1897 Brooklyn (Brooklyns, Bridegrooms, Trolley Dodgers)

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

Dated May 1897 to early June 1897. This drawing was made from a photo and was published on June 6, 1897. Year of photo/drawing can be confirmed by the appearance of players McMahon, Hannivan, Fisher, Smith and Canavan, all of whom only played for Brooklyn in 1897. Date range of May 1897 to early June 1897 can be suggested by the newspaper caption that stated this was the “latest picture” of the team when it was published on June 6. A June 1897 date can also be suggested by the appearance of player Korwan, who played for Brooklyn in exhibition games but did not play in a regular season game. In early June 1897 Korwan was purchased by Chicago and played his first game for Chicago on June 22, 1897. Players were depicted in this drawing wearing a uniform with the city name arched across the chest in large letters. Many players held the team cap which had vertical trim on the ribbing of the cap.

Top row, from left: G Shoch (93-97), B Kennedy (92-01) and F Jones (96-00). Middle: J Dunn (97-00), S McMahon (97), J Korwan (dnp, Chi 97, Spr EL 97), H Payne (96-98), J Anderson (94-99), B Shindle (94-98) and D Daub (93-97). Middle row, sitting: B Burrell (95-97), P Hannivan (Bro 97, Lan AtL 97), A Smith (97-00), (B Barnie mgr 97, 98), M Griffin (91-98), J Grim (95-99), C Fisher (97) and G Smith (97). Front row, on ground: J Canavan (97) and C LaChance (93-98). Image and player IDs from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, June 6, 1897. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Korwan first game for Chicago from the New York Clipper, July 3, 1897. Image scan from Ken Samoil.

Dated May 1897 to early June 1897. Detail view of photo A. Detail view showed the lettering across the shirt and no suggestion of a shirt pocket.

Photo B

Dated late June 1897 to October 1897. Year of photo confirmed by the appearance of players McMahon, Hannivan, Fisher, Smith and Canavan, all of whom only played for Brooklyn in 1897. Date range of late June 1897 to October 1897 determined by the appearance of player Stein, who joined the team in late June 1897 after a contract dispute that had begun at the start of the season was finally settled. Stein did not play in any regular season game for Brooklyn in 1897. With the exception of Stein, all of the remaining players in this photo also appeared in the drawing published in a newspaper on June 6, 1897, see photo A. Players wore a white or light colored uniform in this photo. The shirt displayed the city name on the shirt with the second “O” falling across the shirt opening. The majority of the players wore 3/4-length sleeves that extended over the elbow. Two white caps in the foreground of the photo showed that there was vertical trim on the ribbing of the cap. All of these details matched that shown in photo A.

Top row, from left: J Dunn (97-00), A Smith (97-00), F Jones (96-00), E Stein (dnp 97, Bro 92-96, 98) and G Shoch (93-97). Middle: H Payne (96-98), C LaChance (93-98), C Fisher (97), B Kennedy (92-01), J Anderson (94-99) and P Hannivan (Bro 97, Lan AtL 97). Front row, sitting: D Daub (93-97), J Grim (95-99), M Griffin (91-98), (B Barnie mgr 97, 98), B Burrell (95-97), S McMahon (97) and B Shindle (94-98). On ground: J Canavan (97) and G Smith (97). Image and players IDs from the Spalding Base Ball Guide 1898, published at the start of the 1898 season. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Stein signing info from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, June 21, 1897. Original photo by Gardner & Co., Brooklyn.

Dated June 1897 to October 1897. Detail view of photo B. Detail view showed that the shirts did not have a breast pocket and that the center belt loop on the pants was very narrow.

Photo C

Dated late June 1897 to October 1897. Promotional pin utilizing the same image as shown in photo B. Date range of late June of pin determined by the appearance of player Stein, who joined the team in late June 1897 after a contract dispute.

Outer circle, clockwise from bottom left: G Smith (97), J Dunn (97-00), A Smith (97-00), F Jones (96-00), B Kennedy (92-01), G Shoch (93-97), H Payne (96-98), C Fisher (97), P Hannivan (Bro 97, Lan AtL 97), E Stein (dnp 97, Bro 92-96, 98) and J Canavan (97). Inner circle, clockwise from bottom center: (B Barnie mgr 97, 98), M Griffin (91-98), D Daub (93-97), J Grim (95-99), J Anderson (94-99), B Shindle (94-98), S McMahon (97) and B Burrell (95-97). Center: C LaChance (93-98). Player IDs based on photo B. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Image scan from Ken Samoil.

Photo D

Dated 1895 to 1897. Portrait of B Burrell (95-97). Full view at left, detail view at right. Date range of photo determined by player’s time with team. Player wore a uniform that was similar to that shown in photo B. Note that the second “O” in the city name fell across the opening of the shirt and that the shirt was without a breast pocket. Player ID and image scan from Robert Edward Auctions. Years with team from baseball-reference.com.

Written documentation on this uniform:
March 1897: “Tom Brown believes that Billy Barnie has a first division club in the Trolley Dodgers for the season of ’97.” From The Sporting Life, March 20, 1897. An early use of the “Dodger” nickname.

April 1897: “The new uniforms for the Brooklyn team have been ordered. Those for the home grounds will be white with maroon stockings and trimmings, while those for the trips abroad will be the same as last year.” From the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, April 9, 1897.

May 1897, Brooklyn v. Baltimore, at Brooklyn, opening day: “The Brooklyn team wore new white uniforms, with maroon sweaters and stockings.” From the Brooklyn Standard, May 4, 1897. Research from Ed Morton.

Team genealogy: Brooklyn 1883-1957
Brooklyn was formed as a minor league team in 1883 and joined the American Association (AA) in 1884. The AA was a major league operating 1882-1891 and Brooklyn played in the AA between 1884 and 1889. Brooklyn moved to the National League (NL) for the 1890 season. The NL began operation in 1876. Brooklyn played in the NL between 1890 and 1957, when the team moved to Los Angeles. Information from wikipedia.