1888 Boston (Bostons, Beaneaters, Reds)
Uniform documentation:
Cream– visual & written
Gray– visual & written
These renderings are included in the book, BASEBALL THREADS.
Visual documentation on this uniform:
Photo A
Dated mid-May 1888 or later. Photo year determined by the appearance of player Klusman, who only played in Boston in 1888. Year can also be determined by the appearance of players S Wise, Tate, Sutton, O’Rourke and Conway in combination with players Clarkson and Sowders, these men only played together for Boston in 1888. Photo date of “mid-May of later” determined by the appearance of player Radbourn, who did not sign his contract to play until the days before May 16. As the photo was taken by a Boston photographer, it can be suggested the photo was made at the Boston ballpark. Players were photographed wearing the traditional Boston uniform: a white uniform and cap, with red stockings and belt. All but three of the players pictured wore short sleeves. Several players wore white undershirts, one player wore a dark-colored undershirt, presumably red.
Top row, from left: N Wise? (88), B Klusman (88), S Wise (82-88), M Kelly (NL 87-89, 91, 92, PL 90, AA 91), J Clarkson (88-92), T Brown (NL 88, 89, PL 90, AA 91), P Tate (85-88) and E Sutton (77-88). Middle: D Johnston (NL 85-89, PL 90), C Radbourn (NL 86-89, PL 90), J Morrill (NL 76-88, PL 90), B Sowders (88, 89) and T O’Rourke (87, 88). Front: B Nash (NL 85-89, 91-95, PL 90), D Conway (87, 88) and K Madden (NL 87-89, PL 90, AA 91). Player IDs and image scan from Mark Fimoff, SABR 19th-century Pictorial Committee. Identification of N Wise unconfirmed. Radbourn signing info from the West Unity (OH) Reporter, May 16, 1888, page 1. Original photo by George H. Hastings, Boston.
Dated 1888. Detail view of photo A. Detail view shows white lace ties above the lettering.
Photo B
Dated 1888. This team photo has been heavily retouched, most likely by the photo studio of Joseph Hall, Brooklyn. The bodies of the Boston players in this photo were actually those of Brooklyn players taken from a team photo made by Hall during this same year. The heads of the Boston players, cut-out from other photos, were then added in place of those of the Brooklyn players. Note how the shadows on the faces varied from player to player, indicating different original sources. The lettering across the shirts was then added by hand and a painted backdrop was added behind the image. Image scan from Nigel Ayres.
Photo C
Dated 1888. Old Judge baseball card of B Sowders (88, 89). Full view at left, detail view at right. Uniform shown is consistent with that shown in photo A. This card may be the only Old Judge card of a Boston player from 1888. Sowders posed in front on the same painted backdrop that the 1887 Detroit and Chicago players were photographed against. Years Sowders with team from baseball-reference.com. Image from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
Photo D
Dated April 1888. Portrait of J Clarkson (88-92). Full view at left, detail view at right. Photo date determined by photo frame. Uniform shown may have been white or light gray in color shown and the style was consistent with that shown in the team photo above. It is also possible Clarkson was wearing the 1887 Boston gray uniform for this photo session. Detail view showed white lace ties that ended above the city name. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Image from Hunt Auctions. Original photo by Charles Conly, Boston.
Photo E
Dated April 1888. Boston schedule card of J Clarkson (88-92). Full view at left, detail view at right. Photo date determined by similarity to photo D. Uniform shown may have been white or light gray in color shown and the style was consistent with that shown in the team photo above. It is also possible Clarkson was wearing the 1887 Boston gray uniform for this photo session. Detail view shows three subtle horizontal bands on the cap and buttons on the short sleeves, indicating sleeve extensions were available. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Original photo by Charles Conly, Boston.
Photos F & G
Left: dated circa 1887, Allen & Ginter baseball card of J Clarkson (88-92). This card depicted Clarkson in a Boston uniform. Clarkson played for Chicago in 1887 and was sold to Boston on April 3, 1888. This therefore suggests the card had an issue date of 1888. The lace ties at the neck matched the Conly photos, see above, therefore it is likely this portrait was made from that April 1888 session. Clarkson card issue date of 1887 from oldcardboard.com. Clarkson sale date from Brian McKenna, SABR Bio Project. Years with team from baseball-reference.com.
Right: dated 1888, Goodwin Champions baseball card of M Kelly (NL 87-89, 91, 92, PL 90, AA 91). This card depicted Kelly in a brown-gray uniform. Other uniform detail such as the decorative collar stitching and the white lace-ties running below the shirt lettering were more consistent with Kelly’s Chicago uniform, circa 1886, or the Kelly Special Boston uniform from early 1887. Issue date of 1888 for the Goodwin Champions card of Kelly from Jay Miller, Joe Gonsowski and Richard Masson, The Photographic Baseball Cards of Goodwin & Company, 1886-1890 (2008). Years with team from baseball-reference.com.
Photos H & I
Dated 1888. Baseball playing cards (WG1) of J Clarkson (88-92), left, and S Wise (82-88), right. Issue date can be confirmed as Clarkson and Wise only played together in 1888 for Boston. Cards show a white uniform with red belt and stockings. Image scans from www.oldcardboard.com.
Photo J
Dated 1888. Promotional poster for Old Judge baseball cards. Full view at left, detail view of player M Kelly (NL 87-89, 91, 92, PL 90, AA 91) at right. Illustration of Kelly was based on Old Judge baseball card dated 1887 where Kelly wore a specially made Boston uniform. This same image was colorized to reflect the 1888 Boston dark uniform for use in the Old Judge promotional poster shown here. Years Kelly with team from baseball-reference.com. Poster image from Jay Miller, Joe Gonsowski and Richard Masson, The Photographic Baseball Cards of Goodwin & Company, 1886-1890 (2008).
Photo K
Dated 1888. Promotional poster for Old Judge baseball cards. Full view at left, detail view of player C Radbourn (NL 86-89, PL 90) at right. Illustration of Radbourn was based on Old Judge baseball card dated 1887 and colorized to reflect the 1888 Boston dark uniform. Years Radbourn with team from baseball-reference.com. Poster image from Jay Miller, Joe Gonsowski and Richard Masson, The Photographic Baseball Cards of Goodwin & Company, 1886-1890 (2008).
Photos L, M & N
Left: dated circa 1888, Yum Yum baseball card of J Morrill (NL 76-88, PL 90). Center: dated April 14, 1889, this rendering of Morrill was published in a newspaper on this date. Right: dated April 14, 1889, this rendering of S Wise (82-88) was published in a newspaper on this date. Both of the Morrill renderings were based on the same photograph, possibly taken during a photo session for an Old Judge baseball card circa 1887, though this pose shown above was not produced for a card. The Yum Yum card may have had some elements altered from the original image. The cap and belt loops may have been made dark, and extra grass may have been added by the artist. The Wise rendering was based on a circa 1887 Old Judge baseball card. Wise wore a mustache for the Old Judge card photos but did not wear one in the 1888 team photo above or in an 1887 team photo, possibly suggesting an 1886 date for the original image. Image of Morrill (center) and Wise from the Wilkes-Barre Sunday Leader, April 14, 1889, which reported that “‘Honest John’ Morrill and ‘Big Sam Wise’ had been released by the Boston Club.” Years with team from baseball-reference.com.
Photo O
Dated 1888, likely based on uniform from 1887. Cut-out paper figure representing the Boston NL team for Base Ball Game, a board game by McLoughlin Bros., full view at left, detail view at right. Figure was depicted wearing a gray cap with a star on top, gray shirt and pants, and blue belt and stockings. This may be a variation of the Boston road uniform of 1887. Figures were produced by McLoughlin Bros., New York, copyright 1888, and with the title, “Amusement for Boys to Cut Out.”
Photo P
Dated May 25, 1888. Photo of the Boston team at Boston, South End Grounds, on opening day. Photo showed fifteen Boston players wearing white uniforms and two players wearing gray uniforms. At least ten of the players wore ribbons on the shirts. Two players carried a coat or a sweater. The mascot in front was also in uniform. This was the first official game played after the construction of the “grand pavilion.” Image and photo date from SABR, The National Pastime (Spring 1984), citing the collection of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
Written documentation on this uniform:
April 5, 1888, Boston v. picked nine, at Boston, South End grounds, exhibition game: “The ovation was loud and long when [new Boston pitcher John] Clarkson made his appearance in the neat gray traveling uniform of the Bostons.” From the New York Sun, April 6, 1888, and the New York Herald, April 6, 1888, page 3.
April 8, 1888, Boston, exhibition game at Boston: “The Bostons wore their gray uniforms, which are only worn away from home, on that day. They looked very neat indeed.” From the New York Clipper, April 8, 1888. Note, newspaper describes the Boston field as wet and muddy, which may explain why the team wore their gray uniform at home.
April 1888: “The Bostons’ gray uniforms are never worn at home.” From the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, April 20, 1888.
April 1888: “J. C. Morse of the Boston Herald has issued a history of base ball that is a valuable compendium of all that relates to the game. It is copiously illustrated with cuts of prominent base ball celebrities.” From the Pittsburgh Press, April 21, 1888, page 3.
April 20, 1888, Boston v Philadelphia, at Philadelphia, opening day: “Almost freezing weather at Philadelphia. […] The new Boston uniforms were red and gray.” From Preston D. Orem, Baseball 1882-1891 From The Newspaper Accounts (1966, 1967, reprinted by SABR in 2021), pg. 357.
May 1, 1888, Boston v. New York, at New York: “Hornung had a red sweater over his gray uniform when he knocked out a fly that Richardson got by a quick run and side catch.” From the Boston Globe, May 2, 1888, page 3.
May 25, 1888, Boston v. Philadelphia, at Boston, South End grounds, home opener: “The red stockings and white suits made the boys look like the same old club that won the pennant several times for Boston.” From the Boston Globe, May 26, 1888, page 3.
May 25, 1888, Boston v. Philadelphia, at Boston, South End grounds, home opener: “When the Bostons came on in their white uniforms with red stockings and belts they looked about three sizes larger than the other men, though they are not so really. […] I wish they’d ever had their stockings and belts and jerseys to match. Why, if you’ll believe it the Bostons today wore scarlet stockings and crimson jerseys. You can imagine how the aesthetic effect of their costumes was quite ruined for a sensitive eye.” From the Boston Globe, May 26, 1888, page 2, citing a letter to the Globe from Jean Kincaid. The crimson jersey likely referred to the team’s red sweater.
August 1888: “Boston, the home of the blue stockings and baked beans.” From the Brooklyn Citizen, August 12, 1888.
1888 Boston uniform summary
Uniform: white, red stockings
First worn:
Photographed: team photo from mid-May or later, and illustrations from year
Described: May
Material:
Manufacturer:
Supposition:
Variations:
Other items: red sweater
Home opener report: yes, May 25 v. Philadelphia
Uniform: gray, red stockings
First worn: April 5, Boston
Photographed: illustrations from year
Described: April
Material:
Manufacturer:
Supposition:
Variations: may also have worn blue stockings
Team genealogy:
Boston 1871-1952
Boston was formed to enter the National Association (NA) in 1871. The NA was baseball’s first league, operating 1871-1875. Boston played in the NA in every year of the league’s existence and moved to the National League (NL) upon its start in 1876. Boston played in the NL from 1876 to 1952 and moved to Milwaukee for the 1953 NL season. Information from Paul Batesel, Players And Teams of the National Association, 1871-1875, from baseball-reference.com and from wikipedia.com.
Rendering posted: March 19, 2016
Diggers on this uniform: John Thorn, Mark Fimoff, Nigel Ayres,