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For membership information, see: http://nebraskahistory.org/admin/members/index.htm Article Title: Growing Pains in the River City: The Development of Professional Baseball in Nineteenth–Century Omaha Full Citation: Angelo J Louisa and Robert P Nash, Growing Pains in the River City: The Development of Professional Baseball in Nineteenth-Century Omaha,” Nebraska History 85 (2004): 148-155 URL of article: http://www.nebraskahistory.org/publish/publicat/history/full-text/NH2004GrowingPains.pdf Date: 8/10/2012 Article Summary: Beginning in 1867, when a group of interested Omaha citizens met to form the Omaha Base Ball Club, organized baseball struggled to maintain itself in Nebraska as it did all over the country. Clubs and leagues came and went, battling indifferent management, inadequate financing, small audiences, and uneven performance. Cataloging Information: Names: James “Grasshopper” Whitney, William A Paxton, Frank Selee, Charles “Kid” Nichols, J S “Dick” McCormick, William “Pa” Rourke, Buck Keith, Joseph Kelley, Byron Bancroft “Ban” Johnson Nebraska Place Names: Omaha, Lincoln Keywords: Omaha Base Ball Club Association, Cincinnati Red Stockings, James “Grasshopper” Whitney, William A Paxton, National Association/National League, Western League/Western Association, American League, Frank Selee, Charles “Kid” Nichols, J S “Dick” McCormick, William “Pa” Rourke, Buck Keith, Joseph Kelley, Byron Bancroft “Ban” Johnson Photographs / Images: James “Grasshopper” Whitney, who pitched for the Omaha Base Ball Association in 1879 and went on to win 191 games in a ten-year major league career; Omaha businessman William A Paxton, an organizer of the city’s first professional team; Frank Selee, who managed the Omaha team during its first winning season in 1888; Charles “Kid” Nichols, the pitcher who anchored the Omaha team in 1889 when it won its first pennant; William “Pa” Rourke, who played for Omaha in 1887, managed the team beginning in 1894, and purchased it in 1899 (2 photos) G R O W I N G P A I N S IN THE RIVER CITY B Y A N G E L O J. L O U I S A A N D R O B E R T P. N A S H The Development of Professional Baseball in Nineteenth-Century Omaha t will never be known just when the crack of a wooden bat against a ball was first heard in the city of Omaha, but it may Inot have been long after the creation of the Nebraska Territory in 1854 and Omaha’s designation as the territorial capital in 1855. Whatever baseball was played during Nebraska’s earliest years, it was certainly unorganized and informal. However, scarcely more than a decade later, Omaha’s first organized team was formed. On the evening of May 2, 1867, only two months after Nebraska became the nation’s thirty-seventh state, a group of interested citizens met to form the Omaha Base Ball Club. A week later, on May 9, the new club defeated the rival Fort Calhoun Base Ball Club in a hard-fought “pitcher’s duel” by a score of 110-50.1 The first openly “all-professional” baseball team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, took the field in 1869, and forever changed the nature of the game.2 This new professional team received promi- nent mention in the Omaha press, and added Omaha to the itinerary of its cross-country tour. On the afternoon of October 10, 1869, some two thousand spectators, including Schuyler Colfax, the vice president of the United States, watched as the local lads were soundly drubbed by a score of 65 -1. It might have been an even more lopsided score, but the game was halted after only seven innings, when the Omaha catcher could not be found.3 The Omaha team had nothing to be ashamed of, however, as the Red Stockings went undefeated in 1869 with a record of sixty wins and one tie.4 148 • nebraska history he success of the Red Stockings “Mr. Whitney’s arm seems destined to team. The Omaha Daily Herald reported, T quickly led to the formation of other drive him from the profession, as he “Many of the directors have lost very professional teams, and in 1871 the first was unable to pitch much of the time heavily, and have displayed the utmost all-professional league, the National during the tour.” This prognosis proved honor in seeing that all the players Association, was created. It lasted until premature; in 1881 Whitney, then play- receive their full salaries and that the 1875. In 1876 the National League, ing for Boston, led the National League affairs of the club are settled honor- generally considered the first “major” in wins and ultimately won 191 games ably.” Omaha then bowed out of the league, was formed, and it still survives. in a ten-year major league career before league with an 8-12 league record, Three years later, on the evening of he died of consumption at the age of having played a few more than half March 16, 1879, a group of Omahans, thirty-three.8 its scheduled league games.10 including the cattle and wholesale Omaha’s on-the-field performance, After its 1879 failure Omaha went grocery magnate William A. Paxton, met however, was apparently offset off the without professional baseball for five to form the Omaha Base Ball years, but in 1885 the River City was Association, and Omaha fielded its first ready to try again. At a meeting in professional team as a member of the Indianapolis on February 12, 1885, new Northwestern League, the first Omaha joined teams from Cleveland, minor league west of the east coast.5 Indianapolis, Kansas City, Milwaukee, Several days later, another meeting and Toledo to form the new Western was held to elect officers and delegates League, with the season set to begin on to attend the organizational meetings April 18. Omaha’s new team did not do of the Northwestern League. The famous well. A defeat in Cleveland on May 21 attorney John C. Cowin was chosen was reported in the Omaha Bee under as the club’s first president. Omaha the headline “As Usual,”11 and another officals joined team representatives Omaha newspaper acidly remarked: from Davenport and Dubuque, Iowa, We notice that several baseball players and Rockford, Illinois, at the league’s have been convicted and fined in subsequent meetings held in Davenport. Cleveland for playing baseball on Sunday. A thirty-six-game “championship season” The Omaha club would be perfectly safe in Cleveland. It could not be convicted of was set up with each of the four teams playing baseball on Sunday or any other scheduled to play each other twelve day.12 times. The teams were to be distin- In early June, the Omaha Daily Bee guished by the color of their stockings: gleefully announced, “At last the gratify- Omaha would be green; Davenport, ing news has been received that the brown; Dubuque, red; and Rockford, so-called Omaha baseball club is going white.6 to disband.” The Omaha franchise was On May 8, 1879, in a sign of things to transferred to Keokuk, Iowa, on June 6. come, Omaha lost its first professional Prominent Omaha businessman William The rest of the franchises fared little bet- baseball game by a score of 6-3 to A. Paxton was among the organizers of the city’s first professional team in March ter, and the league folded on June 14.13 Dubuque, then lost the next two games 1879. NSHS RG2141: 0-1735 Omaha did not field a professional of its opening home series. Omaha’s first team in 1886, but in October a meeting road trip was also unsuccessful as the field, and the Omaha Daily Republican team compiled a 2-7 record.7 reported, “with the ladies the club is Contributing to Omaha’s poor record particularly popular, having already ac- Angelo J. Louisa is a lecturer in the Department was an apparent injury to the team’s quired the title of the ‘Omaha Mashers.’” of History at Creighton University, Omaha. He pitcher, James “Grasshopper” Whitney. The team’s “exploits in that line were recently contributed articles to Deadball Stars of the National League and Sport in American The Omaha Daily Republican reported something quite remarkable,” the Culture: From Ali to X-Games. Currently he is Republican noted, and four of the co-editor of a book on Forbes Field. Pitching for the Omaha Base Ball Associa- players had [brought] home “several tion in 1879, its first season of professional trophies of their conquests.”9 Robert P. Nash is a professor and Collection play, was James “Grasshopper” Whitney Development Librarian, University of Nebraska (opposite), who went on to win 191 games Although Omaha finally started to at Omaha. He also contributed to Sport in in a ten-year major league career. win games, by July the financial situa- American Culture: From Ali to X-Games, and National Baseball Hall of Fame Library, tion of the club was such that the in 2003–04 was Nebraska history advisor for Cooperstown, N.Y. directors were forced to disband the The Best Books for Academic Libraries. winter 2004 • 149 was held in Frank Bandle’s cigar store and were replaced by teams from for the 1888 season.