The Blue Stockings Visit Kansas

Kansas City, July 11.-The colored ball players had a battle on the green diamond this afternoon, the Blue Stockings, of St. Louis, defeating the Brown Stockings, of Kansas City, by a score of 30 to 2. The Browns were whitewashed eight times.

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, July 12, 1876

Lawrence, Kas., July 12.-A beautiful game was played here, to-day, between the Eagles, colored champions of Kansas, and the Blue Stockings, of St. Louis, which resulted in favore of the Blues, after a hard fight, by a score of 13 to 11.

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, July 13, 1876

The Boss Colored Team Of Base Ballists

There is one fact that can not be disputed, Chicago journals to the contrary notwithstanding, and that is that St. Louis is possessed of the boss colored team of base ballists, who yesterday captured a victory from Chicago's famous nine of the same color. The coming of the Uniques, of the Garden City, has been eagerly anticipated by the Blue Stockings, of this city, for some time, and yesterday the long looked for struggle between these two clubs took place, and St. Louis forced Chicago to pull down her colors. Although the day was damp and disagreeable, there were several hundred people present, including many of the Caucasian race, who were anxious to witness the play between these clubs. The game was marked by many brilliant plays, and resulted in a victory for St. Louis by a score of 11 to 9. The same clubs play again Thursday afternoon, and, should the day be favorable, a large crowd will doubtless be attracted to this novel game.

Another colored club of this city is looming up as a candidate for honorable distinction in the National pastime, and yesterday met a white organization called the Lyons. The colored boys call themselves the Green Sox. The game was closely contested, the white club winning by a score of eleven to ten, in six innings, when darkness setting in put a stop to further play. The game was umpired by James Pollack (colored) who gave general satisfaction.

The Sunsets and Uniques are to face each other this afternoon, at grand Avenue Park.

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, June 14, 1876

This may be the best article I've come across about black baseball in St. Louis during this era. In general, you have two periods when the Globe is covering black baseball to any extent: the mid-1870s and the mid-1880s. Both periods coincide with a peak in baseball popularity in St. Louis and an expansion in baseball coverage in local newspapers.

But even at the peak of its coverage of black baseball, the Globe usually only devoted a sentance or two to a game and would often fail to note the final score. Here we get a mention of three games and two scores. It's like hitting the mother load. Even better, we get an interesting reference to James Pollack, an African-American who umpired the Blue Stockings/Unique game. I'm not sure who he is but I'll have to take a look around and see if I can find anything on him. Also, the Green Sox is a club that I've never heard of before and we can add them to our list of 19th century African-American clubs.

The Blue Stockings Are Attacked By A Chicago Mob

The Blue Stockings, a colored organization of (St. Louis), started for Chicago on Friday last to play their return games with the Uniques, the champion colored club of that section of the country. They were to have played on Saturday, but rain interfered. On Monday they met the Uniques and warmed them handsomely by a score of 12 to 8. On Wednesday the St. Louisans again visited the White Stocking Park and crossed bats with their Chicago rivals. The Uniques took the lead at the start, but...the Blue Legs went to work to catch up. The Uniques, in nine innings, secured seventeen runs. When the Blues, with fourteen runs to their credit, got two men on bases in their half of the last inning, with nobody out the first base man of the Chicago club hid the ball. Another was furnished and the umpire called "play," but the Chicago men, fearing defeat, refused to continue. The umpire was afraid to declare a forfeit, owing to the mob, who stoned the Blue Stocking omnibus as it left the grounds, severely hurting Wm. Mitchell and Wm. Pitts, two of the St. Louis nine. This outrageous conduct will not soon be forgotten by those who treated the Uniques so well when they were in (St. Louis).

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, October 15, 1875


I've actually written about this incident before as Jon David Cash covered the story in Before They Were Cardinals.

A Novel Encounter

About 500 enthusiasts assembled at Compton Avenue Park, to witness the novel encounter between the colored Blue Stockings and their white rivals. The game was hotly contested throughout, and was a tie from the third to the ninth inning...

-The St. Louis Globe-Democrat, June 5, 1876

The implication was that the game between the Olives and Blues took place the previous day. The Blues scored first, getting a run in the second inning, with the Olives striking right back with a run of their own in the top of the third. Both teams scored two runs in the seventh and the game was tied 3-3 going into the ninth. In the top of the ninth, the Olives plated four runs to take a 7-3 lead. In the bottom of the inning, the Blues managed just a single run and lost 7-4.

At the Red Stocking Park, the colored Blue Stockings got away with their white antagonists in style...

-The St. Louis Globe-Democrat, July 10, 1876

The second game between the Blues and the Olives, which most likely took place on the 9th, was a rout. The Blues jumped out to a 9-1 lead and won the game 16-9.

It seems (from what I can understand) that interracial games in this era were common in some areas but not in others. Lawrence Hogan, in Shades of Glory, mentions a game played between a white and black club in Philadelphia in 1869 and another played in Baltimore in 1870 but indicates that these were exceptions to the rule. He states that, in the North, the "opportunity to play a white team would be a significant feather" in the cap of a black club. However, he goes on to write that in New Orleans interracial games were "frequently held, without the need for (the) extensive diplomacy" that was needed to arrange these games in the North.

Where St. Louis fell along this spectrum is unknown at present.

A Blue Stockings/Sunset Game

The Blue Stockings and Sunsets, rival colored organizations of this city, contest for supremacy this afternoon, at the Red Stocking Park.

-The St. Louis Globe-Democrat, September 12, 1875

The information is in bits and pieces-meager scraps scattered all about-but I'm starting to find it. While I'm certainly no expert on black baseball, all the information that I've seen has ignored the 19th century history of the game in St. Louis. In the one book I have on the subject, the first mention of an African-American team in St. Louis is Charles Mills' Giants early in the 20th century. There's at least forty years of baseball history previous to this that has been neglected.

One interesting thing, it appears that many of the games played by the black clubs in the 1870's and 80's were held at the Compton Avenue Park. I'm not sure how significant this is. It may speak to the character of Thomas McNeary or it may indicate that McNeary, due to the poor location of the grounds and the failure of the Reds as a NA entity, simply needed the money and took any tenant or game he could get.

A Great Doubleheader

Manager McNeary, of the Compton Avenue Park, has arranged to give his patrons the worth of their money to-day. Commencing at 11 there will be a game between the Black and Blue Stockings, rival colored organizations, for the local championship. The colored lads play surprisingly well, and those who witness the contest will ace proof of their efficiency. In the afternoon, at the regular hour, the Red Stockings and the Nationals of East St. Louis, champions of Southern Illinois, will cross bats. Either game will be well worth seeing, but one admission fee will cover both.

-The St. Louis Globe-Democrat, August 14, 1881

This is just a fountain of information. We have an African-American club I've never heard of, the Black Stockings, playing the Blues in a championship game. We have the Nationals described as the champions of Southern Illinois. And we also have an interesting glimpse at baseball during the Interregnum, when there was no major league baseball in St. Louis and the game was struggling to survive.

The Sunset Colored Club

It is reported that the Unique Colored Base Ball Club, of Chicago, will play a match game with the Sunset Colored Club, of this city, at the Grand Avenue Park, next Monday.

-The St. Louis Globe Democrat, September 3, 1875


I'm really excited about this bit from the Globe. While researching the 19th century game in St. Louis, I'm always on the lookout for information about African-American clubs in the city. The information is rather scarce and anytime I find something it's cause to rejoice.

The Sunset Colored Club is now the second black club that I know to have existed in 1875, the other being the Blue Stockings. I had always assumed that there were clubs besides the Blue Stockings-it only seemed logical-and now I have the evidence.

There is evidence of African-Americans playing baseball in St. Louis as early as 1867 and we now have evidence of multiple clubs by 1875. I know this information seems scant but, given the dearth of information in contemporary newspapers, this is a big step forward. Slowly but surely, we'll reconstruct the history of black baseball in St. Louis during the 19th century.

The Blue Stockings Battle The Uniques And Their Fans

"On October 13, 1875, in the same ballpark where the Cicago White Stockings played their home games, two African-American baseball teams waged a heated contest. One club, the Blue Stockings, hailed from St. Louis; the other, the Uniques, were a local Chicago squad. Two days earlier, the visiting Blue Stockings had defeated the Uniques, 12-8, and now the home team sought with grim determination to earn a split in the rain-shortened series. This game, with its premature ending and violent undertones, illustrated that African-American ball clubs were just as caught up in the regional rivalry between St. Louis and Chicago as their white counterparts in the major leagues.

"The Blue Stockings trailed, 17-14, as they came to bat in the bottom half of the ninth inning. After the first two Blue Stockings batters reached base safely, the Uniques attempted to stall until the umpire called the game on account of darkness. However, when the Uniques' first baseman hid the game ball, umpire J.F. Thacker simply tossed another baseball to the pitcher and ordered the Uniques to 'play ball.' The Uniques refused to heed this admonition; as a consequence, the game abruptly ended. As the Blue Stockings tried to leave the ballfield, a stone-throwing mob approached them and inflicted severe injuries to two of their players, William Mitchell and William Pitts.

"A dispute ensued over the outcome of the game. According to the Chicago Tribune, umpire Thacker waved off the unfinished ninth inning and proclaimed the Uniques 15-14 winners in a darkness-shortened eight-inning contest. In a letter written to the Tribune, though, Thacker declared that the ball game had been forfeited to the Blue Stockings: 'My decision...is that, upon the refusal of the Uniques to proceed with the game and their concealing the ball when called upon to produce it, under the circumstances, the game belongs to the Blue Stockings by 9 to 0.'

From Jon David Cash's Before They Were Cardinals

This piece about the Blue Stockings appears in the appendix of Cash's fine book. One of the major themes of his book is the rivalry between St. Louis and Chicago, how it spilled over onto the diamond, and affected the baseball history of both cities. It's interesting that he was able to continue this theme in a short piece on race issues in 19th century baseball.

The Blue Stockings are just one more reason why, to me, 1875 is the most interesting year in the history of St. Louis baseball.

The St. Louis Blue Stockings

The Blue Stockings were, according to the Globe Democrat, "a crack colored organization" that played in St. Louis during the 19th century. The sources that I have mention that they were active in 1875 and were preparing for the 1876 season.

In November of 1876, the Blues formed a joint stock company and were in the process of obtaining operating funds for the centennial season. They had already raised $1000 and signed 11 players for 1876.

The players under contract for 1876 were Doug Grant (P), Phil Smith (C), Peter Hays (1B), George Taxlar (2B), Jim Bailey (3B), Henry Day (SS), Wm. Pitts (LF), George Jones (RF), Wm. Collins (CF), Wm. Richardson (Sub), and R. Sharp (Sub).