Creating a Sports Guild at Allaire Village (Part II)

Creating a Sports Guild at Allaire Village (Part II)

By Russ McIver

To read the first part of Russ’s article, visit our previous post. 

Things were slow the first day, but with a little recruiting help from fellow villagers it took off! From that point on, Townball has been a popular activity at the Village. Some of my happiest moments as a volunteer at Allaire come when I overhear visitors say “this is fun”, and younger volunteers telling their parents about it as they are picked up at the end of the day.

To my knowledge, visitors and Villagers participating in 1831 Philadelphia Townball at Allaire Village are involved in a unique experience not replicated anywhere else in the country! Most other historical site interpretations of Townball play the 1850’s Massachusetts-style Game. We play the game that Howell Works residents most likely would have known.

The Bog Iron Boys practicing for the big game!

While playing Townball in the Village, we are also recognizing an overlooked episode in the history of Allaire Village: In early 1898, the baseball team that became the Brooklyn Dodgers, the Brooklyn Bridegrooms, needed a place to train for the upcoming season. The new owner, Charles Ebbetts, arranged for the use of the Village and the area around it as a training location. That muddy spring saw Hal Allaire (son of James P. Allaire) fearing for the health of the players, “I’ve expected to see the whole lot laid up with pneumonia”, he told a correspondent for The Cincinnati Post, as he witnessed the players’ rigorous training routine. One of my ongoing works as an Allaire Volunteer is to add more to this story- stay tuned!

Charles H. Ebbets. Bain News Service/Library of Congress.

Allaire Village is celebrating its connection to the National Game with the May 17th event, “Bog Iron Boys Pitching the Past”: A 19th Century Baseball Reenactment, featuring Allaire Village’s own Bog Iron Boys! The company team of the Howell Works takes on the Hoboken 9, and with luck, the Elizabeth Resolutes. Both are members of the Mid Atlantic Vintage Baseball League. The Village will turn all things baseball, as the buildings will have baseball-themed exhibits, the games will be going on in the show field, and all the players will be available to meet afterwards!

Baseball isn’t the only activity the new Sports Guild will be pursuing. But it sure gives it a solid start! If you have any interest in baseball history or other forms of early 19th century recreation, feel free to join the Guild or contact Allaire. I’m always looking for new ideas!

Russ McIver is the Sports Guild Master at Allaire Village. He received one of two 2013 New Volunteer of the Year Awards at the Annual Banquet this past February. Russ’s research and devotion is at the heart of our May 17th Baseball Reenactment, where you will find him as the Bog Iron Boys’ Team Captain! Be sure to come out to our event to learn more!  

Creating a Sports Guild at Allaire Village (Part I)

Creating a Sports Guild at Allaire Village (Part I)

By Russ McIver

On a sunny weekend day, strolling through the park, you may notice five rather large stakes arranged in a square in the corral between the barn and the Carriage House. “What is that?”, you may ask. Is it our fine Park Rangers doing some surveying? Was some archeological treasure found, and being marked out? Are ghost hunters performing some bizarre test to contact J.P. and Hal Allaire?

But come by later, and you may see visitors of all ages playing what vaguely resembles baseball! In the middle of this activity, you may see me, Russ McIver, Sports Guild Master, instructing the visitors in the rules of 1831 Philadelphia Style Townball!

Russ leading a crowd during our St. Patrick’s Day event.

I came to Allaire as a volunteer last Spring. You see, I have always had a passion for history. I received a degree in Economics in the 1980’s from Rutgers College, and have pursued my own business as a Computer Network Consultant almost entirely since that time. As I get older, I have thought about what I want to do in my later years, and after consulting with friends involved in the history professions, I re-discovered Allaire Village as a place to hone my passion for the subject.

As a newbie of the Village, I tried my hand at the Militia, the Blacksmith Shop, and even lining up queues of visitors for tours of the BIg House. I needed, and wanted, to find a niche! Then it came to me! One of the idle activities that other, albeit younger volunteers participated in were games! Stilts to graces, all kinds of things occupied the Villagers and visitors’ time between trips to the Blacksmith, Carpenter, Bakery, and Gift Shop. Why not a game all could play that was period appropriate? Being an avid baseball fan, it came to me…townball!

Engraving of early American townball. MLB.com.

I checked with Hannah Tichansky, the Volunteer Coordinator, and got the OK to pursue it. It just so happened that in the middle of the Summer, I had planned to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies in Cooperstown, New York! I called the Hall of Fame Library, and made an appointment for a visit during Induction Weekend.

When I visited, Tim Wiles, the Director of Research at the Hall of Fame was glad to meet with me after I explained that I was an interpreter at Allaire, and wanted to start a Townball program. He gave me stacks of folders and books on the subject. While perusing them, I stumbled upon the Olympic Club of Philadelphia. They had set down rules for, and played their own version of Townball in the 1830’s! Perfect! I had a period activity that the villagers may have played in the 1830’s! (The Howell Works did a lot of business with the Philadelphia/Delaware Valley area, so it is plausible that villagers were aware of the game played seventy miles west!)

Further research helped me tease out the rules, layout, and equipment for the game. With the blessing and help of my fellow Allaire colleagues, I was ready to go!

Stay tuned for the second part of Russ’ story, where he discovers curious links between Allaire Village and the team that would become the Brooklyn Dodgers. 

Russ McIver is the Sports Guild Master at Allaire Village. He received one of two 2013 New Volunteer of the Year Awards at the Annual Banquet this past February. Russ’s research and devotion is at the heart of our May 17th Baseball Reenactment, where you will find him as the Bog Iron Boys’ Team Captain! Be sure to come out to our event to learn more, and stay tuned for his next installment in this blog. 

April Roundup

Well April, our first full month of blogging flew by! Here’s some of the things that went on in the village this month:

We time traveled to the Civil War…

Baked some bread…

Hung out with Holmes…

Held a Market Auction…

Cleaned up our gardens!

Now we can start planting!

Welcomed some new Guild Masters…

And enjoyed some beautiful weather!

May’s already looking to be even busier! Be sure to check back next week to hear about this weekend!

Upcoming Dates:

May 1st: Spring Flea Market & Village opens for weekends in May

May 2nd: Arthritis Foundation Walk & Village opens for weekends in May

May 8th: Spring Crafters’ Market & Village Open

May 14th & 15th: The Big Band Sounds of The Nocturnes

-Hannah