1870 City of Hartford Steamship State Street by John Stobart

The 1870 Connecticut Base Ball Convention

The Bat and Ball
by Weston Ulbrich

One hundred fifty years ago in baseball history: On Wednesday, November 2, 1870, Hartford hosted the third ever Connecticut Base Ball Convention. Delegates attended from the most prominent teams in the state and a man from Hartford, Gershom B. Hubbell, presided over the meeting. Many of the clubs arrived in Hartford via steamship on the Connecticut River. Teams represented included: Yale College, Trinity College, the Middletown Mansfields, the Stratford Osceolas, New Britain, Essex, and two teams from Meriden.

1870 Base Ball Convention
Hartford Courant excerpt, November, 1870.
1870GershomB.HubbellBaseBallHartford
Gershom B. Hubbell, President of Connecticut Base Ball Association, 1870.
1870 Nov 3 Base Ball Convention
Hartford Courant excerpt, November 3, 1870.
1870 City of Hartford Steamship State Street by John Stobart
Painting by John Stobart, City of Hartford Steamship on the Connecticut River, Hartford, 1870.

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