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Show THE HISTORY BLAZER , l'El\' S OF CrTAH'S PAST FROIII THE Utah State Historical Society 300 Rio Grande Salt Lake Citjr. tTT 84101 ( 801) 533- 3500 FAX ( 801) 533- 3503 Early Baseball in Utah Had a Mormon- Gentile Twist Tm U ~ PASTIME~" WAS EAG~ ERLY ADO~ PTED in UNtah after t~ he Civil W~ ar. Proba bly inspired by the Cincinnati Red Stockings' exhibition tour, which passed through Corinne in 1869, the first recorded baseball games in Utah were played in October 1869 between the Eureka Base Ball Club and a Fort Douglas team. Corinne, the " Gentile Capital," organized the Corinne Base Ball Club ( C. B. B. C.) in the winter of 1869- 70. Baseball became a part of the Mormon- Gentile rivalry when the C. B. B. C. announced that it would play Box Elder on July 4, 1870, for " the Territorial championship." Salt Lake City's best club, the Eurekas or Enneas, immediately challenged Corinne, which dropped the proposed Box Elder contest in favor of the Enneas. Corinne took the first game at home on July 4 ( or " Gentile Dayw) but dropped the second on Pioneer Day ( the 1870s " Mormon Dayw), celebrated that year on Monday, July 25, in Salt Lake City. The Corinnes took the rubber game in neutral Ogden and claimed the championship. Although the Corinne papers hyped the first game as a Gentile triumph, they dropped the acrimonious religious invective, probably because Corinne had brought in a number of ' ringers," including several Mormons, while the Enneas had several non- Mormons. Although baseball interest in Salt Lake City faded in the early 1870s, the Corinnes briefly thrived. Corinne claimed its second territorial title in 1871, but they failed to drum up games against teams in other territories. The town's interest in baseball faded thereafter, replaced by a variety of sports, including rowing, croquet, and lacrosse. Baseball revived in Salt Lake City, however, and by 1877 at least 17 teams competed in the capital. In July 1877 the Deserets, Salt Lake's best team, faced the Cheyenne Red Stockings, the first series that a Salt Lake City club had played against a team outside of the territory. Deseret took the first game 3- 2 on July 23, prompting much local self- congratulation over the low score and the quality of play. Perhaps five thousand spectators, 25 percent of the city's population, saw the teams tie on July 24; on the 25th, the Utahns took the final game, 17- 1 1. Jubilation over the Deseret victory was tainted by allegations of bribery and complaints that the name sounded too " Mormon" for its Gentile supporters. The controversy caused some Mormon players to quit the Deserets and join the new Red Stockings club, resulting in two clubs, one entirely Gentile ( the Deserets) and the other ( the Red Stockings) nearly all Mormon. The teams gained enthusiastic followings from the respective elements in the community, and the Deserets took the first series between them. In 1878 the two teams renewed their rivalry, with the Red Stockings taking the series before large, noisy crowds. Other western teams came to Salt Lake, ( more) and the local papers closely followed games. By 1879, however, th :- local teams were dominated by ' outsiders," some of whom were professionals, and the game never regained its intense partisan following. Sources: Larry R. Gerlach, " The Best in the West? Corinne, Utah's First Baseball Champions," and Kenneth L. Cannon 11, " Deserets, Red Stockings, and Out- of- Towners: Baseball Comes of Age in Salt Lake City, 1877- 79," Utuh Historical Quarterly 52 ( spring 1984). THEH ISTORBLYU ER is produced by the Utah State Historical Society and funded in part by a grant from the Utah Statehood Centennial Commission. For more information about the Historical Society telephone 533- 3500. |
