1885 St. Louis (Brown Stockings, Browns)
This rendering is based on visual documentation for uniform style and written documentation for color. Some important details may be undocumented or difficult to determine. An educated guess is made to complete the rendering.
Rendering accuracy:Year: documented Team: documented
Visual documentation on this uniform:
Photo A
Dated 1885, possibly dated July 4, 1885. Year of photo determined by the appearance of players Barkley and Sullivan, both of whom only played for St. Louis in 1885. Possible date of July 4 determined by a newspaper report that stated “the St. Louis team were photographed last Saturday [July 4, 1885]. Now see if their luck don’t change.” It is unclear if this was referencing the AA or NL team from St. Louis, see more about this newspaper report in written descriptions below. A drawing based on this photo was displayed at the St. Louis Exposition in late September 1885. The photo above showed the players wearing a striped cap and a white or light-colored uniform. Color renderings of players made circa 1886 show that a red-striped cap was worn. It is possible this was the color of the striped cap in 1885 as well. Photo shows that both a short-sleeved and a long-sleeved version of the shirt was worn by the players.
Circle insets: left, C von der Ahe, president; right, C Comiskey (82-89, 91). Top row, from left: D Bushong (85-87), C Welch (85-87), S Barkley (85), D Foutz (84-87), T O’Neill (84-89, 91) and B Gleason (82-87). Front: Y Robinson (85-89, 91), A Latham (AA 83-89, NL 96), B Caruthers (AA 84-87, NL 92), J McGinnis (82-86), D Sullivan (85) and H Nicol (83-86). Image and player IDs from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 3, 1926, which included this image as part of a preview of the upcoming 1926 World Series between St. Louis and New York. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Original photo by Julius C. Strauss, St. Louis.
Dated 1885. Detail view of photo A. Detail view showed a white cord on the cap, running along the top of the bill. A shirt pocket may be barely visible in this photo, positioned on the left breast of the uniform.
Photo B
Dated late September 1885. This rendering was made from the team photo, see photo A, and was most likely the “large crayon group” that was put on display at the St. Louis Exposition in late September 1885. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch on September 23, 1885, said that “the picture measures 5×7 feet, and shows the Browns in their field garb, President Von der Ahe and Manager Comisky hanging in plaques above the group [not included in the crop shown in photo B]. The likenesses are perfect and their arrangement in the picture excellent, a background view of the grand stand at Sportsman’s Park furnishing a proper setting for the figures.” This rendering may suggest the uniform was light gray in color. Original photo by Julius C. Strauss, St. Louis.
Dated 1885. Detail view of photo B. Detail view showed the faint outline of a shirt pocket on some of the players.
Photo C
Dated October 8, 1885. This montage of illustrated player portraits was published on this date to commemorate the team winning the American Association championship of 1885. The American Association season ended on October 1, 1885. The year of the montage can be confirmed by the appearance of players Sullivan and Barkley, both of whom only played for St. Louis in 1885. These drawings were based on photographic portraits of the players, images that were subsequently used repeatedly by the team over the next several seasons. Players were depicted wearing a pillbox-style cap that featured vertical stripes, and a shirt with lace ties.
Top row, from left: A Latham (83-89), B Gleason (82-87), D Foutz (84-87) and B Caruthers (84-87). Middle: C Welch (85-87), C Comiskey (82-89, 91), (C von der Ahe, president 82-98), D Bushong (85-87) and H Nicol (83-86). Bottom: J McGinnis (82-86), Y Robinson (85-89), D Sullivan (85), S Barkley (85) and T O’Neill (84-89, 91). Image and player IDs from the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, October 8, 1885. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Illustrations based on original portraits by Joseph W. Fischer, St. Louis.
Photo D
Dated October 1885. This montage of illustrated player portraits was used to create a drawing that was published on October 8, 1885, see photo C. The order and arrangement of the portraits in both montages were identical. The year of the montage can be confirmed by the appearance of players Sullivan and Barkley, both of whom only played for St. Louis in 1885. The montage was made to commemorate the team winning the American Association championship of 1885 which ended its season on October 1, 1885. The montage included the date of 1886 indicating the team was deemed champions for the upcoming 1886 season. The illustrations were based on photographic portraits which were subsequently used repeatedly by the team over the next several seasons. It is possible these original portraits were made at the same time as the team photo, possibly on July 4, 1885, see photo A.
Top row, from left: A Latham (83-89), B Gleason (82-87), D Foutz (84-87) and B Caruthers (84-87). Middle: C Welch (85-87), C Comiskey (82-89, 91), (C von der Ahe, president 82-98), D Bushong (85-87) and H Nicol (83-86). Bottom: J McGinnis (82-86), Y Robinson (85-89), D Sullivan (85), S Barkley (85) and T O’Neill (84-89, 91). Player IDs based on a drawing published in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, October 8, 1885. Additional help from Nigel Ayres. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Illustrations based on original portraits by Joseph W. Fischer, St. Louis.
Photo E
Dated October 1885. Montage of player portraits, full view at left, detail view of player Comiskey portrait at right. Drawings based on these portraits were published in a newspaper on October 8, 1885. The year of the montage can be confirmed by the appearance of players Sullivan and Barkley, both of whom only played for St. Louis in 1885. The montage was made to commemorate the team winning the American Association championship of 1885 which ended its season on October 1, 1885. The montage included the date of 1886 indicating the team was deemed champions for the upcoming 1886 season. These photographic portraits were subsequently used repeatedly by the team over the next several seasons. It is possible these original portraits were made at the same time as the team photo, possibly on July 4, 1885, see photo A. Players were photographed wearing a pillbox-style cap that featured vertical stripes. The shirt had lace ties and the city name arched across the front. The illustrations and drawings made from these portraits, see photos C & D above, did not include the lettering on the shirts.
Clockwise, from top left: S Barkley (StL AA 85), B Caruthers (84-87), J McGinnis (StL AA 82-86), H Nicol (83-86), D Bushong (85-87), Y Robinson (85-89), T O’Neill (84-89, 91), B Gleason (82-87), D Foutz (84-87), A Latham (83-89), C Welch (85-87) and D Sullivan (StL AA 85). Center: C Comiskey (82-89, 91). Player IDs based on a drawing published in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, October 8, 1885. Additional help from Nigel Ayres. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Original portraits by Joseph W. Fischer, St. Louis. In October 1885, Fischer advertised that this item was available at his store in St. Louis, see written descriptions below.
Written documentation on this uniform:
March 1885: “A correspondent writes […] expressing his views on the St. Louis’ use of the brown in their uniform. It is undoubtably an ugly a combination as could be got together, but with the polka dot shirts used last year [in 1884] it was redeemed very materially.” From the St. Louis Post-Disptach, March 21, 1885. Research from Oliver Kodner. This report suggested a polka dot shirt was worn by the team in 1884.
April 1885: “All [National] League and American [Association] games will be bulletined during the season at Sportsman’s Park.” From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, April 18, 1885. Not uniform related but we like to record entries about ballparks scoreboards and programs.
June 1885: “The uniforms of the various clubs in the American Association are as follows: Louisville, white with dark red stockings and caps; Cincinnati, white with scarlet stockings; Pittsburg[h], gray, with red stockings; St. Louis, white, with brown stockings; Athletics; white, with blue stockings; Baltimore, white pants, pink-striped caps and jackets and red stockings; Brooklyns, gray, with red stockings; Mets, blue suits, with white stockings.” From the Ellicotville (NY) Post, June 15, 1885. A similar report was included in The Sporting Life, June 17, 1885, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 20, 1885, and a research pamphlet by Preston Orem, Baseball From Newspaper Accounts, 1885 (early 1960s). Specific documentation was not provided by Orem but his finding most likely came from a newspaper from the June 1885 time period. Orem passage from John Thorn. Sporting Life research from Chuck McGill.
June 1885: “The Browns went East last night, wearing their new and elegant traveling suits. The latter are made of navy blue flannel.” From The Sporting Life, June 3, 1885. Research from Ed Morton. This most likely was referring to street clothes worn by the team when on the train.
July 1885: “The St. Louis team were photographed last Saturday [July 4, 1885]. Now see if their luck don’t change.” From The Sporting Life, July 8, 1885. It is unclear if this report was referring to the St. Louis American Association club or the St. Louis National League club, however the entry appeared with other blurbs about AA teams. Additionally, as many teams and players in the 19th-century thought having their photograph taken was bad luck, this entry may have been in reference to the AA team which was currently in first place with 37 wins. The St. Louis NL team had only 18 wins at this time.
September 1885: “The photographic exhibits at the [St. Louis] Exposition are better this year than they were last year and contain many pictures of local interest. […] A picture in this collection which demands a good share of public attention just now is a large crayon group showing the coming base-ball champions of the American Association. The picture measures 5×7 feet, and shows the Browns in their field garb, President Von der Ahe and Manager Comisky hanging in plaques above the group. The likenesses are perfect and their arrangement in the picture excellent, a background view of the grand stand at Sportsman’s Park furnishing a proper setting for the figures.” From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 23, 1885. This was a description of the illustration of the team shown above, see photo B. The description was included with that of other images and photographs on display at the exposition in the “Strauss Collection,” most likely a reference to St. Louis photographer Julius C. Strauss. The paper also referenced the image of the team displayed at the exposition in the subsequent weeks. On October 1 the Post-Dispatch said that “the big baseball picture is the most popular in the photograph gallery.” On October 5, the Post-Dispatch said that “all the cranks from the rural ball field will ask to see the big picture of the St. Louis Browns in the photograph gallery. The Browns are now the champions.”
October 1885, advertisement: “A fine, large-size photograph of the Browns, champions of the American Association, can be had for 50 cents at Fischer’s, Ninth and Franklin ave. [in St. Louis]; also cabinet size for 25 cents.” From the St Louis Post-Dispatch, October 25, 1885.
1885, referenced in February 1886: “Chris Von Der Ahe came up from St. Louis Friday and left his order for the Browns’ uniform. It will be, as last year [1885], of white with brown trimmings.” From the St. Paul Globe, February 15, 1886.
Team genealogy:
St. Louis 1882-
St. Louis was formed to join the American Association (AA) in 1882. The AA was a major league operating between 1882 and 1891 and St. Louis played in the AA in every year of the league’s existence. The team moved to the National League (NL) for 1892 season. The NL began operation in 1876 and St. Louis has played in the NL every year since 1892. Information from wikipedia.
1885 St. Louis (AA) summary
Uniform: white with red stripes on cap, brown stockings
First worn:
Photographed: team photo and player portraits, July or later
Described: March, June
Material:
Manufacturer:
Supposition: color of stripes on cap
Variations:
Other items:
Home opener report: none, April 18 v. Pittsburgh
Rendering posted: May 1, 2016
Diggers on this uniform: Ed Morton, John Thorn, Nigel Ayres, Oliver Kodner,