1891 Chicago (Chicagos, Black Stockings, Colts)

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

Rendering accuracy:Year: documented    Team: documented

Visual documentation on these uniforms:

Photo A

Dated April 1891 to early May 1891. Photo year confirmed by appearance of players Dahlen and Burns. Both of these men only played together in Chicago in 1891. Photo date range of April 1891 to early May 1891 determined by the fact that drawings made from this team photo were printed in two Chicago newspapers on May 2, 1891, when reporting on the home opener, see drawings below. The date can also be confirmed by the appearance of player Nagle, who was released by the team before June 6, 1891. Players wore a white or light-colored uniform in this photo, with dark cap, lettering, belt and stockings. The team was called the black stockings in newspaper reports suggesting the trim color was black.

Top row, from left: T Nagle (90, 91 8 gms), B Dahlen (91-98), A Gumbert (88, 89, 91, 92), T Burns (80-91) and E Stein (90, 91). Middle: J Ryan (NL 85-89, 91-00, PL 90), B Hutchinson (89-95), F Pfeffer (NL 83-89, 91, 96, 97, PL 90), C Anson (76-97), P Luby (90-92), W Wilmot (90-95) and C Carroll (90, 91). Front, on ground: M Kittridge (90-97) and J Cooney (90-92). Player IDs from photo. Years with team from baseball-reference.com. Image scan from Mark Fimoff, SABR 19th-century Pictorial Committee. Nagle release info from The Sporting Life, June 6, 1891.

Dated April 1891 to early May 1891. Detail view of photo A. Detail view shows that the city name was positioned low across the shirt and that the laces were tied in an “x” pattern running from the neck to the city name, touching the middle “C” in Chicago.

Photo B

Dated May 2, 1891. This drawing was made from the team photo above and published in the Chicago Inter Ocean on this day. Image scan from Ed Morton.

Photo C

Dated May 2, 1891. This drawing was also made from the team photo above and published in the Chicago Tribune on this day. If this were a contest, I’d give the award to the Inter Ocean artist. — CB

Photos D & E

Dated August 12, 1891. These caricatures of two Chicago players, C Anson (76-97) at left, and unidentified at right, were published in a Chicago newspaper on this day in a report of the Chicago-New York game played in New York on August 11. These drawings may have been made by a New York newspaper and were possibly a depiction of a dark blue Chicago uniform. Images from the Chicago Inter Ocean, August 12, 1891. Years Anson with team from baseball-reference.com.

Written documentation on these uniforms:
June 1891: “Anson, Burns, Pfeffer and Ryan are the old guard of the Black Stockings.” From The Sporting Life, June 6, 1891. This was one of many newspaper references in 1891 to the team’s trim color. The team was also called the Colts in 1891, a typical newspaper reference being: “The Chicago colts, with all due credit for excellent work, tumbled down when everything most depended on them.” From The Sporting Life, October 10, 1891.

March 1891, Chicago uniform referenced in description of Milwaukee uniform: “The uniform decided upon [by Milwaukee] will be a duplicate of that which will be worn by [Chicago] Capt. Anson’s men. The home uniform will be plain white with black trimmings and black socks. The traveling uniform will be a pretty blue-gray combination, with red socks.” From The Sporting Life, March 7, 1891. Research from Chuck McGill. It is likely the Chicago road uniform had black stockings, not red.

March 1891: “The gray and black uniform of Anson’s men is very pretty, but by way of variety a kaleidoscopic collection of raiment adorned many of the team today [March 17, in Denver for spring training]. A brown sweater, reaching half way to the knees, made Jimmy Ryan look like one recovering from a massage treatment. Gumbert reveled in a sweater of crimson, and Foster expressed a preference for somber black.” From the Chicago Inter Ocean, March 18, 1891.

March 17, 1891, spring training at Denver: “The gray and black uniform of Anson’s men is very pretty, but by way of variety a kaleidoscopic collection of raiment [i.e., wardrobe] adorned many of the team today [March 17]. A brown sweater, reaching halfway to the knees, made Jimmy Ryan look like one recovering from a massage treatment. Gumbert reviled in a sweater of crimson, and Foster expressed a preference for somber black.” From the Chicago Inter Ocean, March 18, 1891, page 2, citing a special telegram from Denver. Research from Ed Morton.

April 22, 1891, Chicago v. Pittsburgh, at Pittsburgh, home opener: “A woman with a dress more articulate than her voice dropped the remark, ‘Isn’t Big Babe Anson pretty, but why do the Chicago boys wear those dull gray suits?’” From the Pittsburgh Dispatch, April 23, 1891, page 1. Research from Ed Morton.

April 22, 1891, Chicago v. Pittsburgh, at Pittsburgh, home opener: “Anson wore a red belt yesterday [April 22] while those worn by his men were black.” From the Pittsburgh Post, April 23, 1891, page 6. Research from Ed Morton.

May 1, 1891, Chicago v. Pittsburgh, at Chicago, home opener: “Just behind in another [parade] float came Jay Palmer O’Neil, with his whiskers tied back, so they would not catch on the gate. Then came the ball players, the Pittsburg[h]s in gray and the Chicagos in white. The band then escorted the players to their benches — first the grays and then the colts.” From the Chicago Inter Ocean, May 2, 1891, page 1. Research from Ed Morton. O’Neil was a Pittsburgh team executive.

June 1891, Chicago v. Brooklyn at Brooklyn: “Brooklyn, June 10— […] Unmindful of “Good Eye” O’Brien [who] tore along [the bases], passing Burns on first, and going down to second like a locomotive, while every man in black stockings became panic stricken.” From The Sporting Life, June 13, 1891. Another reference to the color of the stockings. Chicago played at Brooklyn June 3-6, 1891. Series dates from retrosheet.org.

August 1891: “Captain Anson and his Chicago black stockings will be here [in Cincinnati] for a game tomorrow.” From The Sporting Life, August 1, 1891. This report was written and submitted to The Sporting Life by Ban Johnson, future American League founder and president, who began working in Cincinnati as a sportswriter in 1886. Johnson career info from Joe Santry and Cindy Thomson, SABR BioProject, retrieved August 10, 2017.

August 1891: “The Chicagos have a new traveling uniform of electric blue with black trimmings. From the Cincinnati Enquirer, August 17, 1891, page 2. Research from Ed Morton.

September 4, 1891, Chicago v. Boston, at Chicago, West Side Park: “When the Chicago players straggled on the field at the West Side Park yesterday afternoon [September 4] the crowd was electrified to see in their midst a figure strangely familiar except as to its facial adornment and the snowy whiteness of its flowing locks. It was a commanding figure, with a beard of fulsome quantity that concealed even the lettering on the flannel shirt that covered an expansive chest. Hoary age clad in a baseball suit is an unknown quantity, and the crowd marveled in consequence. It recalled to the bleachers youthful visions of the revered Santa Claus, except that Santa Claus in white flannel knickerbockers and spiked shoes was rather contrary to the tradition. As the figure slowly approached the diamond someone with better powers of discernment than the others cried out: ‘O! It’s only Anson.’ And so it was. The grand old man of baseball was hurling defiance into the teeth of age by aping its appearance. After the crowd had recovered from its surprise it grew superstitious and called loudly to the old man to ‘take ‘em off,’ but Uncle Adrian was adamant. Those whiskers were odd to stay and stay they did during the nine innings of the game.” From the Chicago Tribune, September 5, 1891, page 6.

September 4, 1891, Chicago v. Boston, at Chicago, West Side Park: “When the figure drew quite near [the grandstand] it was discerned that it was […] Adrian Anson in farce comedy whiskers. They were fine ones. They were thick and white and glossy, and swayed to his belt. With Mr. Anson’s mild blue eyes in the middle of his flaming face, and the white beard flowing down, Adrian was a nightmare. The people marveled. Then the captain sifted his hand through his hair until he found his cap. He pulled it off, and something gleamed in the sun like a porcelain plate with lambrequins [i.e., ornamented edges].” From the Chicago Inter Ocean, September 5, 1891, page 2. This description may imply that Anson’s wig included a bald head under the cap.

September 4, 1891, Chicago v. Boston at Chicago, West Side Park: “Anson created a sensation by appearing on the field with a flowing beard of purest white and long, white hair. He played the game out in this disguise.” From The Sporting Life, September 12, 1891. A non-contemporary resource says: “Responding to writers who claim it’s time for him to quit, Chicago’s 39-year-old player-manager Cap Anson wears a false white beard against Boston.” From wikipedia.com, 1891 in Baseball, retrieved August 12, 2017.

Team genealogy: Chicago 1874-
Chicago reformed after the Great Fire of October 1871 and rejoined the National Association (NA) in 1874 and 1875 after a two-year absence. The NA was baseball’s first league, operating 1871-1875. Chicago joined the National League (NL) at its formation in 1876 and the team has played in the NL every year since 1876. Information from Paul Batesel, Players and Teams of the National Association, 1871-1875, from baseball-reference.com, and from wikipedia.