1887 Philadelphia (Philadelphias, Phillies)
Left: This rendering is based on visual documentation for uniform style only. An educated guess is made on uniform color based on documentation from a related year and also on minor details that may be missing or difficult to determine.
Rendering accuracy:Year: documented Team: documented
Right: This rendering is based on visual documentation for uniform style and color. Minor details may be undocumented or difficult to determine and an educated guess is made to complete the rendering.
Rendering accuracy:Year: documented Team: documented
Visual documentation on these uniforms:
Photo A
Dated 1887. Photo date based on appearance of player Gunning, who only played for Philadelphia in 1887. Photo taken in Philadelphia at Huntingdon Grounds. Though nine of the twelve players in this photo wore the Philadelphia team sweater, the remaining three players displayed the team’s white uniform. The cap was also white with two dark horizontal bands and dark trim along the edge of the bill. The belt and stockings were also dark in color, and this accent color may have been red, the traditional color for the Philadelphia NL team during this period. Four of the players in this photo wore their shirts unbuttoned at the collar. All three of the visible shirts were short-sleeved; one was worn with a white undershirt, one with a dark-colored undershirt, and the other with no undershirt.
Top row, from left: A Irwin (86-89), A Maul (87, 00), D McGuire (86, 87), G Wood (86-89, Phi PL 90, Ath AA 91), J Fogarty (84-89, Phi PL 90) and C Ferguson (84-87). Middle: S Farrar (83-89, Phi PL 90), T Gunning (87, Ath 88, 89), (H Wright, mgr 84-93), J Clements (84-97, Phi UA 84) and C Buffinton (87-89, Phi PL 90). Front: C Bastian (85-88, 91) and J Mulvey (83-89, 92, Phi PL 90, Ath 91). Player IDs and photo scan from Mark Fimoff, SABR 19th-century Pictorial Committee. Years with team from baseball-reference.com.
Dated 1887. Detail view of photo A. Note the unbuttoned shirts and the light-colored, rubber-like fielding glove on the left hand of one of the players.
Photo B
Dated 1887. Photo of T Gunning (87, Ath AA 88, 89), full view at left, detail view at right. Photo date of 1887 confirmed as this was the only year Gunning played for Philadelphia (NL). This photo was taken in Philadelphia at Huntingdon Grounds and was also issued on a Kalamazoo Bats baseball card in 1887. Photo showed a white uniform similar to that shown in photo A, and that the player wore fielding gloves on both hands. Year Gunning with team from baseball-reference.com. Photo from www.19cbaseball.com. Baseball card issue date from oldcardboard.com.
Photo C
Dated 1887. Photo of J Clements (84-97, Phi UA 84), full view at left and detail view at right. This photo was taken in Philadelphia at Huntingdon Grounds and was also issued on a Kalamazoo Bats baseball card in 1887. Photo showed side view of white uniform including a back pocket. Based on the markings in the dirt, this photo was made at the same time as photo B. Note also the large, open-backed fielding glove shown in the photo. Clements’ position was catcher. Years Clements with team from baseball-reference.com. Baseball card issue date from oldcardboard.com.
Photo D
Dated August 22 or August 23, 1887. Photo of two Philadelphia players, C Bastian (85-88, 91) standing, and H Lyons (Phil NL 87 1 gm, StL AA 87, 3 minor lg teams 87), sliding, at Huntingdon Grounds, Philadelphia. The photo date of August 22 or August 23, 1887, was determined by historian Tom Shieber who found that player Lyons was new to the team in late August 1887, making his debut on August 29, 1887. The specific date range for the photo was determined by Shieber after further analyzing the team match-ups on the outfield wall scoreboard. Lyons was released in early September 1887 and subsequently joined St. Louis (AA). This same photo was issued on a Kalamazoo Bats baseball card in 1887. Player Bastian wore a white uniform in this photo. Player Lyons may have worn the team’s light gray road uniform in this photo. He also wore a cap without horizontal stripes. Researcher Matt Albertson has discovered that the uniform Lyons wore had a subtle checked pattern, see detail view below. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Shieber research from Baseball Researcher: Arthur Irwin and Kalamazoo Bats, published August 3, 2015 and retrieved May 5, 2019. Baseball card issue date from oldcardboard.com. Image scan from Matt Albertson.
Dated August 22 or August 23, 1887. Detail view of photo D. Detail view showed that the light gray uniform had a subtle checked pattern, visible in the areas highlighted by red circles when viewed on a large monitor.
Photo E
Issued 1887. Kalamazoo Bats baseball card of A Irwin (86-89), standing, and A Maul (87, 00), sliding. This photo was taken August 22 or August 23, 1887, and during the same session as photo D. Both players wore a white uniform in this photo, similar to that shown in photo A. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Baseball card issue date from oldcardboard.com.
Photo F
Dated late August 1887 to early September 1887. Photo year based on appearance of players McLaughlin, Gunning, Devlin, Lyons and Gibson, all of whom only played for Philadelphia in 1887. Date range of late August 1887 to early September 1887 determined by players Lyons and Gibson, both of whom were on the roster for a short period at this time. Lyons joined the team in late August 1887 and was released by early September 1887. Players wore a light gray uniform in this photo, with a dark belt, dark stockings and white caps with two dark-colored horizontal bands. A newspaper described the accent color for the light gray uniform as red. All but two of the seventeen players in this photo were wearing short sleeves. At least two players appear to have cut-off their sleeves to make them shorter still. Three players with short sleeves were wearing white undershirts, the rest were bare armed. Four players wore their shirts unbuttoned at the collar.
Top row, from left: B McLaughlin (87), S Farrar (83-89, Phi PL 90), D Casey (86-89), C Buffington (87-89, Phi PL 90), J Mulvey (83-89, 92, Phi PL 90, Ath 91), J Fogarty (84-89, Phi PL 90) and E Andrews (84-89). Middle: T Gunning (87, Ath 88, 89), J Devlin (87), G Wood (86-89, Phi PL 90, Ath AA 91), (H Wright), D McGuire (86, 87), A Irwin (86-89), H Lyons (87 1 gm, StL AA 87, in minors in 87) and J Clements (84-97, Phi UA 84). Front: A Maul (87, 00), W Gibson (dnp, in minors in 87) and C Ferguson (84-87). Player IDs from photo. Lyons time with team from Tom Shieber, Baseball Researcher: Arthur Irwin and Kalamazoo Bats, published August 3, 2015 and retrieved May 5, 2019. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Original photo from MacIntire Brothers, Philadelphia.
Dated late August 1887 to early September 1887. Detail view of photo F. Note that at least three players in the middle row of this photo had hand-cut their sleeves to be shorter in length.
Photo G
Dated 1887. Baseball card of J Devlin (87) and T Taylor, trainer. Full view at left, detail view at right. Devlin was mistakenly identified as Lyons on card. Photo date of 1887 determined by fact that this was the only year Devlin played for team. It is possible this image was made at the same time as the team photo, see photo F. Devlin wore a gray uniform in this photo with cut-off sleeves. Devlin wore the same uniform in team photo above. Year Devlin with team from baseball-reference.com. Confirmation of trainer Taylor from Tom Shieber, Baseball Researcher: Arthur Irwin and Kalamazoo Bats, published August 3, 2015 and retrieved May 5, 2019.
Photo H
Dated 1887. Old Judge baseball card of E Dailey (85-87, Was NL 87). Full view at left, detail view at right. Photo date of April 1887 to mid-June 1887 can be determined as Dailey was purchased by the Washington team approx. June 20, 1887. Photo shows short-sleeved gray uniform with shirt pocket. Years Dailey with team and transaction info from baseball-reference.com.
Photo I
Dated 1887. Old Judge baseball card of D Casey (86-89). Full view at left, detail view at right. Photo date of April 1887 to mid-June 1887 can be determined by similarity in background to photo H. Photo showed a gray uniform with button placket, detachable sleeves and shirt pocket. Years Casey with team from baseball-reference.com.
Photo J
Dated 1887. Old Judge baseball card of C Ferguson (84-87). Full view at left, detail view at right. Photo showed gray uniform with button placket, detachable sleeves and shirt pocket with rounded corners at the bottom. Years Ferguson with team from baseball-reference.com.
Photos K & L
Dated circa 1887. Buchner Gold Coin (N284) baseball cards. Left: S Farrar (83-89, Phi PL 90). Right: C Bastian (85-88, 91). Cards depicted a gray uniform with red belt and stockings. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Image scans and issue date from oldcardboard.com.
Photos M & N
Dated circa 1887. Buchner Gold Coin (N284) baseball cards. Left: E Andrews (84-89). Right: J Mulvey (83-89, 92, Phi PL 90, Ath 91). Cards depicted a uniform with light blue shirt. No additional reference has been found to confirm this was a uniform worn by the team. Image scans and issue date from oldcardboard.com. Years with team from baseball-reference.com.
Written documentation on these uniforms:
February 1887: “The new costumes of the members of the Philadelphia [National] League Club are being made by A. J. Reach & Co. and it is expected that they will be turned over to the players on the 1st of March, in time for the proposed Southern trip. The suits will differ but little from those worn by the team last season. One will be made of fine white English flannel and the other will be of gray flannel. Both will have the customary cardinal trimmings and the boys are expected to look their best all summer.” From the Philadelphia Times, February 20, 1887. Research from Ed Morton.
June 1887: “The color of a least one uniform of each club in the [National] League and American Association is given below. It would be next to impossible to give the several different uniforms of each club, as they change the different pieces of one uniform to another, and may appear on the field in a different make-up every day for a week. However, one complete uniform of each club is as follows: […] Philadelphia — Gray trousers and shirt, red stockings and belt, gray cap with red trimmings.” From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, June 14, 1887, citing the New York Sun. Research from Todd Radom. Note, in photo examples dated from this year, see above, it appears a white cap, not a gray cap, was worn with both the white and the gray uniforms.
November 20, 1887, description of parade welcoming “Eastern Clubs” to San Francisco for a series of exhibition games: “First came the brass band, then a hack containing D. R. McNeill, President of Central Park Association, James A. Hart, manager, and C. B. Powers, the umpire. Next rode the Philadelphias, clad in white pants and shirts, red stockings and white caps ornamented with red stripes. After them came the famous St. Louis Browns, in red and white habiliments, while last rode the Chicagos, who wore suits of blue and white, with the blue almost washed out. Were it not that ‘beauty unadorned is best adorned’ the Chicagos would have looked a dingy crowd.” From the San Francisco Examiner, November 21, 1887. Research from Gary and Oliver Kodner.
Team genealogy:
Philadelphia 1882-
Philadelphia was formed to play in the League Alliance (LA) in 1882. The team joined the National League (NL) in 1883. The NL began operation in 1876 and Philadelphia has played in the league every year since 1883. Information from wikipedia.com and Robert D. Warrington.
Rendering posted: May 6, 2019
Diggers on this uniform: Ed Morton, Gary Kodner, Mark Fimoff, Matt Albertson, Oliver Kodner, Todd Radom, Tom Shieber,