1884 Cincinnati (Unions)

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 this uniform:
None

Written documentation on this uniform:
March 1884: “The uniforms worn by the members of the Cincinnati Union team the coming season will be white shirts and pants, dark red stockings, white college caps with red trimmings, with the word ‘Cincinnati’ embroidered in red letters across the breast of each shirt. Kittredge & Co., of this city [Cincinnati], will manufacture the suits.” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, March 23, 1884.

April 1884: “The uniform of the Cincinnati Unions will consist of white flannel shirt and pants, red stockings and round white hat with red stripes. Kittredge & Co., of this city [Cincinnati], will furnish the uniforms. The word ‘Cincinnati’ will be marked in red letters across the shield of the shirt.” From The Sporting Life, April 2, 1884. Research from Justin Mckinney.

April 1884: “Frank Kutz, of Kittredge & Co., has secured orders for uniforms from the Hamilton (Ohio) Shamrocks and the Cincinnati Union Clubs.” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, April 6, 1884. This order for the Cincinnati uniforms in all likelihood was put in late, see below entry from the same newspaper and day. The Enquirer also noted that “the fine illuminated banner on which the names of the Cincinnati Union Club will be announced this season was flaunted to the breeze for the first time yesterday.”

April 5, 1884, Cincinnati Union Regulars v. Cincinnati Union Reserves, at Cincinnati, Union Athletic Park, exhibition game: “The local base-ball season of 1884 was formally opened. […] The management suffered another disappointment from the fact that the suits for the regular team have not yet been finished, and the players, aside from those who had the reserve suits, were compelled to appear in a variety of uniforms, and some even wore their citizens’ suits.” From the Cincinnati Enquirer, April 6, 1884.

July 1884: “On Monday [July 14, 1884] when the New York [NL] team reached this city [Philadelphia] it was found that the uniform trunk had not been checked and the players were forced to go borrowing for suits. The Philadelphias’ change uniforms were unattainable, being in the wash, so a raid was made on the Cincinnati Union Club’s wardrobe and all but [New York players] Richardson and Connor found tolerably good fits in their olive-colored suits. A white Philadelphia suit was found for Richardson and Connor came out in a mixed uniform.” From The Sporting Life, July 23, 1884. Research from Ed Morton. The New York NL team played at Philadelphia on July 14 & 15, 1884. The Cincinnati Union League team played the Philadelphia Union League team in Philadelphia on July 14, 16, 17 & 19, 1884. Game dates from retrosheet.org.

Team genealogy: Coming soon