1897 Boston (Bostons, Beaneaters)
Left: This rendering is based on visual documentation for uniform style and written documentation for color. Minor details may be undocumented or difficult to determine. An educated guess is made to complete the rendering.
Rendering accuracy:Year: documented Team: documented
Center: This rendering is based on written documentation for uniform style and color. No visual documentation is known and an artist’s conceptualization is used to create the rendering.
Rendering accuracy:Year: documented Team: documented
Right: This rendering is based on partial visual documentation for uniform style and partial written documentation for color. 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 these uniforms:
Photo A
Dated mid-August 1897. Photo date based on portraits of Boston players that have been stamped with the date of August 31, 1897, see photo C. This date can be confirmed by a newspaper report written on August 20, 1897, noting that “pictures of the Boston club on sale at the South end grounds.” The date can further be confirmed by the appearance of player Allen, who signed with Boston on July 12, 1897, and who only played for the team this one year, and by the appearance of player Lake, who was purchased by Boston from Kansas City on July 1, 1897. The date can be still further confirmed by the non-appearance of starting catcher M Bergen (96-99). A newspaper reported on August 20, 1897, that “Martin Bergen refused to have his picture taken in the Boston group.” Players wore a white uniform in this photo. The shirts featured an old-English letter B centered on a sculpted bib and the caps were in the pillbox style. These elements showed that the team had employed a “retro” look for 1897. Shirts with bibs had not been worn by any team in the major leagues since 1885, and pillbox caps were slowly falling out of fashion after Boston first introduced a rounded-crown cap in 1891. A newspaper in 1897 described the home uniform as white in color, with white caps featuring “red visors” and red stockings. Two players in the back row, Allen 3rd from left and Ganzel 4th from left, were standing on risers (Ganzel was not that tall!). The uniform shirt worn by Allen in this photo did not include the shirt bib. This player wore a short-sleeved shirt with buttons and a shirt pocket. His shirt may also have included a button on the right breast possibly indicating that this was the team-issued shirt and one in which the bib could then be attached.
Top row, from left: J Sullivan (91, 95-98), J Stivetts (92-98), B Allen (Bos 97, Det WL 97), C Ganzel (89-97), F Klobedanz (96-99, 01), T Lewis (NL 96-00, AL 01) and F Lake (Bos 91, 97, 10, KC WL 97). Middle: H Long (90-02), K Nichols (90-01), G Yeager (96-99), B Allen (96), (F Selee mgr 90-01), H Duffy (AA 91, 92-00), F Tenney (94-07) and B Hamilton (96-01). Front: J Collins (NL 95-00, AL 01-07), C Stahl (NL 97-00, AL 01-06) and B Lowe (90-01). Player IDs from the Spading Base Ball Guide 1898, which published this photo at the start of the 1898 season. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Info on team photo for sale and of Bergen refusing to have his picture taken from the Boston Globe, August 20, 1897, research from Sam Wallace. Allen and Lake transaction info from retrosheet.org. Some prints of this image labelled Frank G. Selee, the Boston manager, and Frederick O. Woodruff, a Boston real estate businessman, as copyright owners of the image. Image scan from Mark Fimoff, SABR 19th-century Pictorial Committee. Original photo by Elmer Chickering, Boston.
Dated late August 1897. Detail view of photo A. Detail view showed an old-English letter B centered on the shirt.
Photo B
Dated late August 1897. This image was made during the same session as photo A. In this image, several players have moved to different positions (note position of players Allen and Tenney) while others have changed their pose (especially in the front row). The position of Allen next to the manager may have been an attempt by the photographer to hide the fact the player was missing his shirt bib, see photo A. Other changes in this photo were that manager Selee was standing, not sitting, and that player Lowe, lower right, wore a cap while in photo A he was bareheaded. Similar to photo A, two players in the back row, Stivetts 3rd from left, and Klobedanz 4th from left, were standing on risers.
Top row, from left: F Tenney (94-07), F Lake (Bos 91, 97, 10, KC WL 97), J Stivetts (92-98), F Klobedanz (96-99, 01), C Ganzel (89-97), T Lewis (NL 96-00, AL 01) and J Sullivan (91, 95-98). Middle: H Long (90-02), K Nichols (90-01), G Yeager (96-99), B Allen (Bos 97, Det WL 97), (F Selee mgr 90-01), H Duffy (AA 91, 92-00) and B Hamilton (96-01). Front: J Collins (NL 95-00, AL 01-07), C Stahl (NL 97-00, AL 01-06) and B Lowe (90-01). Player IDs from item. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Image scan from George V. Tuohey, A History of Boston Base Ball (1897). Boston manager Frank G. Selee and Boston businessman Frederick O. Woodruff were listed as copyright owners of the image. Original photo by Elmer Chickering, Boston.
Photos C, D & E
Dated late August 1897. Three studio images of F Tenney (94-07). Left, studio portrait; center, detail view of the team photo (photo A); and right, detail view of another studio image. Player wore the same uniform in all three photos. Note that Tenney’s left shirt collar had the same undulation in each photo. This suggests that all three photos were made at the same session on the same day. The photo at left was stamped with the date August 31, 1897, and based on this we can guess this was the date for all three images. Years Tenney with team from baseball-reference.com. Image scan at right from George V. Tuohey, A History of Boston Base Ball (1897). The portrait at left listed Boston manager Frank G. Selee and Boston businessman Frederick O. Woodruff as copyright owners. All original photos by Elmer Chickering, Boston.
Dated late August 1897. Two detail views of photo C. Detail view at left showed the letter and the stitching on the bib. Detail view at right showed the pillbox style cap with three subtle horizontal bands. Years Tenney with team from baseball-reference.com. Original photo by Elmer Chickering, Boston.
Photos F & G
Left, dated late August 1897, studio portrait of C Stahl (NL 97-00, AL 01-06), and right, dated 1897, studio portrait H Duffy (AA 91, 92-00). Both portraits had the date of 1897 inscribed on the image, and the Stahl portrait had the date August 31, 1897 stamped on the photo mount. An 1897 date can be further confirmed as this was Stahl’s first year with the team. The similarity in the photo background and photo mount of both photos suggest these images were made at the same time. The uniform each player wore matched that shown in the team photo from 1897, see photo A. The Duffy portrait showed that the white Boston cap had a large button on top, which was described by a newspaper as being red in color. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Both portraits listed Boston manager Frank G. Selee and Boston businessman Frederick O. Woodruff as copyright owners. Original photos by Elmer Chickering, Boston.
Photos H & I
Dated mid-July 1897 to October 1897, probably late August 1897. Portraits of B Allen (96) at left, and F Lake (Bos 91, 97, 10, KC WL 97) at right. Date range of photos determined by fact that Allen signed with the team on July 12, 1897, and Lake was purchased by Boston from Kansas City on July 1, 1897. Both of these photos were published in October 1897 and were most likely taken at the same photo session as photo A in late August 1897. Players wore a uniform that matched that shown in the team photo from this year, see photo A. The studio background in both mages also matched photo A. Years Allen and Lake with team from baseball-reference.com. Image scans from George V. Tuohey, A History of Boston Base Ball (1897). Both photos listed Boston manager Frank G. Selee and Boston businessman Frederick O. Woodruff as copyright owners. Original photos by Elmer Chickering, Boston.
Photo H
Dated 1896 or 1897, probably 1897. Portrait of M Bergen (96-99), full view at left, detail view at right. This photo was published in October 1897 and the uniform matched that shown in the team photo from this year, see photo A. However Bergen was not included in the team photo, possibly a result of his well-documented troubles. The studio background behind Bergen was also different from other portraits of Boston players made in 1897, further suggesting a different photo session. Researcher Sam Wallace found that on August 20, 1897, a newspaper said, “Martin Bergen refused to have his picture taken in the Boston group.” Brian McKenna wrote that Bergen had “a penchant for sulking and leaving the club.” Researcher Ed Morton found that during a month-long home stand in Boston (August 16 to September 22), Bergen was away from the team on August 25 and “out of town” on September 10. Morton also found that Bergen had “disappeared” before the final road trip of the season (which began September 24) and that for some of the Temple Cup series games (October) Bergen again had “not been heard from.” Years Bergen with team from baseball-reference.com. Report of Bergen refusing to have his picture taken from the Boston Globe, August 20, 1897, research from Sam Wallace. Report of Bergen sulking from Brian McKenna, SABR BioProject: Marty Bergen, retrieved February 2, 2020. Reports on Bergen missing from the Boston Globe, August 30, September 11, September 24, and October 11, 1897, research from Ed Morton. Image scan from George V. Tuohey, A History of Boston Base Ball (1897). Original photo by Elmer Chickering, Boston.
Photo I
Dated September 25, 1897. Photo of the Boston team and their fans in Baltimore for their final series of games against the Orioles. Peter J. Nash wrote in Boston’s Royal Rooters (2005) that “Boston fans traveled to Baltimore by rail to support their team. Boston took the first game, and before the second game [on September 25], the fans posed with the team in front of Baltimore’s Hotel Eutaw.” Though Boston was on the road, the players were photographed in what appeared to be their home uniform, one that matched the uniform shown in photo A. After the first game with Baltimore, a newspaper noted that “both teams wore uniforms alike (white).” The Baltimore team wore dark stockings in 1897 and the Boston team may also have worn dark stockings, with several players wearing gray caps. A Brooklyn newspaper reported in July 1897 that “the [road] uniform of the Bostons is a mixture of gray, red and black,” see written descriptions below. Some of the Boston players and many of the “rooters” wore ribbons to commemorate the important series. A newspaper reported that “every rooter wore a pretty pin, presented by the Boston Herald, consisting of a miniature flag with a ribbon pendant, on which was the word Boston, the whole fastening with a gilt pin with ball head.” Several of the Boston players wore white coats in this photo, and some wore dark sweaters. Some historians have written that this photo was taken before a Temple Cup game in Baltimore in October 1897. However this can be discounted as catcher Bergen, sitting on the ground at right in this photo, was not with the team when they played in Baltimore for the Temple Cup.
Boston team, top row from left: C Stahl (NL 97-00, AL 01-06), unidentified, J Stivetts (92-98), J Collins (NL 95-00, AL 01-07), B Allen (Bos 97, Det WL 97), H Duffy (AA 91, 92-00), (F Selee mgr 90-01), (unidentified), F Klobedanz (96-99, 01), F Tenney (94-07), B Hamilton (96-01), T Lewis (NL 96-00, AL 01) and K Nichols (90-01). Front row on ground: F Lake (Bos 91, 97, 10, KC WL 97), H Long (90-02), B Lowe (90-01) and M Bergen (96-99). Game date from retrosheet.org. Info on the commemorative pin from The Sporting Life, October 2, 1897. Image scan from the Boston Public Library.
Dated September 25, 1897. Detail view of photo I. Photo showed majority of players wearing a white uniform, typically the home uniform, with an old-English letter B on the chest, a white cap with a dark-colored visor, and dark stockings. Two players (Collins and Long) in this detail view wore a mid-toned cap, possibly gray in color, and this may have been the Boston road cap from this year.
Photo J
Dated late September 1897, possibly September 30, 1897. This photo montage was published on October 21, 1897, full view at left, detail view of player G Yeager (96-99) at right. The photos were of the Boston team at Brooklyn in the final series of the season. The published caption stated that these images were made as Boston won the National League pennant. One photo included the caption: “Captain Hugh Duffy reading a congratulatory telegram.” Based on this it is possible the photo date was taken September 30, 1897. The championship was decided in the final series of the 1897 season when Boston played at Brooklyn on September 29, 30 and October 2, 1897. Boston clinched the pennant on September 30, 1897 when they defeated Brooklyn and on this same day Baltimore lost to Washington. Boston’s final game of the season was October 2, 1897. A newspaper reported that for this last game “the Beaneaters presented a patched-up team as [players] Tenney, Lowe, Long, Collins and Bergen have been allowed to go home and rest for the coming Temple Cup series with the Baltimores.” These five players were included in photo J, therefore eliminating October 2 as the photo date. Photos in montage showed the majority of Boston players wearing a white uniform, typically the home uniform. This uniform matched that shown in the team photo from this year, see photo A. Image scan from Leslie’s Weekly, October 21, 1897. Info on the Boston winning the pennant and report of the “patched-up team” from The Sporting Life, October 9, 1897. Original photos by Hennesy.
Dated late September 1897, possibly September 30, 1897. Detail view of photo J. Detail view showed a majority of the Boston players wearing a white uniform, typically the home uniform, with an old-English letter B on the chest, a white cap with a dark-colored visor, and dark stockings. Same as in photo I, two players (Collins and Long) wore a mid-toned cap, possibly gray in color, and this may have been the Boston road cap from this year. This detail view also showed that some players may have worn light gray pants, see player standing at left and also player sitting to the left of manager Selee.
Photos K & L
Left, montage of portraits dated September 25, 1897, and right, single portrait dated September 27, 1897. The montage of portraits, clockwise from top left, J Collins (NL 95-00, AL 01-07), H Long (90-02), F Tenney (94-07) and M Bergen (96-99), was published in a newspaper the day after Boston won the first game of a key three-game series in Baltimore. The portrait at right, K Nichols (90-01), was published the day of the decisive third game, also won by Boston. All of these drawings, with the possible exception of the Bergen portrait, were made based on photos taken in late August 1897 by Elmer Chickering. Years players with team from baseball-reference.com. Portraits from the Boston Globe, September 25 and 27, 1897. Globe research from Ed Morton. Each of the drawings listed Boston manager Frank G. Selee and Boston businessman Frederick O. Woodruff as copyright owners.
Photo M
Dated October 4, 1897 to October 7, 1897. Studio photo of four Boston players, clockwise from top, F Tenney (94-07), H Long (90-02), J Collins (NL 95-00, AL 01-07) and B Lowe (90-01), full view at left, detail view of Long’s uniform at right. This photo, often incorrectly dated as 1900, was taken in Boston during the 1897 Temple Cup series. The first three games of the series were played in Boston on October 4, 5 and 6, 1897. Three of the four players in this photo wore a uniform that matched that shown in photo A. For more information on this photo, click here. Years players with team from baseball-reference.com. Image scan from the Boston Public Library, McGreevy Collection. Original photo by Elmer Chickering, Boston.
Photo N
Dated October 9, 1897. This collage of player portraits was published on this date, full view at left, detail view of player J Collins at right. The majority of drawings were made from the portrait series photographed in late August 1897 by Elmer Chickering.
Top row: (B Allen Bos 97, Det WL 97). Second row, from left: C Stahl (NL 97-00, AL 01-06), C Ganzel (89-97), B Lowe (90-01) and M Bergen (96-99). Third row: T Lewis (NL 96-00, AL 01), K Nichols (90-01), (F Selee mgr 90-01),H Duffy (AA 91, 92-00) and G Yeager (96-99). Fourth row: H Long (90-02), J Sullivan (91, 95-98), J Stivetts (92-98), F Tenney (94-07) and F Lake (Bos 91, 97, 10, KC WL 97). Fifth row: F Klobedanz (96-99, 01), J Collins (NL 95-00, AL 01-07) and B Hamilton (96-01). Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Collage from The Sporting Life, October 9, 1897. Research from Ken Samoil.
Image O
Dated August 8, 1897. This illustration was published in a newspaper on this day and depicted scenes before a game between Baltimore and Boston at Boston on August 7, 1897. These drawings were likely made from photographs. Baltimore pitchers were shown at left and center, and a Boston pitcher was shown at right. The Boston uniform was depicted as having a pillbox-style cap and an old-English “B” centered on a shirt bib. Image from the Boston Globe, August 8, 1897. According to the Globe, the Baltimore pitcher on this day was Jerry Nops, and the Boston pitcher was Ted Lewis, however, the Boston pitcher depicted was most likely Fred Klobedanz, the team’s only left-handed pitcher that year, according to baseball-reference.com.
Images P, Q & R
Left: dated June 26, 1897. Center: dated September 10, 1897. Right: dated September 23, 1897. These illustrations of the Boston uniform were published in newspapers on these dates. Each depicted a differently styled letter “B” on the front of the shirts and none were made from photographs. From the Boston Globe, June 26, 1897, September 10, 1897 and September 23, 1897.
Written documentation on these uniforms:
February 1897: “The uniforms of the Boston Club will be very natty this year, says Manager Selee. A large blue ball will appear on the shirt front marked ‘Boston.’ The design is similar to ‘Sporting Life’s’ letterhead, and may have been suggested by it.” From The Sporting Life, February 20, 1897. Research from Chuck McGill. The masthead for the baseball section of The Sporting Life is shown here:
February 1897: “Boston’s new uniform will be novel, the shirt front being decorated with a large blue design in the shape of a ball, on which will appear the name ‘Boston.’” From the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, February 20, 1897. Research from Don Stokes and Graig Kreindler. This report also was also published in the Buffalo Courier, February 26, 1897, and from the Rockford (IL) Republican, March 1, 1897. Rockford research from Dan O’Brien.
March 1897: “In Baltimore they say the Bostons will look like a collection of signal service men in their new uniforms.” From the Chicago Inter-Ocean, March 7, 1897. Research from Ed Morton.
March 1897: “Boston, March 10.— […] The traveling uniforms of the [Boston] club will be something unique. The trousers and caps will be of dark Scotch material, the belts of leather, the shirts of white, with a large ball of blue in the center of the shield, carrying the word ‘Boston’ in white letters, blue ribbed stockings. The Boston style of cap is abandoned for the [National] League style, with a crimson visor and trimmed with crimson cord. This sort of suit has been chafingly called the letter carrier and messenger boy, but Manager Selee says they will be very pretty.” From The Sporting Life, March 13, 1897. Research from Chuck McGill and also from Ed Morton.
March 1897: “The uniforms of the Boston team this year will consist of dark gray trousers, cream-white shirts and blue stockings with trimmings. The caps will be the Boston style. The name on the shirts will be within a huge baseball, about seven inches in diameter, and in white letters. To go with the suit is a cream colored Norfolk jacket.” From the Springfield (MO) Republican, March 29, 1897. Research from Dan O’Brien.
April 1897: “The effect of the lettering on the new Boston uniforms would be heightened if a large ‘B’ replaced the whole word, which is too small to be seen, except near to.” From The Sporting Life, April 17, 1897. Research from Ed Morton.
April 22, 1897, Boston v. Baltimore, at Baltimore, home opener: “The Bostons uniforms this year are a mixture. The stockings are deep blue, trousers dark gray and shirts white, with a big black circle on the breast, in which, in white letters, is the word Boston. The caps are black. The uniform is not beautiful.” From the Baltimore Sun, April 23, 1897. Research from Ed Morton. This report was also published in the Detroit Free Press, April 25, 1897, research from Ed Morton; in the St. Paul Globe, April 27, 1897, research from Don Stokes and Graig Kreindler; in The Sporting Life, May 1, 1897, research from Chuck McGill, and also from Peter Reitan; and in the Wilkes-Barre (PA) Sunday Leader, May 2, 1897, research from Dan O’Brien.
April 1897: The new uniforms, with the big black ball in the center, have not made a hit. The Pawtuckets have a similar suit, with a large red ball on the shield.” From the Detroit Free Press, April 25, 1897. A similar report was published in The Sporting Life, May 1, 1897. Research on both from Ed Morton.
April 1897: “The Bostonians […] traveling uniforms are of a mardi gras make-up, and ‘twixt the gray of the caps, the white shirts, the steel color of the knickerbockers and the deep blue socks, they are the most picturesque fellows that ever came down the pike since Gus Schmelz rang the bell on the Senators’ clown clothes of 1894.” From the Washington (DC) Times, April 30, 1897. Research from Ed Morton.
May 4, 1897, Boston v. Philadelphia, at Boston, South End Grounds: “The day was just right for baseball, a well tempered sun shone on a pasture as green and smooth as a billiard table. Taking [Boston groundskeeper] John Haggerty’s word for it, the absence of the black sheep and other hoodoos in the way of vandyke beards and elegant mustaches encouraged Selee’s men, and they looked swell in their brand new white uniforms.” The black sheep mentioned in this report from a Boston newspaper may have been real sheep used to trim the grass at the ballpark. The sheep may also have been the team’s mascot or good luck charm. The same newspaper however reported that the team was trying a new mascot at this time: “New Mascot at South End — When the Boston players returned to the South end grounds yesterday morning [May 4, 1897], they discovered a white crumpled-horn young man browsing around third base with as much coolness as if he had played in the big league for years. […] The boys went after superintendent John Haggerty, who had the nerve to confess that he had released the black sheep several days before, and had signed the new mascot on recommendation of director Billings. The boys agreed to give the new leaguer a fair trial, and he will do his turn today.” From the Boston Globe, May 5, 1897. Research from Ed Morton.
May 1897: “The traveling uniforms have been voted first-class hoodoos, and the black ball has been removed from the shirt fronts of the uniforms. […] The new home uniforms of the home club are beauties indeed—white with red stockings, white caps, with red visors and buttons [on the top of the cap].” From The Sporting Life, May 15, 1897. Research from Chuck McGill. This issue also included a second report on the Boston home uniform: “The Boston’s home suits are said to be things of beauty, in strong contrast to the traveling suits. They consist of white pantaloons, shirt and cap, with a red button, and crimson stockings.”
May 1897: “The new Boston uniforms are astoundingly hideous, the white shirts, gray trousers and blue stockings.” From the Chicago Daily Tribune, May 18, 1897. Research from Don Stokes and Graig Kreindler.
May 1897: “The Bostons have removed the black balls from the shirts of their traveling uniforms. They were voted first-class hoodoos.” From The Sporting Life, May 29, 1897. Research from Ed Morton. By the end of May, Boston had turned their season around after a slow start. This same issue of The Sporting Life remarked the following: “Great ball playing those Beaneaters have done on the trip. From last place on May 3 to the first four on the 22nd is something to talk about.”
June 1897: “Even with the hideous base ball removed from the Boston uniform, all the writers on the Western circuit pronounce it a marvel of ugliness. Manager Selee should consult an artist, not a butcher, when he gets ready for the suits of ‘98.” From the St. Paul Globe, June 7, 1897. Research from Don Stokes and Graig Kreindler.
July 1897: “The uniform of the Bostons is a mixture of gray, red and black. Their appearance is one of stiffness, but it is, nevertheless, clean and natty.” From the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, July 22, 1897.
August 1897: “The pictures of the Boston club on sale at the South end grounds are for the benefit of the players. Manager Selee says the boys will receive quite a handsome amount from their sale.” […] Martin Bergen refused to have his picture taken in the Boston group. ‘Handsome is as handsome does.’” From the Boston Globe, August 20, 1897. Research from Sam Wallace.
August 1897: “The boys are receiving a substantial benefit from the sale of their pictures at the South ends grounds. Manager Selee is getting up a history of the club and players and would like to get any old pictures of the clubs of the past. Those having the same will do the boys a favor by sending them to manager Selee at the grounds. — T.H. Murnane.” From the Boston Globe, August 23, 1897. Research from Sam Wallace.
August 1897: “Boston, Aug. 26 — […] Groups of the Boston players, large and small, are on sale at the grounds for the benefit of the members.” From The Sporting Life, August 28, 1897.
September 24, 1897, Boston v. Baltimore, at Baltimore: “As both teams wore uniforms alike (white) it was hard to tell the players at times.” From The Boston Globe, September 25, 1897. Research from Ed Morton.
1897, referenced in March 1898: “The baseball public in other cities will have no chance this year [1898] to guy [i.e., ridicule] the Boston bicycle breeches as they did last year [1897].” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, Sunday, March 6, 1898. Research from Dan O’Brien.
Team genealogy: Boston 1871-1952
Boston was formed to enter the National Association (NA) in 1871. The NA was baseball’s first league, operating 1871-1875. Boston played in the NA in every year of the league’s existence and moved to the National League (NL) upon its start in 1876. Boston played in the NL from 1876 to 1952 and moved to Milwaukee for the 1953 NL season. Information from Paul Batesel, Players And Teams of the National Association, 1871-1875, from baseball-reference.com and from wikipedia.com.
Rendering posted: January 5, 2021
Diggers on this uniform: Chuck McGill, Dan O'Brien, Don Stokes, Ed Morton, Ken Samoil, Mark Fimoff, Peter Reitan, Sam Wallace,