1883 St. Louis
Left: 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
Right: This rendering is based on written documentation for uniform style and color. No visual documentation is known and an artist’s conceptualization is used to create the rendering.
Rendering accuracy:Year: documented Team: documented
Visual documentation on these uniforms:
Photo A
Dated 1883, probably May 24 or May 26, 1883. Photo year confirmed by appearance of player Mullane, who only played for St. Louis in 1883. Date of 1883 may also be confirmed by the fact that there are eight teams listed on the scoreboard behind the players. The American Association expanded to twelve teams in 1884. Possible date of May 24 or May 26, 1883 can be suggested by the team pairings on scoreboard. These teams only played each other in this combination on these two days. Players wore a white uniform in this photo with dark caps, lettering, belt and stockings. Per newspaper reports from this season, the accent color in 1883 was red. Note the word “Bulletin” on the scoreboard. When the St. Louis team was on the road, a St. Louis newspaper reported on August 12, 1883 that “the Columbus-St. Louis game will be bulletined by innings on the big blackboard in center field.”
Top row, standing, from left: C Comiskey (82-89, 91), F Lewis? (AA 83, 84, UA 84, NL 85), (unidentified), J Gleason? (NL 77, AA 02, 83, UA 84) and P Deasley (83, 84). Middle, seated: B Gleason (82-87), J McGinnis (82-86), N Cuthbert? (NA 75, NL 76, AA 82, 83), T Mullane (83) and unidentified. Front, on ground: H Nicol (83-86), T Dolan (AA 83, 84, UA 84, NL 85, 86), A Latham (83-89) and C Hodnett (AA 83, UA 84). IDs of some players from Mark Fimoff, SABR 19th-century Pictorial Committee. Suggested IDs of players Lewis, J Gleason and Cuthbert from Nigel Ayres. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Team pairings on May 24 and May 26, 1883 from retrosheet.org.
Dated 1883, probably May 24, or May 26, 1883. Detail view of photo A. Note, this detail view shows three different methods for tying shirt laces.
Written documentation on these uniforms:
February 1883: “The old name of ‘Brown Stockings’ has been abandoned, and the new organization will henceforth be known as the St. Louis club. Not only that, but the old brown stockings are to be discarded, and a hosiery of a bright red substituted. The shirts and trousers of the regular uniform will be of white flannel, trimmed with red cord, the name ‘St. Louis’ being worked on the breast of the shirts. The caps will also be made of white flannel, and are a very pretty pattern, and trimmed with red braid. Besides the regular, there will be a practice uniform made of dark gray material.” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, February 2, 1883. Research from Tom Shieber. Note, this description for the cap differs from what is shown in photo A. Photo A shows a dark-colored cap with a light braid.
February 1883: “The new uniforms of the St. Louis nine will have ‘St. Louis’ across the breast of the shirts.” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, February 18, 1883.
February 1883: “Last year [1882] the [St. Louis] team never came upon the field in full uniform, but this season [1883] they will be obliged to appear always in full dress, and a heavy penalty will follow the infringement of this rule.” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, February 19, 1883.
March 1883: “The St. Louis Club managers yesterday [on March 13 at a league meeting in St. Louis] presented all the visitors with portraits of last year’s team [1882] in the field and in full uniform and regular positions.” From the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, March 14, 1883. Research from Ed Morton.
March 1883: “The base-ball season in St. Louis opens on Saturday next [March 24] when the St. Louis Club for 1883 will come face to face with the Grand Avenues. […] The St. Louis professionals will then show up in their new uniforms. As the Grand Avenues will appear in brown stockings and the professionals in red, the public will have a chance to contrast the old with the new, and draw their own conclusions as to one of the moves inaugurated by [St. Louis] Manager Sullivan.” From the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, March 18, 1883. Research from Gary Kodner.
April 1883: “The St. Louis club this year will wear bright red flannel jackets with all collars.” From the Denver Rocky Mountain News, April 2, 1883. Research from Gary and Oliver Kodner, cardinalsuniformsandlogos.com, retrieved January 15, 2023.
April 1883: “The St. Louis uniform will be almost identical with Cincinnati, and this lack of distinction in dress will cause trouble. The old brown was…very popular, and should have been retained. It was very ill advised to model after Cincinnati, who, after all, is better entitled to the red hose than any other in the country, Boston not excepted.” From the Cincinnati Commercial Tribune, April 1, 1883. Research from John Thorn.
April 1, 1883, exhibition game, St. Louis: “The change in the [St. Louis] uniform is also appreciated. For, in comparing the brown stockings with the red stockings yesterday [April 1], the latter looked bright and handsome, while the others are remembered as dull and homely.” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, April 5, 1883, citing the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. Research from Tom Shieber.
April 1883: “Speaking of the St. Louis uniforms, the Republican says: ‘The uniform is perhaps the handsomest ever put on a ball field, but it is an imitation of the Cincinnatis. When St. Louis plays Cincinnati there will be some sad mixing up. Better have stuck to brown.’” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, April 5, 1883. Research from Tom Shieber.
April 1883: “The St. Louis’ new uniforms are identical with the Cincinnatis and trouble will ensue over their similarity.” From the Louisville Courier-Journal, April 8, 1883.
April 14, 1883, St. Louis v. Ft. Wayne (NWL), at St. Louis, exhibition game: “The home team [St. Louis] presented a fine appearance in their white uniforms, which were as clean and neat as hands could make them.” From the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, April 15, 1883.
May 1, 1883, St. Louis v. Cincinnati, at Cincinnati, home opener: “The Cincinnatis opened […] in a tussle with the St. Louis Club — Browns no longer, but as red-legged as the winners of the race in 1882 [i.e., Cincinnati].” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, May 2, 1883.
July 1883: “The St. Louis Club has been fitted up with new white and scarlet caps and new uniforms.” From the Philadelphia Record, July 28, 1883. Research from Ed Morton.
August 1883: “[St. Louis player Arlie] Latham, with his padded trousers, didn’t get much of a chance to show his ability in the base-sliding line here [in Cincinnati] this week. He didn’t get to the bases often enough.” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, August 8, 1883. Research from Ed Morton. St. Louis played at Cincinnati August 3 to August 6. Game dates from retrosheet.org.
August 1883: “The St. Louis Black Stockings and the Mutual Club, of Louisville, meet again today at Sportsmen’s Park [in St. Louis]. While the contest is in progress the Columbus-St. Louis game will be bulletined by innings on the big blackboard in center field.” From the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, August 12, 1883.
September 1883: “The St Louis ‘Browns’ as they are affectionately dubbed at home retain this name through a long existence both as a league alliance and an American Association Club. A change of uniform this year from the conventional brown to red head gear, jackets, and stockings necessitated a change of name, so the title ‘St Louis Club’ was adopted. Enthusiasts, admirers, and old-time patrons of the game however still rightly call them the St Louis Browns.” From the Evansville (IN) Journal, September 29, 1883. Research from Gary Kodner.
1883: “St. Louis had exchanged its brown stockings for bright red, the Globe-Democrat approving but the Cincinnati papers registering a protest.” From Preston D. Orem, Baseball 1882-1891 From The Newspaper Accounts (1966, 1967, reprinted by SABR in 2021), pg. 62.
Team genealogy:
St. Louis 1882-
St. Louis was formed to join the American Association (AA) in 1882. The AA was a major league operating between 1882 and 1891 and St. Louis played in the AA in every year of the league’s existence. The team moved to the National League (NL) for 1892 season. The NL began operation in 1876 and St. Louis has played in the NL every year since 1892. Information from wikipedia.
1883 St. Louis summary
Uniform: white, red stockings and caps
First worn: March 24, St. Louis
Photographed: team photo from late May
Described: February-May
Material: flannel
Manufacturer:
Supposition:
Variations: new white uniforms in July with red-and-white caps, Latham wore padded pants in August
Other items: dark gray practice uniform, red flannel jackets
Home opener report: no, May 15 v. St. Louis
Rendering posted: August 3, 2019
Diggers on this uniform: Ed Morton, Gary Kodner, John Thorn, Mark Fimoff, Nigel Ayres, Tom Shieber,