethpage Village Restoration on August 1-2. The longest running Vintage Base Ball festival was renamed in honor of Doc Adams in 2015. This is an important year as hopefully Doc will be elected by the Early Base Ball Era Committee in December for induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2021.

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