McPherson Club of Decatur

Pre-pro Baseball
	Decatur, IL Firsts, Games, Clubs, Fields, Predecessor Games Greater New York City Firsts, Games, Clubs, Fields, Predecessor Games IL Firsts, Games, Clubs, Fields, Predecessor Games United States Firsts, Games, Clubs, Fields, Predecessor Games
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Nick Name	McPherson
Earliest Known Date	December 1866
Last Known Game
Location	Decatur, IL, United States
Modern Address
NABBP Status
Nine Class	Junior
Tags
Description	Robert D. Sampson, "Fields of Battle: The Problem of Base Ball Playing Space in Post Civil War Illinois," Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, vol. 110 Nos 3/4 (2017), 283-304, says this club was organized in Dec. 1866. It originally played at grounds on the eastern side of the city, near the railroad tracks, but soon moved to the Fairgrounds. The Decatur Herald, July 13, 1909 has a long article on this team and it founding. The McPherson Club of Decatur competed with the Excelsiors of Pana for the "junior" prize at the Decatur base ball tournament in Sept. 1867. They lost to Pana 58-20. See Decatur Republican, Sept. 19, 1867. The McPherson Club had played this Pana club in August. See Pana. The Decatur Republican Aug. 8, 1867 says they played a game matching their first and second nines "at their grounds on Friday afternoon", with the 1st nine winning 62-17. The article gives a box score.
Sources	Decatur Republican, Aug. 8, 1867, Sept. 19, 1867. Decatur Herald, July 13, 1909
Source Image	[[Image:\|left\|thumb]]
Has Source On Hand	No
Comment	The original grounds are northwest of the current Wabash Depot Antique Store. See Sampson, Ballists, Dead Beats, and Muffins. Inside Early Baseball in Illinois (2023) p. 224. Edit with form to add a comment
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Found by	Bruce Allardice
Submission Note
Entered by	Bruce Allardice
First in Location	Decatur, IL
First in Location Note
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Win/Loss Records As Far As We Now Know

Warning: Users should not rely on a team's won-loss record as a reflection of its "standing" among all base ball clubs. Team schedules were not balanced, and a good record against mostly weak opponents does not signify a leading club.

Year	Games	Wins	Losses	Ties
1867	1 Played	0 Won	1 Lost	0 Tied

Ballgames

Page	Date	City	Borough	State	Team 1	Team 2	Score	First in	Contributor
Ballgame	1867	Decatur		IL	McPherson Club of Decatur	Excelsior Base Ball Club of Pana	20 - 58	Decatur, IL	Bruce Allardice

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Players

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Playing Fields

Field	Years	Edit Association with Club
Decatur Fairgrounds	1860s

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