NJ Baseball
Oliver Waldo West. Autographed letter signed, 27 April 1862.
Oliver Waldo West. Autographed letter signed, 27 April 1862.
.
Another indication of baseball's popularity ca. 1860 is the increased number of references to the game that may be discovered in contemporary letters and diaries. Shown here is page 7 of a letter written on 7 April 1862 by Oliver Waldo West of Dansville, New York, describing the game for a female friend, Sarah Stilson. West was a member of a Dansville baseball club; the rules and diagram he provides are typical of the "New York Game" first codified in the Knickerbocker rules of 1845. West is at particular pains to observe that "[y]ou cannot put a man out by throwing the ball at him. But the ball must be held in the hand as you touch him with it ...."
Oliver Waldo West. Autographed letter signed, 27 April 1862.
Oliver Waldo West. Autographed letter signed, 27 April 1862.
.
Another indication of baseball's popularity ca. 1860 is the increased number of references to the game that may be discovered in contemporary letters and diaries. Shown here is page 7 of a letter written on 7 April 1862 by Oliver Waldo West of Dansville, New York, describing the game for a female friend, Sarah Stilson. West was a member of a Dansville baseball club; the rules and diagram he provides are typical of the "New York Game" first codified in the Knickerbocker rules of 1845. West is at particular pains to observe that "[y]ou cannot put a man out by throwing the ball at him. But the ball must be held in the hand as you touch him with it ...."