1897 Australian Baseball Team photographic image
A pocket-sized black and white reproduction of an original photograph of the 1897 Australian Baseball Team.
Printed in black text on the reverse of the white card, are details of the team and team members' names, as well as details of the owners of the original photograph and its current location.
In January 1897 planning was underway to send an Australian baseball team to America to play a series of games against amateur American teams. Mr Harry Musgrove, manager of the Australian cricket team, was appointed team manager. The tour was financed by Mr A.J. Roberts, a successful Adelaide sharebroker. The tour was to take six months, starting in April in the northern spring. They would travel across the American continent from west to east, playing games in Central Park, San Francisco (first match), San Jose, Fresno, Los Angeles, Phoenix, El Paso, Kansas City and Chicago.
A three-man selection committee, W. Bruce, W. Ingleton, and F. Laver, selected nine men for the team. A further four players were chosen by those nine men after a three-match series between teams from the Victorian and South Australian colonies in February 1897.
The 13 men chosen were Frank Laver, James McKay, John Wallace, Walter Ingleton, Rue Ewers, Harry Stuckey, Harry Irwin, Charles Over, Arthur Wiseman, Charles Kemp, Peter McAlister, William Ellis and Sydney Smith. John Wallace was from Western Australia and Ewers and Smith from South Australia. All the others were Victorians. William Ellis later withdrew and was replaced by Alfred Carter from Victoria.
The team itself chose its team colors of dark blue and gold: blue knickers, stockings and cap, the cap with two gold stripes around the band, the knickers with a gold stripe; blue coat with gold edgings; the Australian coat of arms on the cap and the coat; white shirt with 'Australia' in bold letters across the front; and tan boots.
The 13-man team sailed from Sydney for San Francisco on the steamship 'Monowai' on March 15. However, the tour was not the success that was hoped, with much controversy surrounding the organisation and financial outcome of the tour.
National Library of Australia:
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/216684565
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/200228282
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/216684965
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/71289721
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/216689619
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/193693769
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/54490334
Details
Details
[On the reverse of the image]
'Australian Baseball Team'
'Tour of America'
'1897'
'Back Row: Rue EWERS, Peter McALISTER, Harry IRWIN, Sydney SMITH, William ELLIS, Charles KEMP'
'Middle Row: Harry STUCKEY, Walter INGLETON, Harry MUSGROVE, Frank LAVER, John WALLACE, Charles OVER'
'Front Row: Arthur WISEMAN, James McKAY'
'(William ELLIS withdrew and was replaces [sic] by Alfred C. CARTER)'
'Original photo from the Max & Alice Wallace Family Collection held by Baseball WA Historian Douglas Corker'
This reproduction of the photograph of the 1897 Australian baseball team is an important addition to the Baseball WA Museum & Archives' collection of Australian team photographs. The team included Western Australian catcher John Wallace.
The picture was donated to the Baseball WA Museum & Archives by Bill Sinclair.
As one of the earliest images of an Australian baseball team to compete internationally, this item has great historic significance for the game in Australia. The information attached to the image details its provenance.
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[National Library of Australia - https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/139737858]
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