The 1884 Maroons: Busch Buys Out Wainwright

Mr. Adolphus Busch, of the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Company, has bought the interest originally held by Mr. Ellis Wainwright in the St. Louis Athletic Association.  Mr. Wainwright is therefore no longer in any way connected with the Union Club.

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, April 11, 1884


Wainwright was one of the original investors in Lucas' plan and the entire enterprise, in its earliest days, was often referred to as the Lucas/Wainwright combination.  Much was made in the press of Wainwright and Busch's beer money backing the league and it's a bit of a surprise to see that Wainwright, as an investor in the club, didn't even make it to opening day.  

I Forgot About This One

Henry V. Lucas and Ellis Wainwright, St. Louis capitalists, have rented a large plot of ground at Twenty-fifth and Biddle streets, and intend fitting it up for base-ball purposes.

-New York Times, October 25, 1883

I'd been looking for the earliest reference to the Lucas-Wainwright partnership and posted that it dated to mid-November 1883. But I forgot about this article from the Times, talking about the establishment of the Union ballpark. While this specific ballpark didn't get built, we can say with certainty that Wainwright's involvement with Lucas and the Maroons date back to at least the end of October 1883.

Also, I had written that Wainwright was involved with two of the more important pieces of St. Louis architecture, the Wainwright Building and the Wainwright Tomb. I don't think it's much of a stretch to add the Union Park to that list. It might not have been designed by Louis Sullivan but it was a significant piece of 19th century St. Louis baseball architecture.

Ellis Wainwright

Ellis Wainwright was a significant figure in the history of 19th century St. Louis. Born on August 3, 1850 in Godfrey, Illinois, Wainwright was a prominent businessman and brewer and his name is linked to two of the more important pieces of architecture in St. Louis.

His father, Samuel Wainwright, was the founder of the Wainwright Brewing Company, which began operations in 1846. While the history of the company is complicated, Ellis Wainwright gained control of its operations by 1875 and incorporated it as a stock company in 1883. In 1889, the company was bought by the St. Louis Brewing Company, of which Wainwright was president. The company was probably the second largest brewing company in St. Louis during the 19th century.

In 1890, Wainwright wanted a new office building for the company and hired Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler to build it. The Wainwright Building, at the corner of Seventh Street and Chestnut Avenue, was completed in 1891 and was one of the prototypes of the modern office building and the modern skyscraper.

In 1902, Wainwright was caught up in the Boodle Scandal (along with Charles Hunt Turner) and he is mentioned in Lincoln Steffens' The Shame of the Cities. As a result of the scandal, in which he was accused of bribing Missouri legislators, he fled to Paris, where he lived for the next twenty years. It appears that he returned to St. Louis in 1911, when he was indicted for his participation in the scandal, but the charges were dropped in November of that year due to the fact that all the main witnesses had either died or fled the city. Wainwright then immediately left again for Paris.

At some point in 1924, Wainwright once again returned to St. Louis and died in the city on November 6, 1924. He is buried in the Wainwright Tomb at Bellefontaine Cemetery. The mausoleum, like the Wainwright Building, was designed by Louis Sullivan and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It has been described as one of Sullivan's masterpieces.

The two photos above were taken by Connie Nisinger and Jim Miller respectively and appear at Find A Grave.

Wainwright, as I've been chronicling lately, was also involved in the establishment of the Union Association and was one of the owners of the St. Louis Maroons. His involvement with the Maroons is significant, I believe, because it appears to represent an attempt by the establishment of St. Louis to regain control of the city's baseball market after Chris Von der Ahe had seized control of the Brown Stockings in 1882.

Drink Wainwright Bottled Beer: It's Awesome

I went back to find the first mention of Ellis Wainwright's involvement with the Maroons and, just to get this out of the way, there's a reference to the Lucas-Wainwright club in the Globe on November 15, 1883. I don't see anything prior to that. But, even better, I found a bunch of advertisements for the Wainwright Brewing Company that are so cool, I feel the need to pass some of them along. All of these blurbs appeared in the Globe in April and May of 1883:

The Wainwright Brewing Company is now bottling a very superior article of larger beer, to which the attention of the public is directed. It is entirely free from the objectionable features usually attached to bottled beer. It is bright, clear and strong, and especially adapted for fine family trade.

Go to Wm. Gundelfinger's for Wainwright's Bock Beer.

It has become fashionable to have the Wainwright bottled beer in the house. Fashionable people know what is nice and appreciate what is good.

Don't allow your grocer to substitute any other brand of beer if you order the Wainwright bottled beer. It is the best, brightest and purest.

The Wainwright bottled beer is unsurpassed as a tonic. Hops and malt are its ingredients.

Ladies who drink beer by advice of their physician should take the Wainwright Bottle Beer for its strengthening properties.

To which I can only say that I, also, drink bottled beer for its strengthening properties, on the advice of my physician.

In all seriousness, the image above, which is just fantastic, comes from carlylehold's flickr stream and he reserves all rights to said image. He's got some really neat vintage advertising stuff that I'd encourage you to check out.

The Lucas-Wainwright-Busch Club

[From the Cincinnati Enquirer, December 2.]

...Henry V. Lucas, the moving spirit in the well-known Lucas-Wainwright Club, of St. Louis, and A.H. Henderson, prominently connected with the clubs at Chicago and Baltimore included in the new [Union Association,] spent the most of yesterday in the Queen City...They left early last evening, but before their departure were seen by an Enquirer reporter, who had received a "quiet tip" that they were in the city...

"Is the outlook good for your association?" was the first question propounded by the scribe.

"It is far better than we expected," was Mr. Lucas' reply. "Every day it is becoming more flattering."

"More than that," broke in Mr. Henderson, "every club that has joined forces with us has a strong financial backing, and numbers among its stockholders some of the most influential citizens in the places they represent. This enterprise is of no mushroom growth," he continued, "but has been organized carefully, and has come to stay."

"You have ignored the reserve rule held so sacred by the three older organizations. Are you not afraid you will get yourself into trouble?" suggested the reporter.

"That," said Mr. Lucas, "is the most arbitrary and unjust rule ever suggested, and ought to be broken. I can not see how a body of men has the right to dictate what another man shall do. It is all right when a player signs a contract. Then I have nothing to say but as long as the reserve clause is the only thing hanging over him it will not deter me from hiring a player if I want him. The players seem to appreciate this fact, and if I dared show you all the letters I have received, you would be surprised to see the names of some League players who want to go with me."

"What cities will be represented in the Union Association?"

"Well," said Mr. Lucas, "St. Louis, Chicago, Baltimore, Philadelphia and Washington will be sure. Boston and Hartford probably, with a possibility of a club in [Cincinnati.] This talk about the men at the back of the club being irresponsible is all bosh. Mr. Wainwright is worth over $2,000,000 and Mr. Adolph Busch, of the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Company, who is also associated with us, is one of the wealthiest men in the West. When I started out to sign players the latter said: 'Don't stop until you have secured the strongest nine that ever represented St. Louis, no matter what it costs.' I pride myself that I have already secured that, and I am not through by any means..."

"What play will you adopt as to the division of receipts?"

"The same as now used by the National League. This will give clubs in the smaller cities something to depend on beside their home patronage."

"Who are your officers?"

"We have not elected any yet, but at the annual meeting, which takes place at the Bingham House, in Philadelphia, on the 18th of this month, we will organize."

"Have all the clubs grounds?"

"Yes, and in nearly every instance they are more centrally and desirably located than the parks used by the clubs in the older associations."

"Who will compose your nine, Mr. Lucas?"

"So far I have secured Bill Taylor, Lou Dickerson and Mike Mansell, of the Alleghenies; Mullane, of Von der Ahe's team; Tom Brennan and Woulffe, of New Orleans; Dunlap, of the Clevelands; Jack Gleason, of the Louisvilles; George Schaeffer, of the Buffalos; Dave Rowe, of the Baltimores, and Gallagher, an amateur, of St. Louis. I am now negotiating with a prominent league catcher, and I think I will get him."

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, December 3, 1883

This is the first real mention of Lucas' partners that I've seen in the papers. There was talk of the Lucas-Wainwright club (as you see at the beginning of this article) but I hadn't come across anything specific prior to this. Obviously, Lucas, Wainwright and Busch had reached some kind of partnership or investment agreement prior to this and that most likely took place sometime in early November. I really should go back and see if I can find anything about when, specifically, Wainwright and Busch joined up with Lucas.

The 1884 Maroons: A New Athletic Club

Articles of incorporation of the St. Louis Athletic Association were filed in the office of the Recorder of Deeds yesterday. The capital stock of the Association is $15,000, divided in 600 shares of $25 each, held by the following parties: H.V. Lucas, 200, Theodore Benoist, 50, and Fred F. Epenschied, 350. The object of the association is stated to be to develop athletic sports. It is said the association proposes to start a base ball park.

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, November 3, 1883

I think we've seen some rather interesting stuff so far as we begin our look at the 1884 Maroons and at some point, when the plans for the club and the UA solidify, I'll stop and go over all of that. But this is interesting for a few reasons. First, there's the matter of that photograph in the Spalding Collection of the 1886 Maroons. It just happens to be labeled as being a photo of the St. Louis Athletic Association and this article in the Globe tells us why that is. The St. Louis Athletic Association was Lucas' answer to the Sportsmans' Park and Club Association.

The other interesting thing here is that Lucas didn't own the majority of shares in the St. Louis Athletic Association, at least at the time it was incorporated. We'll see if that changes in the future. At the time of incorporation, the majority shareholder was Fred Epenschied, who I believe was Lucas' brother-in-law. After Lucas resigned as president of the Maroons in August of 1886, Epenschied took over his interest in the club. I also know of other investors, such as Ellis Wainwright and Adolphus Busch, but that's getting ahead of the story and we'll just see how this all works out.

Union Park Sold

Union Park, which has been the scene of many hard-fought ball games and athletic contests, was sold yesterday morning to satisfy a claim of the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Company, of $461. The ground is merely leased, and the sale yesterday was merely of the grand stand and fixtures. Samuel F. Myerson and Geo. S. Rhodes, acting for the Missouri Amateur Athletic Club, bought the entire lot for $425, and the club assumes all the responsibility of leases, etc. This is as it should be. St. Louis can easily support a first-class athletic club. A cinder track will be built down the middle of the field, so as to give 135 yards straightaway. A man will be placed in charge of the grounds, who will be at the service of members always. The membership dues of the club will probably be placed at $10 per annum. and the holders of memberships will be richly repaid for their outlay.

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, September 24, 1887

Anheuser-Busch was one of the original investors in the Maroons. In April of 1884, Adolphus Busch, owner of the brewery, bought out Ellis Wainwright and A-B was, at that point, probably the largest investor in the club besides Henry Lucas.

I'll throw this question out there, since I don't know the answer: How significant was it that one of the major investors in the Maroons was a company? That, I assume, was a rare thing in this era. How many other companies do we know of that invested in major league clubs prior to 1884?

Two Birds, One Post

I found this completely by accident:

Mr. Adolphus Busch, of the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Company, has bought the interest originally held by Mr. Ellis Wainwright in the St. Louis Athletic Association. Mr. Wainwright is therefore no longer in any way connected with the Union Club.

-St. Louis Globe-Democrat, April 11, 1884

There I was, minding my own business and researching something totally unrelated, when my eyes caught the words "Adolphus Busch" and I stopped to read. Lo and behold, I found something that killed two birds with one stone. We can now say that Wainwright, while an original investor in the Maroons, was bought out in April of 1884. We can also say that Adolphus Busch (pictured above) was an investor in the Maroons and that the brewing family has a history in St. Louis baseball that began eighty years before August Busch, Jr. bought the Cardinals in 1953.

A Quick Note On Ellis Wainwright

Ellis Wainwright's name has been getting kicked around here the last couple of days and David, in a comment, mentioned that the man's name might actually be Elias Wainwright. I, as usual, had no real clue what I was talking about and had to go back and check things out. It was possible that I got the name wrong while typing up the post or that the Globe had the name wrong to begin with. So being the curious monkey that I am, I went and did the old ProQuest search on Ellis Wainwright.

Ellis Wainwright was born around 1850 and was the president of the Wainwright Brewing Company in St. Louis. He was a rather prominent member of St. Louis society and was involved with the art museum and the public library. Wainwright was also a member of the St. Louis Club and the Veiled Prophet association. In his obituary, it was mentioned that he was one of the wealthiest men in St. Louis.

There can be no doubt that he moved in the same social circle as Henry Lucas and appears to have been friends with several members of the Union Club. Interestingly, he was caught up in the "boodle" scandal along with Union Club member Charles Hunt Turner. While there doesn't appear to be much of a connection between Wainwright and baseball, he was a bit of a sportsman and was particularly involved in horse racing in St. Louis.

I did find two instances in the Globe where Ellis Wainwright was referred to as Elias but in each instance it was clear that the person in question was Ellis Wainwright. Another source that came up when searching "Elias Wainwright" was actually a reference to Ellis Wainwright and was simply an error in the soundex due to the similarities in the name.

Based on the information at hand, I have no doubt that Ellis Wainwright was one of the early backers of Henry Lucas and the Maroons. Any references to Elias Wainwright is merely a typographical error or an understandable misreading of the source material.

Edit: While I'm at it, David also mentioned that there may be references to Lucas' UA plan in the press outside of St. Louis in the summer of 1883. So far the earliest references to the plan that I see in the press comes in October 1883. The New York Times has a story on October 25 that they apparently picked up from the Globe. Earlier St. Louis references to Lucas and baseball have to do with the amateur Lucas Nine rather than to the Union club. However, if Lucas was announcing his plans in October or if the story was breaking then, certainly it's safe to assume that Lucas' plan was in development prior to that. If that's the case then it's possible that there may be earlier references to it and I'll continue searching for them.

The New Club

The new club has formed (in St. Louis) with some $15,000 capital. Henry W. Lucas, a millionaire and prominent business man, is at the head, with Anheuser Busch Brewing Company as second stockholders. Mr. Lucas subscribes $6,000 to the stock. They have outside parties interested, it is rumored. They have secured very central grounds at Twenty-fifth and Biddle streets, about a mile closer to the city than the old grounds...They will enter the new Union League and the papers have been forwarded for that purpose.

-The Cleveland Herald, October 26, 1883

The reference to Anheuser-Busch's involvement in the Maroons is unconfirmed but very interesting given their later involvement in St. Louis baseball. There are other reports that Lucas' main partner in the club was Ellis Wainwright and the conventional wisdom, of course, is that Lucas ran the whole show, both club and league.