The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1916-10-25
WORLDS CHAMPS
IN BRATTLEBORO
Contest Against the Home
Team Played on Frost's
Meadow i'm 1883
TODAY ANNIVERSARY
OF A NOTABLE GAME
TWO of the Men Who Played 33 Years
Ago Are Well-Known Local Residents
at the Present Time-Snow Storm the
Day Before.

How many baseball fans of the pres
emf day know that the Brattleboro
team once played III this town against
the world S champions?
The event, the greatest in the his
torF of the national game in the south.
ern part of Vermont, took place
thirty-three years ago today, the scene
Of the contest being Frost IS meadow,
now largely covered by the lumber
yards Of the Holden Il Martin com
pany.
The National league then held SUI
prcmacy in baseball, the American
league, an outgrowth of the brother
hood, being formed many years after
ward. The Boston Nationals swept
through the season with large per
cottage of victories. The captain of
the team was John f. Morrill,, who in
the two winter seasons previous had
| worked at his trade as a wood carver
iii the Estey organ factory. 1t was
largely through his influence that the
| champions came here for the game.
| Mr.. Morrill, is today connected with a
sporting goods store in Boston and is
widely known as an amateur golf
player, despite the fact that he is up
wards of sixty years of age.
The score of the game was 1873.
naturally in favor of Boston. Two men
who played with Brattleboro are resi-
dents of the town today, William
BoEce, first baseman, an employee OF
the Vermont Printing company. and
James Q DonncI, third haseman. a resi-
dent Of South Main street W. S. Me
kcnncT, now of Northampton and
member of the local teams long term
Of years, was shortstop. George Brasor.
second baseman, and John Foley. pitch
er, We're the other two local men who
took part i'll the contest. The next
year Foley went to the Quincy club of
the Western league where he was very
successful rs a twirler. He was also
with the Providence team of the Ma
uonal league one Year. He disappeared
and his parents and other relatives in
this town knew nothing about him for
many years. \ report which was gen
orally believed was widely circulated
to the effect that he had been muir
dered in Chicago. About ten years ago,
shortly after the death of his mother,
letter was received from him written
from a Western city, but it gave no
definite information as to his occupa-
ton or of his activities during all the
years when he was supposed to be
dead.
Two men of the Brattleboro team of
that day, Barrett, catcher, and Mortar
it,, left field, both from Holyoke, af
terward played in the big league. The
team was completed with the assist
ance of Harris as center fielder and
;vl,f E,I1 L. In4 Am ~
! leae boys Harris is today professor of
.hcmistrv at Amherst, and Stuart, a
| school teacher in Ohio. was a visitor
here the past summer. He played here
| two seasons, about 1912, in the days
Of Tot Murphy and Bowers of Yale
| and Denny O'Neill of Holy Cross.
Foley was lcft-handed pitcher who
| was considered a wonderful performer
| in that day when the curve ball was
| coming into vogue. He was very speedy
| }ud threw the cOrkscrew curves which
| many other left-handers have mastered
since then. He struck out nine of the
| champions and fourteen of the Brat
| tleboro men famed the air.
| The Boston team was made up as
| follows: Whitney, pitcher; Hackett
catcher: Burlington, first base; Morrill,,
| second base; Redford, third base; Sut-
ton, shortstoP; Cunning, left field; An
mis-, center field; Hines, right field
Burlington and Cunning, as change bat
terry, were between the points during a
part of the game These two men are
successful physicians in Fall River
Mass, today. Hines, who was very
deaf, was one of the most noted out
fielders who ever wore spiked shoe
and is given the credit Of being tn,