Historic Pelham: Two Newly-Discovered 19th Century Accounts of Baseball Played in Pelham

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One of the nation's premier college preparatory schools, The Taft School (now located in Watertown, Connecticut), began in Pelham Manor in 1890. Horace Dutton Taft, a brother of William Howard Tafe who, in 1909, became the nation's 27th President and of Henry Waters Taft, a prominent New York attorney who lived in Pelham Manor, founded the schoo and operated it in Pelham Manor for a brief three-year period beginning in 1890. The school quickly grew beyond the available resources in Pelham Manor and was moved to Connecticut.

As one might expect, The Taft School for Boys (as it was often called) had a baseball team. Until now I have not seen any records of games played by the team. While working in The Historian's Office over the weekend, however, I reviewed a clippings file for Mrs. Hazen's School for Girls. One of the clippings was from a student newspaper published by The Taft School named The Manor. On the back of the clipping (saved because it was a brief account of an event held at Mrs. Hazen's School for Girls) were partial accounts of two baseball games played by The Taft School baseball team during the summer of 1892. An associated clipping makes clear that the item appeared in the July 1892 issue of The Manor published in Pelham Manor, New York. The editor of the publication at the time was Charles E. Merrill, Jr. The associate editor was Thomas S. McLane. The publication was available at a subscription rate of "$1.00 a Year" and was sold for "20 Cents a Copy." A notice beneath the masthead of the publication stated "All those who have not paid their subscriptions to THe MANOR may send them to THE MANOR, care of Mr. H. D. Taft, Pelham, N.Y."

I have included an image of the clipping below as well as a transcription of its text.

Partial Accounts of Two Baseball Games Played in

Pelham in 1892. Partial Clipping from July 1892

Issue of THE MANOR Published by The Taft School.

NOTE: Click on Image to Enlarge.

"THE [MANOR]

[bat]tery also did good work, and Brayton caught a pretty fly in left field. In order to economize space, we give only the record of the home team:

TAFT'S SCHOOL

		A.B	R	1B	P O	A	E
Bullen, p	………………	5	1	0	2	10	0
Mallon, c., 2b	………………	5	1	2	4	5	0
Kebler, s.s.	………………	5	1	1	1	2	0
Smith, 3b	………………	5	0	0	0	0	0
Sherman, r.f.	………………	5	1	1	2	2	2
Scott, c, 2b	………………	5	1	0	4	2	9
Brayton, lf	………………	4	1	1	1	0	0
Perkins, c.f.	………………	4	2	2	0	0	1
Brownell, 1b	………………	4	1	1	13	3	2
		___	___	___	___	___	___
Totals	………………	42	9	8	27	24	14

Passed balls, Mallon, 0; Scott 7. Struck out by Bullen, 4.

SCORE BY INNINGS:

Taft’s School	…………	3	2	3	0	1	0	0	0	0	--	9
New Rochelle	…………	2	1	0	1	0	2	0	2	0	--	8

TAFT'S SCHOOL, 14; NEW ROCHELLE, 2.

The School nine played the New Rochelle team, of which Lawton is captain, at the field, on Wednesday, June 1st [1892], and defeated them by the above score.

The game was remarkably well played in"

The partial box score of one game and the tiny reference to a second game show the following. During the spring of 1892, The Taft School had a baseball team that played at least two games, both against a team from New Rochelle. The Taft School won both games. It one the first game, played in Pelham Manor, 9-8. It also won the second game, played on Wednesday, June 1, 1892 in New Rochelle, 14-2.

Undated Photograph (Ca. 1896) of the Pelham A.C. Jr.

Baseball Team. Although Difficult to See in This Low

Resolution Version of the Image, There Are Many

Children Whose Eyes Can Be Seen Peering, and Whose

Fingers Extend, Through the Cracks Between the Boards

Behind the Team. NOTE: Click Image To Enlarge.

* * * *

I have written quite extensively regarding the history of baseball in Pelham and early baseball games played in the Town of Pelham. Below is a listing, with links, of my previous postings on the topic of 19th century baseball in Pelham.