The Nation -- and World -- Were Amazed by the Quality of Women's Cricket Played in Pelham Manor in 1896

Archive of the Historic Pelham Web Site.
Home Page of the Historic Pelham Blog.
Order a Copy of "The Haunted History of Pelham, New York"
Order a Copy of "Thomas Pell and the Legend of the Pell Treaty Oak."

It was the epitome of a purported "He Man's Sport" that, in those days, was supposed to be played by real men.  When women attempted to play the sport, according to the then-current common belief, they were more worried about "bruised fingers" than winning an athletic contest.  Thus, when two teams of eleven women squared off for their big battle on November 14, 1896, on Prospect Hill in Pelham Manor, a tremendous crowd was on hand to enjoy the "spectacle."  To the shock and delight of the crowd, however, the women played brilliantly in a hard-fought match that wore down both teams with the Pelham team emerging the victor.  Real women, it seemed, could play cricket as well as men!

For the next several weeks newspapers throughout the United States and Canada marveled at the fact that these two teams of eleven women had played cricket "JUST LIKE REAL MEN" as The World of New York City reported. Indeed, the Pelham Hall team representing Mrs. Hazen's School for Girls in the Village of Pelham Manor, playing in their "short white skirts" and "light blue sweaters" with "P. H." embroidered on front, soundly whipped the young women of Rosemary Hall, a similar young women's boarding academy from Wallingford, Connecticut.

The women's cricket match was not a first for Pelham Manor, nor for the young women from Pelham Hall and Rosemary Hall.  Indeed, the year before Pelham Hall had lost to Rosemary Hall in what became an annual battle fought over a blue championship banner that passed back and forth between the two schools based on the results of the annual cricket match.  

The match in 1896 was different, however.  Pelham Hall had a reputation to defend.  The school was known for its exceptional women's athletics programs.  Thus, the women of the "Pelham Hall Cricket Club" could not let the loss in 1895 stand.  They worked hard in 1896 to prepare for the big re-match against Rosemary Hall.  The work paid off (and showed) during the big match on November 14, 1896.  

The young women of Mrs. Hazen's School for Girls began preparing for the big 1896 re-match at least as early as May of that year -- nearly six months in advance of the battle.  That May the young women of the school split into two cricket teams and played a scrimmage on Prospect Hill.  That match lasted four hours.  Afterward, Mrs. John Cunningham Hazen and her daughter, Edith C. Hazen, gathered with the two teams beneath the branches of the "Pell Treaty Oak" that once stood on the grounds of today's Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum.  There the Hazens awarded cuff links and studs of silver and blue enamel to the victors (and cuff buttons and studs of gold set with carbuncles to their captain, Annie King).  The losing squad "received two great bunches of American Beauty Roses."
By November 14, the varsity team of Pelham Hall was ready.  The day, however, was bitterly cold and windy.  The Pelham Hall team was ferried to the playing field on Prospect Hill in coaches festooned with banners of blue and white, the school colors.  There they met the women of Rosemary Hall and began a match in front of a very large crowd of Pelham spectators (mostly women).

The match ended at the close of two innings after five hours.  The captain of the Pelham Hall team, Annie King, clearly was the star of the match.  Indeed, at the close of the match she was carried off the field on the shoulders of her teammates who hugged and kissed each other following the victory.  At the time, Annie King and her sister, Elva, both attended Pelham Hall.  They were daughters of John King, then the Vice-President of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad.

Pelham Hall won by 69 runs, by a score of 132 to 63.  A number of articles published in newspapers around the country included complete box scores for the game, detailing batted and caught outs, runs scored, and "wides."  The box score appears within a number of the articles transcribed below. 

Following that match, media outlets throughout the United States and Canada reported breathlessly about how the women of both teams had delivered, batted, bowled, and caught the entire cricket match "like men;" how their athleticism was reminiscent of that of men; and how they were fearless in their play.  For example, a newspaper in Buffalo reported the next day:

"As soon as the two teams took the field it was seen that their exhibition would not be the usual kind given by women cricketers.  The girls threw the ball like men; made good stops and catches; had no fear, and were altogether oblivious to hard knocks and bruised fingers.  Their hands were soon blue from the cold, but they cared not for that, and before the final decision of the game was reached two full innings had been played."

Members of the Pelham Hall Cricket Club, Mrs. Hazen's School for

Girls, Pelham Manor, N.Y., in 1895. The Photograph Likely Shows

Many of the Women Who Played in the Match Held the Following

Year on November 14, 1896.  Source: Courtesy of The Office of The

Historian of The Town of Pelham. NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

I have written before of the adventures of the Pelham Hall Cricket Club of Mrs. Hazen's School for Girls in Pelham Manor, New York.  See Wed., Mar. 18, 2015:  Account of Women's Cricket Match Played by Pelham Manor Women in 1898.  That article detailed yet another of the annual matches between Pelham Hall and Rosemary Hall held in 1898.

*          *          *          *          * 

Transcribed below is the text of a number of articles published throughout the nation and Canada about the Pelham Hall cricket match against Rosemary Hall held on November 14, 1896.  Each is followed by a citation and link to its source.

"YOUNG WOMEN PLAY CRICKET.
-----
Interesting Game by Elevens of Students of Pelham Hall.

A cricket match was played by two teams belonging to Mrs. John Cunningham Hazen's school for young ladies at Pelham Manor last week that proved very interesting.  The match was played on Prospect Hill.  Visitors from New-York and Westchester County towns were present and cheered on the enthusiastic cricketers.

The young women composing the teams wore short white duck skirts and blue sweaters.  The letters P. H. were embroidered on the sweaters, representing Pelham Hall, the name of the school.  The game lasted four hours.  It was so spirited that none of the spectators went away until the result was known.  Miss Madeline Brown was Captain of the team that won the match by 1 point.  The members of the winning team were Miss Dorothy Day, Miss Marguerite O'Kane, Miss Edith Fowler, Miss Katherine Craig, Miss Laura Houghton, Miss Helen Furman, Miss Jane Wait, Miss Martha Dalzell, Miss Alice Painter, and Miss Helen Leland.

Miss Elva King, was Captain of the second team.  Those who fought with her for victory on the cricket field were her sister, Miss Annie King; Miss Eleanor Emmet of New-Rochelle, Miss Helen Loughran, Miss Mildred Goffe, Miss Annie O'Kane, Miss Helen Hunt, Miss Grace Bronson, Miss Grace Kimball, Miss Katherine Stearns, and Miss Marjorie Leland.  The individual prizes for the winning team were cuff links and studs of silver and blue enamel.  The prize for the Captain was cuff buttons and studs of gold set with carbuncles, given by Mrs. Hazen and Miss Edith C. Hazen.  

The defeated team received two great bunches of American Beauty roses.  The prizes were awarded under a famous oak tree 300 years old."

Source:  YOUNG WOMEN PLAY CRICKET-- Interesting Game by Elevens of Students of Pelham Hall, N.Y. Times, May 24, 1896, p. 13, col. 4.  

"PRETTY GIRLS PLAY CRICKET.
-----
Twenty-Two Fair Maidens Do Battle at Pelham Manor in Chilly Weather.
-----
PELHAM HALL THE VICTOR.
-----
Its Representatives Defeat the Students of Rosemary Hall, Wallingford, Conn.
----- 
BIG TURNOUT AT THE GAME.
-----

Aristocratic Pelham Manor was intensely excited yesterday over a novel contest waged between twenty-two maidens.  In football weather an exciting game of cricket was played on Prospect Hill.  The opposing teams were eleven pretty girls from Mrs. Hazen's select boarding school, Pelham Hall, and eleven equally pretty damsels  from Rosemary Hall, Wallingford, Conn.

Intense enthusiasm reigned in the little Westchester town.  All the well known residents of the fair sex in Pelham Manor turned out, despite the cold, to be present at the contest and to cheer for the girls who go to Mrs. Hazen's school.  Pelham Hall colors, light blue, were conspicuously displayed by its fair partisans, while society women who had accompanied the Rosemary Hall girls from Connecticut flaunted dark blue ribbons with ardent enthusiasm.  A large crowd of fashionably dressed folk witnessed the game, but only a few privileged men were among the spectators.  Rugs and warm wraps were in great demand to guard against the cold, bleak wind that brought color to the faces of those who sat around the grounds on camp chairs and benches.

ON THE FIELD.

At eleven o'clock the two teams made their appearance on the field.  They were greeted with tremendous cheers, and cries that would have done credit to a football field rent the air.  'Rah, rah, rah; hear us call; Hazen, Hazen, Pelham Hall!' shouted the supporters of the local team.  From the other side of the grounds, where waved the dark blue banner, came the answering shout of 'Who are, who are, who are we?  We are the girls of Rosemary!'  The Pelham Hall girls wore dark blue sweaters, with the letters 'P.H.' in light blue across the bosom, while their opponents wore white sweaters bearing the letters 'R.H.' in dark blue.  All wore short, dark

"GIRLS AT THE WICKETS
-----
A SPIRITED CRICKET GAME ON PROSPECT HILL.
-----
Pelham Hall Regains the Light-Blue Banner, Lost Last Year to Rosemary Hall, by 69 Runs.

PELHAM MANOR, N.Y., Nov. 14. -- Prospect Hill was the scene here to-day of a Winter contest of a most unusual kind.  Arrayed against each other on the cricket field were two elevens of young athletic maidens; one from Mrs. Hazen's boarding school, Pelham Hall, and the other from Rosemary Hall, a similar institution at Wallingford, Conn.

Bareheaded and wearing sweaters and short skirts, daughters of some of the most prominent men in the country defied the cold, wintry wind.  With enthusiasm and skill the twenty-two bowled, batted, and fielded.  A large crowd, chiefly composed of Pelham's most fashionable folk, witnessed the game.  Excitement ran high, for last year the Pelham Hall girls journeyed to Wallingford and were defeated by the Rosemary cricketers.  To-day the losers on that occasion struggled successfully to win back the light-blue banner they lost in Connecticut.

It was 11 o'clock when the Pelham Hall girls, in dark-blue sweaters, bearing the letters P. H. in light blue, and the Rosemary girls, in white sweaters, bearing the letters R. H. in dark blue, appeared on Prospect Hill.  The weather, the waving of ribbons and banners, and the college cries would have done justice to a Yale-Harvard football match.  The Connecticut girls had a large contingent of supporters who had traveled from Wallingford, and who proudly gathered round the banner which these athletic young women were to battle for.  

Rosemary Hall won the toss and put Pelham Hall in to bat.  The girls who attend the local boarding school are no novices.  For months they have been practicing, but to-day they surprised even their most ardent supporters.  Miss King, Captain of the Pelhamites, hit up 15 in excellent style, while Miss Leland ably assisted her.  The Rosemary bowlers were a little erratic, and the wides swelled the total so that when the last girl from Pelham Hall saw her wicket fall the home total was 81, a very formidable score to beat on such a wicket.

Rosemary Hall went to the wickets amid generous applause.  With the exception of Miss Cromwell, who batted splendidly, the Connecticut cricketers were unable to make any stand against the bowling of Miss King and Miss Paintor.  The bare-headed little Pelham Captain, who is a daughter of the Vice President of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, won double laurels.  Chiefly owing to her prowess the Rosemary cracks were dismissed for the modest total of 26, or 55 runs behind.

Pelham Hall batted again, and again Capt. King made top score, hitting up 21 runs.  The rest of her team failed to do as well and Pelham's second venture ended for 51, or 106 runs ahead.  Rosemary Hall struggled hard to retain its supremacy, and Miss Cromwell again made top score.  But it was a forlorn hope, and at 3 o'clock Pelham Hall was victorious by 69 runs.

Then light-blue ribbons waved, and women threw their rugs and wraps aside and ran to congratulate the victorious girls.  ' 'Rah, 'rah, 'rah; hear us call; Hazen, Hazen, Pelham Hall!' they cried with a vigor that would have done credit to college boys.  In feebler tones, from the other side of the field came the cry, ' 'Rah, 'rah, 'rah; 'rah, 'rah, ree; we are the girls of Rosemary!'  The banner was won back, and joy reigned throughout Pelham Manor.  The two teams dined together in the evening at Pelham Hall.

The following is the score:

PELHAM HALL.

First Innings.	Second Innings.
Emily Gray, c. Hickory, b. Weston. . . . . . . . . 2	c. Hickory, b. Orius. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Mildred du Bois, c. Hickory, b. Weston. . . . . 0	b. Oriur. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
Annie King, b. Recneps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15	Run out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Eleanor Emmet, c. Getson, b. Orius. . . . . . . 2	c. Salguod, b. Orius. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Laura Haughton, b. Weston. . . . . . . . . . . . .  2	b. Recneps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Annie O’Kane, c. Hickory, b. Recneps. . . . . .7	b. Recneps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Helen Leland, c. Getson, b. Orius. . . . . . . . .13	c. Getson, b. Orius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0
Alice Paintor, b. Recneps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1	c. and b. Orius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  0
Stewart Simpson, b. Orius. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4	b. Orius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  0
Bertha Fenessey, b. Recneps. . . . . . . . . . . . 0	c. Salguod, b. Orius. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
Dorethea Day, no out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12	Not out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0
Wides. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23	Wides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81	Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

ROSEMARY HALL

First Innings.	Second Innings.
C. Linton, b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0	b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
R. Nator hit wicket, b. King . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0	Not out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
A. Recneps, run out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6	b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
A. Hickory, b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0	b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
E. Weston, b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1	b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
B. Getson, run out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1	c. du Bots, b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
A. Orius, b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0	b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
H. Cromwell, not out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10	c. and b. Day. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
J. Sobs, st., Emmet, b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . .2	b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Grace Salguod, run out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0	b. Day. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0
M. Dollertin, b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0	b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
Wides. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6	Wides. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26	Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37 "

Source:  GIRLS AT THE WICKETS -- A SPIRITED CRICKET GAME ON PROSPECT HILL -- Pelham Hall Regains the Light-Blue Banner, Lost Last Year to Rosemary Hall, by 69 Runs, N.Y. Times, Nov. 15, 1896, p. 8, cols. 4-5.  


"GIRLS AT CRICKET.
-----
FAIR STUDENTS FROM PELHAM HALL AND ROSEMARY PLAYED AN INTERESTING MATCH ON SATURDAY.
-----


A cricket match between two teams of young women was played on Saturday at Prospect Hill, Pelham Manor and the game was played with all the enthusiasm of an intercollegiate football match, says the New York Sun.  Banners of light blue were carried by pretty girls, who cheered for Pelham Hall, and coaches and carriages lined the field with the same colors prominently displayed.  It was a match between Mrs. Hazen's Pelham Hall, a select institution of learning situated in the aristocratic village of Pelham Manor, and Rosemary Hall, an equally-select school of Wallingford, Ct.  The girls did not mind the cold weather, which benumbed their fingers and made the hard cricket-ball anything but a pleasant thing to catch or stop.  They kept pluckily at their work, and for five hours they ran around the field dressed in short skirts and sweaters, while the enthusiasm of the visitors was kept alive by the college yell which the large delegation kept repeating at every opportunity:

Who are who are,
Who are we? 
We are the girls
Of Rosemary.

This was the cry of the girls from Connecticut, and it would have done credit to a delegation of Yale students.

'Rah, 'Rah, 'Rah!
Hear us call!
Hazen, Hazen,
Pelham Hall.

This was the slogan of the admirers of the home team, and they kept it up with variations all through the game.  The Rosemary girls had trained diligently for the match.  They had had the advantage of a coach for several weeks past, and they were confident of victory.  Pelham Hall, however, noted as it is for every form of athletics, was not to be outdone by its New England cousin, and the girls had been practicing just as diligently, although they had to depend solely upon their own knowledge of the game and book rules.

As soon as the two teams took the field it was seen that their exhibition would not be the usual kind given by women cricketers.  The girls threw the ball like men; made good stops and catches; had no fear, and were altogether oblivious to hard knocks and bruised fingers.  Their hands were soon blue from the cold, but they cared not for that, and before the final decision of the game was reached two full innings had been played.

To the great delight of the majority of the spectators, Pelham Hall proved victorious, and by so comfortable a margin -- 69 runs -- as to leave no doubt of their superiority.  This result was brought about by their excellent bowling, and the manner in which Miss Annie King trundled the sphere with a fast round-arm delivery [that] was very delightful to watch.  She was the heroine of the match, for, in addition to her most useful work with the ball, she excelled at the bat, and in each inning of her side she made top scores.

All the bowlers adopted the round-arm style, and this may account for the large number of wides.  The ground was slippery, and, as the girls wore no spikes, a foothold was very hard to obtain.  Some of the most successful willow-wielders were treated to ovations as they came out, being hugged and kissed by their companions, and after the match Miss Annie King, the captain of the team, was borne away on the shoulders of the rest of the eleven, proudly waving the colors the team had won from their opponents."

Source:  GIRLS AT CRICKET -- FAIR STUDENTS FROM PELHAM HALL AND ROSEMARY PLAYED AN INTERESTING MATCH ON SATURDAY, Buffalo Morning Express and Illustrated Buffalo Express, Nov. 16, 1896, p. 11, col. 4 (NOTE:  Paid subscription required to access via this link).  

"CRICKET.
-----
Ladies Play Cricket.

The New York Sun says:  -- A cricket match between two teams of young women was played Saturday at Prospect Hill, Pelham Manor.  The game was played with all the enthusiasm of an intercollegiate football match.  Banners of light blue were carried by pretty girls, who cheered for Pelham Hall, and coaches and carriages lined the field with the same colors prominently displayed.  It was a match between Mrs. Hazen's Pelham Hall, a select institution of learning situated in the aristocratic village of Pelham Manor, and Rosemary Hall, an equally select school of Wallingford, Conn.  The girls did not mind the cold weather, which benumbed their fingers and made the hard cricket ball anything but a pleasant thing to catch or stop.  They kept pluckily at their work, and for five hours they ran around the field dressed in short skirts and sweaters, while the enthusiasm of the visitors was kept alive by the College yell which the large delegation kept repeating at every opportunity: --

Who are, who are, 
Who are we?
We are the girls 
Of Rosemary.

This was the slogan of the admirers of the home team, and they kept it up with variations all through the game.  The Rosemary girls had trained diligently for the match.  They had had the advantage of a coach for several weeks past, and they were confident of victory.  Pelham Hall, however, noted as it is for every form of athletics, was not to be outdone by its New England cousin, and the girls had been practicing just as diligently, although they had to depend solely upon their own knowledge of the game and book rules.

As soon as the two teams took the field it was seen that their exhibition would not be the usual kind given by women cricketers.  The girls threw the ball like men; made good stops and catches; had no fear, and were altogether oblivious to hard knocks and bruised fingers.  Their hands were soon blue from the cold, but they cared not for that, and before the final decision of the game was reached two full innings had been played.

To the great delight of the majority of the spectators, Pelham Hall proved victorious, and by so comfortable a margin -- 69 runs -- as to leave no doubt of their superiority.  This result was brought about by their excellent bowling, and the manner in which Miss Annie King trundled the sphere with a fast round-arm delivery [that] was very delightful to watch.  She was the heroine of the match, for, in addition to her most useful work with the ball, she excelled at the bat, and in each inning of her side she made top scores.

All the bowlers adopted the round-arm style, and this may account for the large number of wides.  The ground was slippery, and, as the girls wore no spikes, a foothold was very hard to obtain.  Some of the most successful willow-wielders were treated to ovations as they came out, being hugged and kissed by their companions, and after the match Miss Annie King, the captain of the team, was borne away on the shoulders of the rest of the eleven, proudly waving the colors the team had won from their opponents.  The score:

PELHAM HALL.

First Innings.	Second Innings.
Emily Gray, c. Hickory, b. Weston. . . . . . . . . 2	c. Hickory, b. Orius. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Mildred du Bois, c. Hickory, b. Weston. . . . . 0	b. Oriur. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
Annie King, b. Recneps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15	Run out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
Eleanor Emmet, c. Getson, b. Orius. . . . . . . 2	c. Salguod, b. Orius. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Laura Haughton, b. Weston. . . . . . . . . . . . .  2	b. Recneps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Annie O’Kane, c. Hickory, b. Recneps. . . . . .7	b. Recneps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Helen Leland, c. Getson, b. Orius. . . . . . . . .13	c. Getson, b. Orius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0
Alice Paintor, b. Recneps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1	c. and b. Orius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  0
Stewart Simpson, b. Orius. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4	b. Orius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  0
Bertha Fenessey, b. Recneps. . . . . . . . . . . . 0	c. Salguod, b. Orius. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
Dorethea Day, no out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12	Not out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0
Wides. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23	Wides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .81	Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

ROSEMARY HALL

First Innings.	Second Innings.
C. Linton, b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0	b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
R. Nator hit wicket, b. King . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0	Not out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
A. Recneps, run out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6	b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
A. Hickory, b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0	b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
E. Weston, b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1	b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
B. Getson, run out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1	c. du Bots, b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
A. Orius, b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0	b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4
H. Cromwell, not out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10	c. and b. Day. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
J. Sobs, st., Emmet, b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . .2	b. King. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Grace Salguod, run out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0	b. Day. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0
M. Dollertin, b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0	b. Paintor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .0
Wides. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6	Wides. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26	Total. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37 "

Source: CRICKET -- Ladies Play Cricket, The Gazette [Montreal, Canada], Nov. 17, 1896, p. 5, col. 3.  

"The Girls of Pelham Hall Victors.
-----

The match game of cricket between the young women of Rosemary Hall, in Wallingford, Conn., and those of Pelham Hall, was an affair of much interest in Pelham Manor on Saturday.  The prize, which was won by the girls of Pelham Hall, was a handsome blue and white silk banner.  The game began in the morning.  The young ladies were driven to the grounds in coaches draped in blue and white.  The opposing sides lined up with Miss Ana King as captain of Pelham Hall and Miss Harriet Spencer for Rosemary Hall.

The first inning resulted in 81 for Pelham and 26 for Rosemary, and in the second Pelham got 51 and Rosemary 38, giving the game to Pelham Hall by a score of 132 to 64 [sic].

Following the game the players were guests at a dinner served in the hall, and at a cotillion.  The favors were blue and white.  After the cotillion the guests departed, each side making the air ring with its respective yells. -- Tribune."

Source:  The Girls of Pelham Hall Victors, Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], Nov. 17, 1896, Vol. XVIV, No. 1,1415, p. 1, col. 4.

"On Saturday last two teams of young women from Pelham Hall, Pelham Manor, New York, and Rosemary Hall, Wallingford, Conn., respectively, played a match game of cricket on the Pelham Hall grounds with all the accessories, pomp and glory of a regular college game.  There were the rival colors, college 'yells' and enthusiasm to burn.  The Pelham girls, coupling the name of their principal, Miss Hazen, with their cry, shouted:

Rah! Rah! Rah
Hear us call
Hazen! Hazen!
Pelham Hall.

To this the girls on the opposite of the field plied:

Who are, who are,
Who are we?
We are the girls 
Of Rosemaree.

Very little is said of the merit of the cricket played, which may be credited to the chivalrous consideration of the reporters, perhaps; but Pelham won by 69 runs.  And so we go."

Source:  [Untitled], The Buffalo Commercial, Nov. 17, 1896, p. 4, col. 4 (NOTE:  Paid subscription required to access via this link).  

"SPORTS OF THE AMATEUR . . .

THE pluck and enthusiasm manifested by the young ladies representing Pelham Hall and Rosemary in their cricket match at Pelham Manor last Saturday is significant of the growth of athleticism and the spirit of sportsmanship among the fair sex.  The temperature was sharp, and the hard cricket ball must have stung, but the fair players never winced, and, most remarkable of all, they could throw and bowl, even though they did make rather a remarkable record of 'wides.'  In no particular did they show the slightest sign of manliness, save when the Pelham girls hugged and kissed each other in joy over their victory."

Source:  SPORTS OF THE AMATEUR, Brooklyn Life [Brooklyn, NY], Nov. 21, 1896, p. 24 col. 1 (NOTE:  Paid subscription required to access via this link).  

"When it comes to athletics, the American girls are not it with the English girls.  A few days ago, all Pelham manor turned out to witness a cricket match between the Pelham Hall girls and the Rosemary girls, each 11 representing the school from which it was named.  The Pelham girls wore short and chick costumes of light blue; the Rosemary girls were in dark blue.  They all looked rosy and healthy, and entered into the contest with great vim and spirit."

Source:  [Untitled], Star Tribune [Minneapolis, MN], Dec. 4, 1896, p. 4, col. 4.

Archive of the Historic Pelham Web Site.
Home Page of the Historic Pelham Blog.
Order a Copy of "The Haunted History of Pelham, New York"
Order a Copy of "Thomas Pell and the Legend of the Pell Treaty Oak."

A Sheriff's Sale of William Parker's Property in 1852 Only Months After Parker Began Development of Pelhamville

Archive of the Historic Pelham Web Site.
Home Page of the Historic Pelham Blog.
Order a Copy of "The Haunted History of Pelham, New York"
Order a Copy of "Thomas Pell and the Legend of the Pell Treaty Oak."

The "main line" of the New Haven opened in December, 1848.  The "station" located within today's Village of Pelham soon was called "Pelhamville."  During the early to mid-1850s, the United States economy was prosperous, fueled by the rise of railroads, improved transportation, and large amounts of gold mined in the west during the California Gold Rush.  By about 1850, in the midst of this economic prosperity, land speculators converged on Pelham hoping to develop various sections of the town as a new railroad suburb serviced by the newly-opened New Haven Line.  

In 1850, a building society known as the United Brothers' Land Society (apparently referenced occasionally, and erroneously, as the "Pelhamville Village Association") was organized to develop certain tracts of unincorporated property in the Town of Pelham lying north of the railroad tracks and east of the Hutchinson River.  The association purchased the Anthony Wolf Farm (John Anthony Woolf) north of the railroad tracks, had the land surveyed, and began making lots available for installment payments to its members.

At about the same time (early 1850s), another section in the Town of Pelham was under development by another building society.  The section was named Prospect Hill Village, developed by the Prospect Hill Village Association.  It became one of the two principal real estate developments from which today's Village of Pelham Manor evolved. The other, of course, was the development of the Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Association organized on June 3, 1873 by Silas H. Witherbee, Henry C. Stephens, Robert A. Mitchill, Charles J. Stephens, Charles F. Heywood and other local landowners.

The Secretary of the Prospect Hill Village Association was named William Parker.  He operated out of an office at 192 Canal Street in Manhattan.  He and others including George Robinson, John T. Lynch, and Andrew Woolf were involved with the Association and owned land in the Prospect Hill neighborhood.  

As I have noted before, clearly there were overlapping efforts on the part of developers involved with the two building associations that developed Pelhamville and Prospect Hill during the early 1850s.  Indeed, William Parker served as the President of the United Brothers' Land Society as well as the Secretary of the Prospect Hill Village Association.  He also owned land in both the Prospect Hill development and the Pelhamville development.

To learn more about these early Pelhamville and Prospect Hill development efforts and the two building associations, see, e.g.:

Bell, Blake A., The Founding of "Prospect Hill Village" in the Early 1850s, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XV, Issue 25, Second Section, Jun. 23, 2006, p. 34, col. 1.

Tue., May 08, 2018:  More Early References to Development of Prospect Hill by the Prospect Hill Village Association in the Early 1850s.

Fri., Feb. 10, 2017:  United Brothers' Land Society Involvement in Developing Pelhamville Lands in the Early 1850s.

Tue., Jul. 26, 2016:  More About the Prospect Hill Village Association in the Mid-19th Century.  

Fri., Jun. 17, 2016:  More on Efforts to Invalidate Deeds of Many Prospect Hill Homes in 1900.

Fri., Feb. 12, 2010:  Documentation of the Creation of the Building Association Known as Prospect Hill Village Association on August 11, 1852.

Thu., Feb. 11, 2010:  Prospect Hill Landowners Face Loss of Their Properties in 1900 Due to Allegedly Defective Deeds.

Thu., Oct. 15, 2009:  19th and Early 20th Century Newspaper Notices Relating to the Prospect Hill Village Association.

Wed., Jan. 07, 2009:  A Reference to Voluntary Dissolution Proceedings Involving the Prospect Hill Village Association Instituted in 1906.

Tue., Jul. 3, 2007:  1855 Tax Collection Notice for Pelhamville and Prospect Hill Village.

Fri., Apr. 14, 2006:  Three of the Original Homes of the Prospect Hill Village Association Founded in 1851.

Fri., Apr. 7, 2006:  A View from Prospect Hill Looking West Published in 1887.

Tuesday, April 4, 2006:  More Information About the Prospect Hill Village Association Formed in the Early 1850s.

Mon., Nov. 21, 2005:  Prospect Hill and Pelhamville Depicted on the 1868 Beers Atlas Map of Pelham: Part I.

Wed., Mar. 30, 2005:  Prospect Hill Village -- Yet Another Early Hamlet Within the Town of Pelham.

Some of the men involved in these early development efforts seem to have run into some sort of financial difficulties during the early to mid-1850s.  Indeed, I previously have presented legal notices for Sheriff's Sales of Prospect Hill lands owned by William Parker and others involved with the Prospect Hill Village Association.  See Tue., Jul. 26, 2016:  More About the Prospect Hill Village Association in the Mid-19th Century (reflecting notice of Sheriff's Sale of Prospect Hill Village Association lands in 1856 after judgment entered in lawsuit against William Parker, George Robinson, John T. Lynch, and Andrew Woolf).

Even earlier than that -- indeed, only months after development of Pelhamville began -- land owned by William Parker in the Pelhamville development was seized and subjected to notice of a Sheriff's Sale in a notice published on July 2, 1852.  The text of that legal notice appears immediately below, followed by an image of the item as it was published.

"SHERIFF'S SALE.  --  By virtue of an execution to me directed and delivered, I shall expose for sale at public auction, at the Rail Road Depot at Pelhamville, in the town of Pelham, in the County of Westchester, on the 26th day of July, A. D. 1852, at 10 o'clock in the forenoon of that day, all the right, title, and interest of William Parker, which he had on the 19th day of April, A. D. 1852, or at any time afterwards, in and to the following described premises, viz:  All that lot of land in the town of Pelham, in the County of Westchester, known as lot Number 50 on a map entitled 'Map of Pelhamville, Westchester County, New York,' dated February 151, made by Henry Hart, Surveyor, and filed in Westchester County Clerk's office bounded and containing according to said map as follows, viz:  on the north by Second Street one hundred feet; on the east by Fifth Avenue one hundred feet; on the south by Lot Number 35 one hundred feet; together with all and singular the appurtenances thereunto belonging -- Dated June 9, 1852.

BENJAMIN D. MILLER Sheriff
By JOSEPH M. KISSAM Deputy Sheriff."

Source:  SHERIFF'S SALE [Legal Notice], Eastern State Journal [White Plains, NY], Jul. 2, 1852, Vol. VIII, No. 7, p. 4, col. 2.

Archive of the Historic Pelham Web Site.
Home Page of the Historic Pelham Blog.
Order a Copy of "The Haunted History of Pelham, New York"
Order a Copy of "Thomas Pell and the Legend of the Pell Treaty Oak."