Uni-Firsts for Socks & Stockings

Threads Of Our Game not only documents the early game, but also determines when new uniform styles and trends came into being. The following is a list of “Uni-Firsts” for baseball socks and stockings as we see it, after the year 1865:

—First to wear exposed stockings: See Uni-Firsts/Pants & Belts

—First to wear white stockings (contemporary account): 1866 Liberty, New Brunswick NJ

—First to wear red stockings: 1867 Cincinnati

—First to wear light blue stockings: 1869 Forest City, Cleveland

—First to wear green stockings: 1869 Mutual, New York

—First with checked or plaid stockings: 1869 National, Washington DC

—First with horizontally striped stockings: 1869 Pastime, Baltimore

—First contemporary report of team wearing dark blue stockings: 1870 Mansfield, Middletown CN

—First to wear orange stockings: 1871 Eckford, Brooklyn

—First to include the color yellow on their stockings: 1872 Lord Baltimore, Baltimore

—First to wear brown stockings: 1872 Troy NY

—First to wear pearl-colored stockings: 1874 Philadelphia

—First to wear stockings with a criss-cross pattern: 1875 Lowell MA

—First to wear wine-colored stockings: 1875 Philadelphia

—First to wear stockings with a single color band: 1876 Louisville

—First to wear varying colors to denote positions in field: 1879 Chicago

—First to wear gray stockings: 1882 Buffalo

—First to wear “old gold” colored stockings: 1882 Detroit

—First reported to have worn stockings with two colors, presumably striped: 1883 Baltimore

—First to wear olive-colored stockings: 1883 Ft. Wayne, IN

—First to wear purple stockings: 1884 Quickstep, Wilmington DE

—First reported to have worn black stockings: 1886 Louisville

—First visual documentation of stockings with multiple horizontal bands: 1889 Baltimore, 1889 Pittsburgh

—First to wear vertical stripes on stockings: 1890 Oakland

—First photographed wearing stockings with stirrups: 1900 Detroit, see photo C

—Learn about the history of baseball stockings at the Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum website: Dressed To The Nines – Stockings