Doc Adams’ Handwritten “Laws of Base Ball” The Oregon Historical Society’s Baseball’s Magna Carta: Setting the Rules of America’s Game Exhibit opened on July 1, 2016. The public debut of the “Laws of Base Ball” authored by Doc Adams which sold, at auction, for a baseball document record $3,263,246. The papers were first exhibited in Portland because the new owner, who choo…
Continue reading →As Hall of Fame observed Memorial Day with their Military Classic: A Tribute to Service and Sacrifice and America 250 tributes, Doc Adams’ handwritten “Laws of Base Ball” debuted in the Taking the Field exhibit. The “Laws of Base Ball” are now on long-term loan and on display in the National Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY thanks to their owner, Hayden Trubitt. The exhibit provides fans with an opportunity to view the “Magna Carta of Baseball” and learn about the rules contained within these groundbreaking documents. Its interactive design creates an engaging experience for both youngsters and adults alike. … Continue reading →
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 →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 →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 →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 →With the ‘Rules of Base Ball’ set to debut at the Hall of Fame, attention turns to the groundbreaking “Laws of Base Ball” and the pivotal inflection point of the 1857 convention — central to Doc Adams’ Hall of Fame case…
Continue reading →The SABR Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Base Ball Conference was recently held on April 24-25 at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY…
Continue reading →On April 24, 2016, Doc Adams’ “Laws of Base Ball” auction closed at a record $3,263,246, highlighting his pivotal role in baseball’s rule-making. This document reinforces Adams’ significance as a Founding Father of baseball and supports his long-overdue induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
Continue reading →As a reminder, next month, 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 rules of baseball are engrained in the American culture to a magnitude unlike those of almost any other game. But those regulations changed repeatedly as they coalesced in the national … Continue reading →
