Early baseball in Wisconsin/Club 6

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Location Wisconsin
Year 1860
Month 6
City Janesville
State WI
Country US
Nickname Bower City Club
Found by Dennis Pajot

The Bower City Club of Janesville organized probably in June 1860. The club received a challenge from the Janesville Base Ball Club for July 4th match, which was accepted.[1] It appears certain both these Janesville clubs played the old-fashioned game.

The Janesville Daily Gazette gave the results of the committee appointed to arrange the preliminaries of the game. Each club was entitled to 10 men, and were required to furnish a ball. Each club was to appoint an umpire, and then the two umpires chose a referee. "The game (old-fashioned-American) will be composed of three trials–best two in three–of 25 tallies each; the forfeit, a bat and ball." [2]

According to the Janesville Daily Gazette, "The Janesville club having the first innings, and winning the first game, and the Bower City club having the first innings of, and winning, the second and third games." The scores were 25 to 18, 25 to 7, 25 to 14. The three games occupied three hours, and the players runs scored and outs made totals are listed in the Gazette.[3]

When all members of one of the ball clubs (presumably Janesville and Bower City) did not appear for a match on August 10, both clubs "mixed in" and played a "social game". The sides played up to 50 tallies, having 30 innings.[4]

Bower City and Janesville clubs met on August 31, again playing to 50 tallies, Bower City winning 50 to 38.[5]

Footnotes

  1. . Janesville Daily Gazette, 1860-06-29.
  2. . Janesville Daily Gazette, 1860-07-03.
  3. . Janesville Daily Gazette, 1860-07-05.
  4. . Janesville Daily Gazette, 1860-08-11.
  5. . Janesville Daily Gazette, 1860-09-01.
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