Capitoline Grounds

Last updated
Capitoline Grounds
USA New York City location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Capitoline Grounds
Location within New York City
USA New York location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Capitoline Grounds
Capitoline Grounds (New York)
Location Brooklyn, New York
Coordinates 40°40′58″N073°56′55″W / 40.68278°N 73.94861°W / 40.68278; -73.94861 [1]
OwnerReuben S. Decker
Hamilton A. Weed
Capacity 5,000
Surface Grass
Construction
Broke ground1863
Built1864
OpenedMay 5, 1864
Closed1880
Tenants
Atlantic of Brooklyn (1864–1871)
Enterprise of Brooklyn (1866)
Brooklyn Atlantics (1872)

The Capitoline Grounds, also known as Capitoline Skating Lake and Base Ball Ground, [2] was a baseball park located in Brooklyn, New York, from 1864 to 1880. It was built to rival nearby Union Grounds, also in Brooklyn. The park hosted local amateur teams in its early history, but later hosted professional and semi-professional games. The park's only season as the home field for an all-professional team occurred in 1872 when the Brooklyn Atlantics joined the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players. The park was flooded during the winter and used as an ice skating park. The grounds were used by local high schools and colleges as well, to play American football games, and ice rink football matches. [3] [4]

Contents

Many of organized baseball's earliest historical events took place at the park throughout the 1860s and early 1870s. The most notable event came on June 14, 1870, when the Atlantics defeated the Cincinnati Red Stockings to end their historic 84-game winning streak. Fred Goldsmith successfully demonstrated his curve ball at the grounds in 1870, a pitch previously thought to have been only an optical illusion. In an 1865 game, Ned Cuthbert is credited with inventing the slide when he tried avoiding a tag when attempting to steal a base against the Athletic of Philadelphia. In addition to baseball, the grounds hosted various events and exhibitions; most notably in 1873, when Washington H. Donaldson and two reporters attempted to fly a gas balloon across the Atlantic Ocean. The attempt turned tragic when the balloon crashed in Connecticut killing one of the reporters.

Origin and construction

Reuben S. Decker inherited a portion of his grandfather's farm land and along with Hamilton A. Weed initially opened the Capitoline Skating pond, named in reference to Capitoline Hill, one of the Seven Hills of Rome. [5] The location of the grounds were in the Bedford area of Brooklyn, New York, an area now known as the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood. [6] [7] The grounds encompassed a city block bounded by Halsey Street, Marcy Street, Putnam Avenue, and Nostrand Avenue. [8] The pond area was first conceived as an ice skate park, which began in the winter of 1862–1863. [5] (Marcy also bordered the Union Grounds, less than 2 1/2 miles north of Capitoline Grounds.) It was designed to be a competitor to the nearby Union Grounds, where the first enclosed baseball field opened earlier in 1862. [5] [6] With the success that the Union Grounds experienced by charging admission, Decker and Weed chose to enclose the Capitoline Grounds as well. [5]

The Capitoline Grounds opened for baseball in 1864, consisting of two sets of bleachers that were backed by Nostrand Avenue and Halsey Street, and had an approximate capacity of 5,000 people. [6] In right field stood a circular brick outhouse, and if any player hit a ball over the structure, they were presented with a bottle of Champagne. [6] Along Putnam Avenue, two rows of stables were established for the patrons' horses. Other amenities included a bandstand, clubhouses, and sitting rooms for the female patrons. [9] The Brooklyn Daily Eagle regarded the new park as "the finest, most extensive, and complete ball grounds in the country". [10] The business ran year around; flooding the area during the winter for skating, then draining the park in the spring for baseball matches. [6]

Baseball

1864–1868

The first team to use the grounds as their home field was the Atlantics of Brooklyn, baseball's most successful team since the formation of the National Association of Base Ball Players in 1857. [11] The club had won the most games in 1857, then won the league's first three championships from 1859 to 1861. On May 5, 1864, the first baseball game at Capitoline was a match between the Atlantics and a field of nine players from other Brooklyn teams chosen by sportswriter Henry Chadwick. The Atlantic club defeated the field of nine, 45–11. Later, Atlantic defeated Nassau of Princeton 42–7 in the field's first scheduled club match. [12] The Enterprise of Brooklyn used the grounds as their home field 1864, and the Excelsior of Brooklyn later moved there in 1866. Both the Enterprise and the Excelsior clubs refused to play the Atlantics, but they played a number of matches together, mixing their best nines and their "muffin" nines of club novices. [12] The Atlantics won the NABBP championship in 1864 with an undefeated record. [11]

In early November 1865, the Atlantics played the Athletic of Philadelphia in a two-game, season-ending series. Brooklyn came into the series undefeated, and this was considered a play for the league's championship. The games were played one week apart, the first occurred in Philadelphia, which resulted in a 21–15 victory for Brooklyn. In the second game, played in Brooklyn in front of a crowd of approximately 15,000 spectators, the Atlantics prevailed, this time 27–24. [13] The Atlantics won the championship again in 1866. [11]

1869–1871

Sketch of Capitoline Grounds during a matchup of the Brooklyn Atlantics and the Cincinnati Red Stockings, 1870 Capitoline Grounds.jpg
Sketch of Capitoline Grounds during a matchup of the Brooklyn Atlantics and the Cincinnati Red Stockings, 1870

On June 28, 1869, a championship match between the Atlantic club and the New York Mutuals was played on the Capitoline Grounds before a crowd of 10‚000. The Atlantics were ahead in the seventh before the game was stopped due to rain. [14] Later, on September 6, the Eckford Club began a championship series for the pennant with the Atlantic club at the Capitoline Grounds. With 8‚000 spectators on hand, the Atlantics defeated the Eckfords 45–25‚ supported by Joe Start's four home runs. [14]

Due to other local competitors opening area that could hold more ballfields, the Capitoline Grounds split their field into two fields to accommodate more amateur clubs. [10] The first instance of two high-profile teams to begin a season with a practice game happened at the grounds on April 21, 1870. A crowd of 1‚200 paid $.25 apiece to watch the Atlantics and the Union of Morrisania play; the Atlantics won the game 24–10. [15]

The game played at the Capitoline Grounds on June 14, 1870, a match described both as the "greatest game of the year", and "the finest game ever played" took place. [15] With approximately 20,000 people in attendance, Harry Wright and the Cincinnati Red Stockings attempted to extend their 84-game winning streak against the Atlantics in Brooklyn. The Red Stockings had been undefeated in 1869, with a record of 57–0, and had won their first 27 games of the 1870 season. [16] The game was tied 5–5 at the end of the ninth inning, when the Atlantics offered to let the game end since the regulation nine innings had been played, but Wright turned down the proposal, wishing to take the game into extra innings. [16] In the top of the 11th inning‚ the Red Stockings scored two runs, giving themselves a 7–5 lead, but the Atlantics countered with three of their own in the bottom half of the 11th, winning the game. [16]

Henry Chadwick wrote an account that on August 16, 1870, Fred Goldsmith demonstrated a new pitch, the curve ball, at the Capitoline Grounds. [17] Chadwick observed: "That which had up to this point been considered an optical illusion and against all rules of philosophy was now an established fact." [17] By the 1930s, the established baseball community had given the discovery credit to Candy Cummings, and due to Chapman's age, determined that his demonstration has most likely occurred a few years later. [17]

1872–1880

Writeup about Barnum circus in 1880, featuring the acrobat known as Zazel Barnum at Capitoline Grounds 1880 04 26.jpg
Writeup about Barnum circus in 1880, featuring the acrobat known as Zazel

The only season of Major League Baseball at the Capitoline Grounds was in 1872. The Atlantics, then of the National Association, won the final major league game there 6–3 over Boston, but left for the Union Grounds in 1873. [6] The Capitoline Grounds continued to host lesser matches, as well such events as P. T. Barnum's circus, whose final show at Capitoline came in April 1880.

John B. Day, who owned the New York Metropolitans in 1880, was frustrated about having to play at the ill-kept Capitoline Grounds in Brooklyn, which was not yet a borough of New York City, and the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge had not yet been completed, so the fans of the Mets had to cross the East River by ferry to see their team play. Day's shoe shine boy suggested a site in Manhattan, a place where polo matches were being played. That piece of ground later became the future site of the Polo Grounds. [18]

The Capitoline Grounds was demolished later in 1880. [6] By the late winter of 1880–1881, the property had been cut through by Jefferson Avenue and Hancock Street, and residential lot development had begun.

Donaldson's failed balloon flight of 1873

Donaldson's 1873 balloon Daily Graphic 7 October 1873.png
Donaldson's 1873 balloon

In September 1873, Washington Donaldson, a professional balloonist who had formerly worked for P.T. Barnum as a circus performer, along with fellow balloonist John Wise, collaborated on an attempt to cross the Atlantic Ocean in a hot-air balloon. Sponsored by the Daily Graphic , the launch was to take place from the Capitoline Grounds, with Wise planning to use a balloon 49 meters (160 feet) tall with a two-compartment enclosed car, but decided to end his involvement with the project. Donaldson persisted, acquiring a smaller balloon with an open boat for the car. [19]

Donaldson's Atlantic attempt, launched from the Capitoline Grounds accompanied by reporters Alfred Ford and George Lunt, ended up being forced down by a rainstorm, to land on a Connecticut farm. [20] Donaldson and Ford successfully abandoned the runaway balloon, but Lunt stayed with the balloon for a distance until he finally jumped into a tree, sustaining serious injuries from which he died six months later. [21]

Donaldson later disappeared in 1875 when he tried to fly across Lake Michigan in a balloon, accompanied by a reporter named Newton Grimwood. The balloon never made it to the far shore; Grimwood's body washed up on shore weeks later, but Donaldson was never seen again. [19]

In literature

In Darryl Brock's 1990 novel, If I Never Get Back: A Novel , the main character is transported back in time to 1869, where he joins the Cincinnati Red Stockings on their quest to remain undefeated. The Red Stockings travelled to Brooklyn to play the Atlantics at the Capitoline Grounds. [22]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Start</span> American baseball player (1842–1927)

Joseph Start, nicknamed "Old Reliable", was one of the most durable regulars of baseball's earliest era, and one of the top first basemen of his time. He began his playing career in 1859, before the formation of organized leagues and before ballplayers received payment for their services. He continued to play regularly until 1886, when he was 43. Start's career spanned countless innovations that transformed the game in fundamental ways, but he adjusted and continued to play at a high level for almost three decades. Baseball historian Bill Ryczek said that Start "was the last of the pre–Civil War players to hang up his cleats."

The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NAPBBP), often known simply as the National Association (NA), was the first fully-professional sports league in baseball. The NA was founded in 1871 and continued through the 1875 season. It succeeded and incorporated several professional clubs from the previous National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) of 1857–1870, sometimes called "the amateur Association". In turn, several NA clubs created the succeeding National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, which joined with the American League of Professional Base Ball Clubs to form Major League Baseball (MLB) in 1903.

The Cincinnati Red Stockings of 1869 were baseball's first all-professional team, with ten salaried players. The Cincinnati Base Ball Club formed in 1866 and fielded competitive teams in the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) 1867–1870, a time of a transition that ambitious Cincinnati businessmen and English-born ballplayer Harry Wright shaped as much as anyone. Major League Baseball recognized those events officially by sponsoring a centennial of professional baseball in 1969.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry Wright</span> English baseball player, manager, and developer (1835–1895)

William Henry "Harry" Wright was an English-born professional baseball player, manager, and developer. He assembled, managed, and played center field for baseball's first fully professional team, the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings. He is credited with introducing innovations such as backing up infield plays from the outfield and shifting defensive alignments based on hitters' tendencies. For his contributions as a manager and developer of the game, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1953 by the Veterans Committee. Wright was also the first to make baseball into a business by paying his players up to seven times the pay of the average working man.

Union Grounds was a baseball park located in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, New York. The grounds opened in 1862, its inaugural match being played on May 15. It was the first baseball park enclosed entirely by a fence, thereby allowing proprietor William Cammeyer or his tenant to charge admission. This permitted paying customers to watch the games from benches in a stand while non-paying spectators could only watch from embankments outside the grounds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philadelphia Athletics (1860–1876)</span> Professional baseball club in Philadelphia

The Athletic Base Ball Club of Philadelphia was a prominent National Association, and later National League, professional baseball team that played in the second half of the 19th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brooklyn Atlantics</span> Defunct American baseball team

The Atlantic Base Ball Club of Brooklyn was baseball's first champion and its first dynasty. The team was also the first baseball club to visit the White House in 1865 at the invitation of President Andrew Johnson.

The National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) was the first organization governing American baseball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elysian Fields (Hoboken, New Jersey)</span>

The Elysian Fields in Hoboken, New Jersey, was recreational parkland located on the city's northern riverfront in the 19th century. The area was a popular getaway destination for New Yorkers in the 19th century, much in the tradition of the pleasure garden, offering open space for a variety of sports, public spectacles, and amusements. The lavish grounds hosted the Colonnade Hotel and tavern, and offered picnic areas, a spa known as Sybil's Cave, river walks, nature paths, fishing, a miniature railroad, rides and races, and a ferry landing, which also served as a launch for boating competitions.

The following are the baseball events of the year 1869 throughout the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eckford of Brooklyn</span>

Eckford of Brooklyn, or simply Eckford, was an American baseball club from 1855 to 1872. When the Union Grounds opened on May 15, 1862 for baseball in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, it became the first enclosed baseball grounds in America. Three clubs called the field on the corner of Marcy Avenue and Rutledge Street home; however, the Eckford of Brooklyn were the most famous tenant. They played more games than any other club that year (7) and won the "national" championship, repeating the feat in 1863. During that two year period, the Eckfords won 22 straight matches which was the longest undefeated and untied streak to date. In the late 1860s, they were one of the pioneering professional clubs, although probably second to Mutual of New York at the home park. In its final season, Eckford entered the second championship of the National Association, the first professional baseball league in America, so it is considered a major league club by those who count the NA as a major league.

The Middletown Mansfields were an early baseball team in Middletown, Connecticut that existed from 1866 to 1872.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dexter Park (Chicago)</span>

Dexter Park was a horse race track in Chicago built in the years following the Civil War. It was named for a gelding and trotter who had set world records for the mile and inspired the naming of several new towns including Dexter, Missouri, and Dexter, Texas. The track's formal opening was held in July 1867.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fred Goldsmith (baseball)</span> American baseball player (1856–1939)

Fredrick Elroy Goldsmith was a right-handed pitcher in 19th-century professional baseball in both the U.S. and Canada. In his prime, Goldsmith was six-foot-one-inch tall and weighed 195 pounds.

The Washington Nationals of the 1870s were the first important baseball club in the capital city of the United States. They competed briefly in the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players, the first fully-professional sports league in baseball. The Nationals are considered a major-league team by those who count the National Association as a major league. Several other baseball clubs based in Washington, D.C., have also used the historic name Nationals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andy Leonard</span> Irish baseball player (1846–1903)

Andrew Jackson Leonard was an Irish born professional baseball player of the 19th century, who played outfield and was also a utility infielder. He played left field for the original Cincinnati Red Stockings, the first fully professional baseball team. He was one of five men to play regularly for both the Cincinnati and the Boston Red Stockings, the latter winning six championships during his seven seasons. He played several infield positions on lesser teams in his early twenties but left field was his regular professional position.

The Lincoln Park Grounds, commonly known as Union Grounds, was a former baseball park, part of Lincoln Park, located in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Grounds were built for the Union Cricket Club in 1856; they "were used for cricket and baseball in the summer and were flooded for skating in the winter." In 1865 Harry Wright became the professional of the Cincinnati Cricket Club, which also used the grounds, and the next year Aaron Champion, president of the new Cincinnati Base Ball Club, "approached Wright to propose a limited use of the grounds if the CBBC and Live Oaks club would put in $2000 each to revamp the Lincoln Park Grounds."

A year later the [Red Stockings] leased the grounds of the Union Cricket Club for its home tilts. Most club members referred to the field as the Union Grounds, although it also was known as the Union Cricket Club Grounds and the Lincoln Park Grounds, given the fact that the eight-acre, fenced grounds were located in a small park behind Lincoln Park in Cincinnati, near the Union Terminal. It was a twenty-minute ride by streetcar to the Union Grounds from the heart of downtown Cincinnati. Aaron Champion ordered that approximately $10,000 worth of improvements be made to the home grounds for the 1867 season, including grading and sodding of the field and building of a new clubhouse and stands.

The Enterprise Base Ball Club of Brooklyn was an American baseball club in the 1850s and 1860s.

References

  1. ↑ "Feature Detail Report for: Capitoline Grounds (historical)". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. April 11, 2008. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  2. ↑ Lowry, p. 34
  3. ↑ Smith, p. 203
  4. ↑ Smith, p. 206
  5. 1 2 3 4 Nash, p. 115
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Batesel, p. 146
  7. ↑ "Base Ball". New-York Tribune . October 15, 1866.
  8. ↑ "Brooklyn Items". New-York Daily Tribune . December 8, 1862.
  9. ↑ McGee, p. 22
  10. 1 2 Mele, p. 56
  11. 1 2 3 McNeil, p. 425
  12. 1 2 Ross, Andrew; David Dyte. "Capitoline Grounds". covehurst.net. Retrieved May 2, 2013.
  13. ↑ "The National Game". Cleveland Daily Leader. November 9, 1865.
  14. 1 2 "Charlton's Baseball Chronology — 1869". baseballlibrary.com. Archived from the original on 2008-12-11. Retrieved 2008-11-04.
  15. 1 2 "Charlton's Baseball Chronology — 1870". baseballlibrary.com. Archived from the original on 2008-10-29. Retrieved 2008-11-04.
  16. 1 2 3 McGee, p. 23
  17. 1 2 3 Morris, p. 420
  18. ↑ "Polo Grounds: History". baseball-statistics.com. 2001. Retrieved 2008-11-04.
  19. 1 2 Goebel, Greg. "Pioneering The Balloon 1783:1900". Public domain. Archived from the original on 2008-10-06. Retrieved 2008-11-04.
  20. ↑ Rechs, Robert (1983). "14 Unsuccessful Atlantic Attempts 1873-1978". Archived from the original on 2008-10-07. Retrieved 2008-11-04.
  21. ↑ Doherty, Joe (2006). "A Life in the Air". Our River. blackstonedaily.com. Archived from the original on 2012-12-03. Retrieved 2008-11-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  22. ↑ Brock, p. 128

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.