1875 Hartford (Hartfords, Dark Blues)

This rendering is based on visual documentation for uniform style and written documentation for color. Minor details may be undocumented or difficult to determine. An educated guess is made to complete the rendering.

Rendering accuracy:

Year: documented    Team: documented

Visual documentation on this uniform:

Photo A

Attributed 1875. Based on the players shown in this photo, the photo year could be 1875 or 1876. Players wore a white uniform in this photo with stockings in a mid-tone color. The cap, shown in the foreground, was white and had noticeable ribbing. A newspaper in 1875 described the Hartford uniform as having dark blue stockings. Note that the background in this photo had been retouched out.  See photo B below or the original studio backdrop.

Top row, from left: J Remsen (75, 76), T York (75-77), C Cummings (75, 76), T Bond (75, 76) and B Harbidge (75-77). Front: D Allison (75-77) , E Mills (74-76), B Ferguson (75-77), T Carey (75-77) and J Burdock (75-77). Player IDs from Nigel Ayres, and also from Mark Fimoff, SABR 19th-century Pictorial Committee, Reflecting The Past newsletter, March 2013. Note, some resources regarding this photo have players Remsen, Allison and Burdock switched in identification. Years with team from baseball-reference.com.

Photo B

Attributed 1875. This is the same photo as shown above, however this version showed the original studio backdrop.

Written documentation on this uniform:
May 15, 1875, Hartford v. Atlantic, Brooklyn, at Brooklyn: “The Hartfords appeared on the field looking well in their new uniform, their dark-blue stockings giving them the name “Dark-blues”—Connecticut colors.” From the New York Clipper, May 22, 1875.

Team genealogy: Hartford was formed to join the National Association (NA) in 1874. The NA was baseball’s first league, operating 1871-1875. After two years in the NA, Hartford joined the National League (NL) at its formation in 1876. The team removed to Brooklyn for the 1877 season and was then known as Hartford of Brooklyn. The franchise was dissolved at the conclusion of the 1877 season. –Information from Paul Batesel, Players and Teams of the National Association, 1871-1875 (2012), and from wikipedia.