Chicago White Stockings (1870–1889)
Charter member of the National League, founded 1870.
The Chicago White Stockings began play in 1870 as a professional baseball club in the National Association of Base Ball Players.[1] Since the National League's 1876 founding, this franchise has played continuously in Chicago, making it the oldest continuously operating professional sports club in North America.[1]
Quick Facts
- Founded
- 1870
- Original name
- Chicago White Stockings
- First game
- April 29, 1870, vs. Union Club of St. Louis
- First game result
- 7–1 victory
- League
- National Association of Base Ball Players (1870); National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (1871)
- Championship
- NABBP championship in 1870 (disputed)
- Financier
- William Hulbert
Facts from the source article.
Life and work
The team was officially called The Chicago Base Ball Club, but sportswriters nicknamed them "White Stockings" after their white uniforms.[2] Their first game on April 29, 1870, was a 7–1 victory over the Union Club of St. Louis.[2] The White Stockings played at Ogden Park for practice and at Dexter Park for larger crowds.[2] After Anson's contract was not renewed in 1898, the team's nicknames shifted to Orphans, Remnants, and Colts.[3][4]
The name "Cubs" first appeared in print in 1902 and became official by 1907.[4] Al Spalding, a pitcher, achieved 47 wins in 1876 and also delivered the National League's first shutout.[5] Cap Anson served as the team's star player and manager, and he is held responsible for enforcing a racial barrier in baseball.[6][7] During an 1883 exhibition, Anson declined to play against Toledo's black catcher Moses Walker; umpires then threatened to award Toledo a forfeit victory and deny Chicago its share of ticket revenue unless Anson's team took the field.[6][8]
What the cited sources add
That same article notes that Anson is not in the Chicago Cubs Hall of Fame due to his role in segregating professional baseball.[7] The 1907 World Series program, sold at auction in 2018, features a cover with bear cubs climbing a pole and includes team photos of both the Cubs and Tigers.[9] The National Baseball Hall of Fame uniform database records that the bear-in-the-"C" logo first appeared on Cubs uniforms in 1908.[10] A 2024 Chicago Sun-Times article reports that Anson is the Cubs' all-time leader in average, hits, runs, runs batted in, and doubles.[7]
References
- Wikipedia, "History of the Chicago Cubs" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Palattella, "Get to know the Cubs for HRDX", MLB.com, May 23, 2022 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "History of the Chicago Cubs" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Philadelphia Sunday Mercury, June 11, 1871; "Opening of the Base Ball Campaign at St. Louis", Chicago Tribune, 1870-04-30 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "History of the Chicago Cubs" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gold, "The Golden Era Cubs: 1876-1940", Bonus Books, July 2024 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "History of the Chicago Cubs" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ahrens, "Chicago Cubs: Tinker to Evers to Chance", Arcadia, 2007; "Robert Edward Auctions - The Premiere Sports Auction House", robertedwardauctions.com; "National Baseball Hall of Fame - Dressed to the Nines - Uniform Database", exhibits.baseballhalloffame.org (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "History of the Chicago Cubs" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Vintage Chicago Tribune: Cubs anniversaries to celebrate during the 2026 season", Chicago Tribune, 2026-03-25 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "History of the Chicago Cubs" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Bike, "Adrian 'Cap' Anson was a great baseball player for the Cubs, but he wasn't a man of integrity", Chicago Sun Times, July 2024 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Bike, "Adrian 'Cap' Anson was a great baseball player for the Cubs, but he wasn't a man of integrity", Chicago Sun Times, July 2024. facts only, no text reused. chicago.suntimes.com
- Wikipedia, "History of the Chicago Cubs" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Chapter 4: Cap's Great Shame - Racial Intolerance", Cap Chronicled (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "Robert Edward Auctions - The Premiere Sports Auction House", robertedwardauctions.com. facts only, no text reused. robertedwardauctions.com
- "National Baseball Hall of Fame - Dressed to the Nines - Uniform Database", exhibits.baseballhalloffame.org. facts only, no text reused. exhibits.baseballhalloffame.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article History of the Chicago Cubs (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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