The Following story was done by Charlie Weatherby for SABR.  It was pulled from the SABR website for informational purposes for our readers.  It should not be re-used without the author’s permission.  This story is about the history of one of the newer clubs to join the MAVBBL.  We hope you enjoy it!

Brandywine Baseball Club (West Chester, PA)

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1903 Brandywine Baseball ClubSeveral varieties of bat-and-ball games were popular in early 19th-century Philadelphia and it took more than three decades for players to formally organize the sport of baseball. According to author John Shiffert, “Philadelphia, Philadelphia organizations, Philadelphia players and Philadelphia administrators all played a vital role in the development of the National Pastime. … Thus, when two groups of young men banded together to form the first true organized ballclub, the Olympic Town Ball Club of Philadelphia [in July 1831], they moved the game in the direction of organized sport.”1

As the sport became popular, clubs from other parts of the area followed: Minerva in 1857 and Keystone, Mercantile, Athletic, Equity, Winona, and Hamilton in 1860. Another seminal event was the formation of the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) in 1857. The original convention of 16 New York amateur clubs grew to 50 (including New Jersey and Pennsylvania teams) within two years and established rules of play.

West Chester, the county seat of Chester County, is 25 miles west of downtown Philadelphia and had a population of 4,757 in 1860, when, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer, a group of players began using the Brandywine name. It eventually survived as an amateur and semipro organization for over 50 years, produced a number of major-league players, and, in the opinion of the Sunday Morning Star of Wilmington, Delaware, “cut a wide swath on the diamonds of the several counties adjoining.”2 For many years, locals referred to Brandywine as “Them Noteds.”3

1865

After several years of playing under the Brandywine name, a group of 25 to 30 young professional men, students, and clerks formally organized as the Brandywine Baseball Club in late September. Members gathered daily at 4:30 P.M. for “manly exercise” in the open square south of Union Street between High and Walnut. William B. Waddell, Esq., a prominent attorney, politician, and future trustee of West Chester State Normal School, was appointed club president. Civil War veteran and portrait photographer Thomas W. Taylor was the club’s first captain and the second baseman, a position he held for over 18 consecutive years without missing a game. In the Inquirer’s opinion, Taylor “was the yeast cake that leavened the baseball dough in this section. … The Brandywine club owed its very existence [to him] in the early days.”4

One of Brandywine’s first games was a 31-18 loss to Excelsior of Westtown on November 18, 1865. Bell, the Excelsior shortstop, scored six runs. Taylor, Wilson, Garrett, and Corwall each scored three for Brandywine. Box scores from that era listed only outs and runs; a batter’s offensive effectiveness was measured by the number of runs he scored per game. It wasn’t unusual for a game to total 100 runs, sometimes with 12 to 15 home runs.

Another game, a challenge by the Chester club, took place in West Chester on December 12, with Chester prevailing, although the Village Record failed to mention a score, merely commenting on “quite a concourse of ladies and gentlemen assembled to witness the manly sport,” noting that “the strength of the Chester Club lay in Broomall’s pitching. His balls were swift and difficult to hit.”5

In addition to Taylor, several other Brandywine players played prominent roles during the late 1860s and the 1870s. Nimrod Strickland, a pitcher, was a lawyer, newspaperman, and judge who once held the positions of Chester County recorder and prison inspector. Another pitcher, Elwood “Squirrelly” Worrall, was a slim 6-foot-5½-inches in his socks, had a blinding fastball, and reportedly could throw a baseball more than 370 feet without lifting either foot from the ground. Unfortunately, the promising youngster died from pneumonia at the age of 19 in March 1877. George Mercer, an infielder, ran a livery stable; outfielder George B. Mellor was a farmer. John Gheen, another infielder, was the fastest runner on the team. Charles B. Sheppard played both infield and outfield and was a close runner-up to Gheen in speed on the basepaths. J. Kable Hartman, a drugstore clerk, was an outfielder and backup catcher who was an excellent defensive player. Fred Wollerton, center fielder, was a backup pitcher whose straight-arm delivery was one of the best of his day. The Inquirer described him as “an all-wool, double-width gentleman and one that probably did more for the welfare of amateur sports than any one man in this community.”6 He later became president of the Union National Bank in Scranton.

With the end of the Civil War, membership in the National Association of Base Ball Players more than tripled, resulting in the formation of many inexperienced clubs that gave up lots of runs. Brandywine had some notable victories in 1866, walloping Oxford 74-4 in five innings behind home runs by Mercer, Sheppard, and Edward Bateman. Camden fell 51-37 (or 60-31, depending on which clipping you believe) in a contest that took four hours. Another victim was Excelsior of Coatesville, 59-50; Brandywine scored 16 in the fourth inning and had eight home runs in the contest, three by Mellor and two by catcher Ike Pawling, who scored nine times.

A more severe test came on August 9 when Philadelphia’s Athletic club traveled by train to West Chester to play “a friendly game.” On their way to a 39-2 year and called the “cream of the crop”7 in Philadelphia baseball by Shiffert, Athletic was led by superstar pitcher Dick McBride, the first openly professional player in the country (Jim Creighton and others on the 1860 Excelsiors Club of Brooklyn were paid,but not officially),and Al Reach, a seminal baseball figure who became a top-notch player, sporting goods manufacturer, publisher, and one of the founders of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Athletic was met at the train depot by a committee of Brandywine players and was escorted to the Mansion House, where an elegant dinner was provided. Before game time, both clubs were carried to a large field near the Fairgrounds by four large horse-drawn carriages. Benches from the Horticultural Hall were arranged around the grounds to accommodate several hundred spectators, including many ladies. According to the American Republican, “Brandywine never entertained a hope of beating their opponents, but the score shows that they contested the ground with consummate skill.”8 Athletic easily prevailed, 44-8 in a three-hour contest played in a very high wind. Shortstop John “Count” Sensenderfer scored seven runs and was followed by Dan Kleinfelder, McBride, Reach, Hicks Hayhurst, and Lip Pike with five apiece. The next day, on their way back to Philadelphia, Athletic stopped in Media and dismantled the locals, 119-7.

1867

Brandywine posted a 14-3 record against local competition, the fifth best of 14 Philadelphia area NABBP teams. According to Shiffert, “Brandywine’s success was in part due to … [Charles] Sheppard, who was third in the NABBP in runs average and over with a whopping 7,7.”9

1868

Two trips to Philadelphia proved that Brandywine hadn’t narrowed the gap with the area’s top teams. On July 16 they lost to Commonwealth, 43-36, on the Athletic grounds at Twenty-Fifth and Jefferson. Taylor scored eight for the losers. In an August 12 rematch, Athletic outclassed them, 65-21. John Radcliff, Count Sensenderfer, and Wes Fisler scored nine apiece for Athletic. Brandywine’s Mercer and Pawling tallied five times each.

1870

Sixteen-year-old Joe Battin, a bricklayer, played third base. According to the Daily Local News (hereafter called the News), “his employer … [who] did not like his employee to quit work to play ball, said: ‘Joe, you can do one of two things, either play ball or lay bricks, which will you do?’ The reply was ‘I’ll play ball.’”10 Within a year Battin made his first major-league appearance, with Cleveland, and was on his way to a ten-year, 480-game career with seven clubs. He became the highest paid player in baseball, earning $700 a month at his peak. Battin is credited with discovering Connie Mack, who was playing with Hartford in 1885, and recommending him to the Washington Senators. According to The Sporting News, Mack “recognized the claim by sending Joe a season pass to Shibe Park every year.”11

1874

Brandywine was 3-0 before venturing to Phoenixville on July 25, where it lost to Intrepid, 12-11. In the opinion of the News, the loss was primarily due to the grounds, where the catcher’s position was laid out “in front of a main road in the rear of which was the front yard of a house, without a back-stop to prevent the endless rolling of passed balls; from this position, towards the field, the ground arose at an angle of about 45 degrees, giving the fielders an elevated position, adding perhaps to their pleasure, by a beautiful view of the surrounding country. At left field the fielder had also the advantage of two buildings to assist him in the stopping of balls, while on right field, a potato patch, enclosed by a pale fence, extended into centre field, and a ball sent to this quarter would allow the batter ample time for a home run.”12

Later, on November 7, Brandywine won the championship of Chester County by defeating Intrepid, 35-10, in a game played on the Athletic grounds in Philadelphia. Two days later, the News quoted the Philadelphia Sunday Press, which noted, “Both clubs did some heavy batting, but the Brandywine made the more creditable display. They not only excelled at the bat, but they had fewer errors in the field.” In conclusion, the News added, “We are glad that this contest has been ended, as there has been wafted southward from Phoenixville during the several months past a continuous atmosphere ladened with threats, braggadocio and empty assertions, influenced through the stimulus of the then undecided result. That the contest of Saturday will serve a Waterloo to the base ball enthusiasts of that iron town, we have every reason to believe. … There is a certain something demoralizing which argues silence.”13 In retrospect, the News estimated that Brandywine won “about twenty-five or thirty”14 games.

1875

Brandywine posted a 21-8 record against regional competition. The club now numbered 85 members and purchased ten new white flannel uniforms neatly trimmed with blue cord for about $60. They also secured their first permanent grounds, known as the Walnut Trees, on the south side of Price Street and extending to Sharpless, between Darlington and New Streets. It was the town’s first enclosed grounds and could seat over 600 patrons. According to the News, “So popular was ‘Walnut Trees’ ball park, that there was liberal bidding for the concessions to sell ice cream, peanuts, lemonade, etc.”15 Admission was 15 cents.

When the Active Club of Reading defeated Brandywine, 23-10, on July 28, news stories emphasized the gentlemanly conduct of both sides, noting that the Brandywines hosted with enthusiasm by providing a good meal, a cornet band serenade, and a tour of town. On the other hand, misbehavior marred an August 11 game at Coatesville when Brandywine topped Eureka, 24-13. In the opinion of the News, “The Eurekas behaved very discourteously towards the Brandywine, and at the end of the third inning refused to play longer with Mr. Fred Heed as umpire. Captain Taylor, in order to have the game proceed, allowed the Eurekas to supply the vacancy, and so the game continued until the ninth inning [when] Brandywine did not finish their last inning owing to rain.”16

1876

The American Centennial year was a busy one for Philadelphia-area baseball clubs. Brandywine, which the Inquirer called “a strong semi-professional team that cut quite a figure on the baseball firmament for a short period,”17 lined up a tough schedule; one early game was on April 22 when they were hosted by the amateur Wilmington Quicksteps and lost, 7-0. The following week, Brandywine traveled to Kennett Square, and humiliated the Mohicans, 42-2. According to the Wilmington Sunday Morning Star, “It was a case of the Indians being hypnotized by Squirrelly Worrall’s teasers.”18 A rematch with the professional Quicksteps took place before the largest crowd of the season at the Walnut Trees Grounds, with Brandywine prevailing; the Star neglected to mention the date or final score.

Brandywine’s catcher for part of the season was Al “Doc” Bushong, a University of Pennsylvania dentistry graduate and baseball player who had played five games for the Philadelphia Athletics earlier in the season. Bushong was behind the plate on August 30 when Brandywine faced J.B. Doerr. From the outset, Worrall’s pitching was wild and irregular and, in the opinion of the News, “Bushong behind the bat was little better than an Egyptian mummy, and instead of making an active effort to stop the balls, his seeming intentions were to have them go past him as far as possible, and in going for them he walked, as if the poetry of motion lay in the highest exhibit of laziness.”19

In the second inning, Bushong loudly let everyone know that he couldn’t catch any longer due to sore hands “from his late Philadelphia work,”20 and proceeded to stroll toward left field, all without consulting Captain Taylor. Disgusted, the Brandywine Executive Committee told him to leave the field, an event the Daily Local News said “should have taken place some time ago and the club would have been better for the change.”21 Then, in sympathy with Bushong, Worrall refused to pitch and took off his uniform. Taylor then brought in the battery of Allen and Richardson to complete the game, a 36-10 Brandywine victory in six innings. The News attributed the majority of the runs to Bushong’s bad play.

Nine days earlier, Taylor and Treasurer H.B. Buckwalder had tendered their resignations to the Executive Committee, which were not accepted. Several “mutinous” players sympathized with Bushong and Worrall, feeling that Taylor should be replaced because he was too severe with them; Taylor would accept them back only if they apologized. Bushong and Worrall complied though neither played for the rest of the season, and Taylor continued as captain. Bushong went on to play 13 years in the majors and is considered one of the 19th century’s best defensive catchers. Brandywine finished the season with a 21-5 record.

1877

Philadelphian Bill McCloskey, a catcher, played his first of four years with Brandywine. In the opinion of the News, he “fills this position finely, not excelled by any who have ever caught for the Brandywine.”22 The proprietor of a large tobacco and cigar store in West Chester, he returned to Philadelphia in 1881 to play for the Athletics in the minor-league Eastern Championship Association. In 1884 he played nine games in the outfield for the Union Association’s Wilmington Quicksteps, posting an average of .100. McCloskey had a 266-game minor-league career (.226 BA) in which he played every position but pitcher.

1878

Two years removed from his 39-game major-league career, Joe Borden pitched effectively for Brandywine on May 23 in a 29-1 annihilation of the Eurekas in Coatesville. Noted for pitching professional baseball’s first no-hitter, in 1875, and winning the National League’s first game, in 1876, Borden, who is buried in West Chester, resurfaced again in 1883 when he pitched, played first base, and was 1-for-11 as Brandywine won games from two clubs on August 28, Christiana and the Alerts of Rock Run.

1879-Early 1880s

In the Inquirer’s opinion, “the ball fever had a relapse and its temperature fell to about nil”23 during this era. The paper credited Jess Allen with bringing Brandywine back to life. “[He] moulded a crack-a-jack team out of what most people thought was hardly scrap. … Several of Allen’s pupils made a name for themselves in fast company and owe much to Jess for his able coaching and early instruction.”24

1883

According to the News, “Brandywine won the Inter-State Championship, defeating several first-class teams in Philadelphia, Camden, Norristown, Chester, Germantown, and Wilmington. They lost four games to the famous Cuban Giants.”25

1888

Brandywine and nine other semipro teams formed the Interstate League (also called the Philadelphia Region League), which began play on May 5. As the season progressed, the league struggled for its existence, losing teams one by one until only four remained by mid-August. Brandywine, managed by Tom Taylor, posted a 9-6 record. Frankford (18-10) won the championship.

One of Brandywine’s pitchers was Wilmington native John “Sadie” McMahon, who played in four contests and would have appeared in more if he had not been charged with the May 7 murder of a peanut vendor, Carmen Malacalza, on the Forepaugh Circus grounds in Wilmington. McMahon allegedly fractured his skull with a stone, causing his death. McMahon was taken into custody on May 23, was denied bail ten days later, and stood trial on October 1. According to the Inquirer, “The evidence against him proved so meager and contradictory that the trial came to an abrupt end … by the state abandoning the case.”26 McMahon briefly played for Norristown of the Middle States League in 1889 before signing with the Philadelphia Athletics, going 14-12 in the box. He was the American Association leader in wins and complete games with Philadelphia in 1890 (36-21) and Baltimore in 1891 (35-24). McMahon posted a 173-127 record in his nine major-league seasons.

1891

Back-to-back losses in mid-June precipitated a crisis for manager W.T. Hunt. Four players were visibly dissatisfied and called for his resignation, which in the opinion of the Inquirer, “led to bad playing”27 by the club. A pitcher, Leiper, left the team to play for Bristol. Gay and Vail moved on to Atlantic City; catcher Corcoran and second baseman West also departed. Hunt weathered the storm and Brandywine had a successful season behind the hitting of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, native Mike Grady, a catcher who supplied power and speed as a cleanup hitter. Brandywine won four straight games at the end of the season, securing the Chester County championship by defeating Coatesville, 10-3, on September 23. Grady had two hits, including a double, and two stolen bases. He also faced his Brandywine mates by playing left field for his hometown Mohicans on August 22, a 10-6 Brandywine win. Scrappy and aggressive, Grady was a loud and abrupt character who had an 11-season major-league career (1894-1906, .294, .374 OBP). He was also an alcoholic who drank his way out of the majors at one point. Grady is credited with helping young Herb Pennock develop as a pitcher.

1892

Brandywine (24-8) finished the season in spectacular style, shutting out All-Philadelphia, Camden, and Rockdale on three, one, and no hits. Sadie McMahon was again with the club, as was former Philadelphia Athletics pitcher George Bausewein, who hurled seven major-league games in 1889, notching one victory. In 1905 Bausewein worked as a National League umpire. He was on the Philadelphia police force for more than 20 years before becoming the chief of police in Hollywood, Florida, and Norristown, Pennsylvania. In June 1944 he was convicted in Norristown of receiving a bribe and nonfeasance in office for selling protection to a club that had slot machines. He died three years later after serving his sentence in Montgomery County Prison.

1894

On August 22 Brandywine hosted Mohican and prevailed, 10-6, capturing the Chester County championship. A crowd of 1,000 watched as a pitcher named Farrel limited Mohican to seven hits, striking out six; Mike Grady was hitless for Mohican, whose second baseman was Theodore Pennock, father of Herb Pennock.

1898

Another attempt was made to form a four-team Interstate League, with Media, Norristown, and Atlantic City joining manager Glancy Wilson’s Brandywine club. The 24-game season started the last week in June, and after two wins Brandywine called it quits, soon to be followed by Media. Both clubs cited a lack of interest and a concern about attendance at Atlantic City due to the Spanish-American “war scare.” Brandywine lost $55 on the two games, and taking into account player salaries, disbanded while the team could still pay its bills.

1900

Brandywine, now managed by Alger Whitcraft, a tobacco-store salesman, crushed Downingtown, 13-0, on August 4 to capture the Chester County championship. Bayard “Bud” Sharpe, a West Chester native, had four hits and four runs. Sharpe, a Penn State electrical-engineering student, played his first of five seasons with Brandywine and would later play 165 games, primarily as a first baseman, in two major-league seasons (1905, 1910), mostly with the Boston National League team. He also played 761 games in the minors. As a player-manager he led Oakland to its first Pacific Coast League pennant, in 1912. Plagued by illness during his playing days, he became friends with George Stallings, his manager in Newark in 1908, and became the manager of Stallings’ 1,000-acre cotton plantation in Haddock, Georgia, until his untimely death in 1916.

Brandywine won the championship of Montgomery and Chester counties on September 15 with a 7-0 whitewash of Norristown. On September 22, Brandywine hosted Berwyn for a much-anticipated rematch. Baseball fever raged in West Chester as a large throng gathered from throughout the county. Each club wagered $100 on the outcome and added a ringer or two to its lineup in an effort to gain an advantage. For Berwyn, it was catcher Fred Jacklitsch, who debuted with the Phillies in June and would go on to play 490 games (.243 BA) in 13 major-league seasons. For Brandywine, it was left fielder Jack Hayden, who would debut with the Athletics a year later and play 147 games in his three-year career (.200 BA). Brandywine won, 5-1, behind a three-hit, 12-strikeout performance by Skeeter Dent. Hayden had two hits, scored twice, and stole a base. Dent’s catcher was Harry Barton, who later played in 29 games with the 1905 Philadelphia Athletics, hitting .167. Berwyn’s Whiting pitched well, but six errors doomed him to defeat. Brandywine’s final record was 26-18 (in results published in the Inquirer).

1902

Playing an ambitious schedule without the services of Sharpe, who was stricken with typhoid fever for most of the season, Brandywine, the Chester County champion, again emerged as one of the region’s top independent teams. In September the Inquirer, responding to a groundswell from the press and fans, arranged a game with another elite club, Wilmington A.A., coached by Jesse Frysinger. In the weeks preceding the September 15 contest, trash talk and accusations were regularly exchanged, with the Inquirer serving as mediator and promoter; both clubs finally agreed on squads of ten men each. Umpires were selected by the newspaper, which arranged for the game to be played at the Philadelphia Athletics’ Columbia Park. Each team put up $500, with the winner to receive the entire pot, plus gate receipts.

Fans were frenzied by game day; railroad and trolley cars from Wilmington, West Chester, and South Jersey were jammed; Wilmington fanatics traveled with their own band.

Chester and Brandywine had been rivals for years. Frysinger had managed the Chester team in the Pennsylvania State League the previous year, when, according to the website oldchesterpa.com, most of the team “was lured almost en masse to Wilmington in 1902.”28

Columbia Park was jammed with 20,000 fans, with another 5,000 turned away. Pitchers Chick Hartley of Wilmington and Taylor and Jack Steventon of Brandywine surrendered seven hits per side. Wilmington prevailed, 2-1, with right fielder Russell stroking three hits, including two doubles. According to author Doug Gelbart, “Wilmington partisans swarmed the field carrying the players to the locker room on their shoulders. The fans, equipped with every noisemaking device that could be found, then marched en masse to the Reading Station behind the Philharmonic Band as Wilmington papers were releasing extra editions to announce the 2-1 final.”29

Wilmington players earned $400 apiece and split about $2,000 in side bets. For years thereafter, the contest became known as “The $1,000 Game.”30 Wilmington (83-34) had three major-league-caliber players. Hartley played one game as an outfielder with the New York Giants, on June 4, going 0-for-4. He then played ten seasons in the minors (1905-1914), appearing in 1,245 games. Former Brandywine catcher Harry Barton (a future member of the Athletics) was now Wilmington’s backstop. First baseman John “Snake” Deal hit .208 in 65 games with the 1906 Cincinnati Reds. In contrast, only Steventon of Brandywine played professionally (56 games, New England League, 1905-06).

Wilmington A.A. hosted Brandywine for a rematch on September 27, with Wilmington prevailing, 3-2, in ten innings. According to the Inquirer, the overflow crowd of 8,000 often interfered with play. The paper noted that “the game was marked by the general kicking of the visitors on every decision. … [They] got the best of umpire Smith’s decisions in all cases.”31

1903

A healthy Bud Sharpe played in most of Brandywine’s games, including some as a pitcher. The rivalry with Wilmington A.A. continued, with Wilmington winning three of five games. In a ten-game series in September, Brandywine and Oxford won five apiece to become Chester County co-champions.

1904

More than 100 games were scheduled and top-notch players were signed for what was Brandywine’s best team ever. University of Pennsylvania coach Dan Coogan (1895 Washington Senators, 26 games, .221) was hired as coach. On May 28, Opening Day, Brandywine clobbered local rival Sharpless A.A., 23-0. Sharpe, batting third, had six hits, including two doubles and a home run. At leadoff was infielder Raymond “Chappy” Charles (born Charles Achenbach), who later had a major-league career with the Cardinalsand Reds (237 games, 1908-1910, .219). Brandywine’s workhorse pitcher, William “Buck” Washer, an Akron, Ohio, native, signed with the Phillies in January 1905 and hurled three innings in an 8-1 loss to the New York Giants on April 25, surrendering two runs, his only major-league appearance. Another key addition was infielder John “Schoolboy” Knight (767 major-league games, most with Athletics and Yankees, .239), who joined the team after his Philadelphia High School season was over and played under the name Ryan.

By popular demand, another $1,000 game with Wilmington A.A. was scheduled at the Athletics’ Columbia Park on September 21; Brandywine prevailed, 7-3, behind Washer’s pitching and four Wilmington errors before 6,000 fans on a cool, blustery day. Brandywine received a royal welcome in West Chester, with 2,000 cheering them as they paraded through town. Nine days later, a rematch in West Chester was won by Wilmington, 4-1.

1905-1909

For the first time in 40 years, Brandywine ceased to exist. Several seasons of heavy financial losses caused backers to conclude that there were “no good business methods in serving up first-class base ball in a third rate town,” as the Inquirer put it.32 Baseball enthusiasm had declined to the point where gate receipts could not cover the expense of producing “professional-like ball.”33 West Chester residents had to be satisfied watching other local teams – Wheel Works and Sharpless A.A.

1910

Under the guidance of new manager Jimmy Flynn, Brandywine (17-9) was reorganized. On August 24, 16-year-old Herb Pennock surrendered eight hits in a 4-3 win over Fifth Ward, Chester. It was Pennock’s third semiproouting of the year, first for Mohican and later for Kennett Square on July 23, when he fanned ten Sharpless A.A. batters in a 5-2 victory.

In August Mike Grady, in a return to semipro ball, was field manager of the Coatesville independent team, which won five of six games against Brandywine in September. Sensational news broke on September 24 when it was announced that Grady had exposed a plot by two of his players, Hennessey and Sundheim, to throw that day’s game at West Chester to Brandywine. The two players and a Coatesville hotel bartender, “Big Frank,” had placed heavy wagers on Brandywine to win. Both players confessed and were immediately released. According to the Inquirer, the fans in Coatesville “were so indignant that they drove the two players from the town.”34

1919

Former minor leaguer Fred Stamler managed Brandywine (24-6) to the Chester County Championship.

1921-1923

Brandywine didn’t field a club in 1921 and 1922. The organization’s final game was on September 10, 1923, a 3-2 victory over Quarryville.

 

Sources

Gelbert, Doug, The Great Delaware Sports Book (Montchanin, Delaware: Manatee Books, 1995).

Shiffert, John, Base Ball in Philadelphia: A History of the Early Game, 1831-1900 (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2006).

West Chester, Past and Present: Centennial Souvenir with Celebration Proceedings (West Chester, Pennsylvania: Daily Local News, 1899).

Chester County newspapers from the Chester County Historical Society:

American Republican

Daily Local News

Village Record

Chester Times

Evening Public Ledger (Philadelphia)

Philadelphia Inquirer

Reading Eagle

Sporting Life

The Sporting News

The Sunday Morning Star (Wilmington, Delaware)

Websites consulted include Ancestry.com, Baseball-Reference.com, ChroniclingAmerica.loc.gov, GenealogyBank.com, NewspaperArchive.com, and PaperOfRecord.com.

 

Acknowledgments

Thanks to the following for their assistance with this article: Dr. Jim Jones, West Chester University; Pamela C. Powell, Chester County Historical Society; Matt Aber, SABR member, West Chester.

Photos are courtesy of the Chester County Historical Society, West Chester, Pennsylvania.

 

Notes