1850s.42

Indianans Play Town Ball, Two Old Cat

Salience	Noteworthy
Tags
Location	IndianaIndiana
City/State/Country:	[[{{{Country}}}]]
Modern Address
Game	Town Ball, Old-Cat GamesTown Ball, Old-Cat Games
Immediacy of Report	Retrospective
Age of Players	JuvenileJuvenile
Holiday
Notables
Text	"There were several games of ball played when the weather would permit. The first was town ball and was played somewhat after the style of baseball, but without outfielders. The bases were much nearer together than in baseball. There is no question that baseball is an outgrowth of the old town ball. "Another ball game was called 'Two Old Cat,' in which there was a batter at each end, and when one of them hit they exchanged places, and either could be put out before he reached the other plate. As I remember only four could play at once."
Sources	Judge Ivory George Kimball, Recollections from a Busy Life 1843 to 1911 (The Carnahan Press, 1912), page 31. Reported in Originals, volume 4, number 11 (November 2011), page 3.
Warning
Comment	Finder Tom Altherr asks whether there are other known examples of town ball lacking outfielders. One possibility is that the use of a soft ball and young batsmen combined to make long hits so rare as not needing an outfield. Edit with form to add a comment
Query	Edit with form to add a query
Source Image	[[Image:\|left\|thumb]]
External Number
Submitted by	Tom Altherr
Submission Note	Originals
Has Supplemental Text

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