1858 Eckford, Brooklyn

This rendering is based on visual documentation for uniform style only. Color information is unknown and the uniform is rendered in values of gray. Other important details may also be undocumented or difficult to determine and an artist’s conceptualization is used to complete the rendering.

Rendering accuracy:Year: documented    Team: documented

Visual documentation on this uniform:

Dated 1858. This illustration was most likely made from a photograph. Players wore a tucked-in shirt (possibly a lightweight jacket) in this photo, with collars splayed open showing a wide lapel. They wore light-colored pants and held matching caps accented with a light-colored bill.

From left: (W Bell, umpire), C Welling (57, 58), H Manolt (55-59, 61-66), E Brown (56-60, also with Putnam in 60), P Tostivan (56- 58), F Pidgeon (55-60, 62), J Vanderbilt (57, 58), W Webster (57, 58), J Grum (56?-61 66-68), A Mills (57-62, 64, 65) and (W Butts, scorekeeper). Player IDs from image. Years with team from Peter Morris and others, Base Ball Founders (2013) and from Marshall D. Wright, The National Association Of Base Ball Players, 1857-1870 (2000). Image scan from Albert G. Spalding, America’s National Game (1911).

Dated 1858. Detail view of photo A. Detail view shows a light-colored tucked shirt or jacket with the lapels splayed open.

Written documentation for this uniform:
None

Team Genealogy: Eckford, Brooklyn, 1855-1872
Eckford was formed in Brooklyn, NY, in 1855. The club was named in honor of Henry Eckford (1775-1832), a Scottish-born American shipbuilder and political figure who operated a shipyard in Brooklyn. The Eckford club was one of 16 charter members of the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP), the first baseball organization operating 1857-1870. Eckford joined the National Association (NA), baseball’s first league, midway during the first season. The NA operated 1871-1875. Eckford left the league during the 1872 season and subsequently dissolved. A second Brooklyn team also used the Eckford name. The Henry Eckford club operated in Brooklyn during the same time period. Info from William Ryczek, Peter Morris and others, Base Ball Founders (2013), from Paul Batesel, Players And Teams Of The National Association, 1871-1875 (2012), and from wikipedia.