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W AV E S H I S T O R Y

American Baseball History

The Turning of a Nation

e play it as kids, we watch it THE CIVIL WAR
and listen to it as adults, and
W we pass down our love of The first professional baseball
the Game through generations. Base- games were played in the wake of
ball is an American family tradition. a young nation’s darkest days. The
amateur version, however, has roots
This Game is closely tied to us in a that reach back decades before the
very personal way, but what you may war began.
not realize is how much it is also tied
to history. Often referred to as Amer- Reporters described baseball as
ica’s National Pastime, baseball has a mania back in the 1840s; the
had a very active role in the shaping sport was already established as
of this nation. a popular pastime when Civil War
soldiers on both sides played it as
From the Civil War to Civil Rights and a diversion. Many veterans took
all points in between and beyond, the game home after the war and it During one of these training exercises
the game of baseball supports and became a great unifier in the years an accident occurred, causing Cobb and
reflects many aspects of American that followed the bloodiest conflict in Mathewson to be exposed to the gas.
life, from culture to economics and U.S. history. Cobb recovered, but Mathewson was
technological advances. It inspires exposed to a much larger dose of poison,
movements, instills pride and even Though since disproved, the inven- which damaged his lungs and contributed
heals cities. tion of the sport was originally be- to his death from tuberculosis eight years
lieved to have occurred in Cooper- later at the age of 45.
This story is told at the National Base- stown and was credited to Civil War
ball Hall of Fame and Museum, where hero Abner Doubleday. Doubleday In World War II, more than 500 major
the plaques and artifacts all have was at Fort Sumter in South Caro- leaguers – and 37 Hall of Famers –
something to say about the special lina when the first shots were fired served in the armed forces, with many
place baseball holds in the hearts of in defense of the Union. He went on of them sacrificing prime years of their
Americans. to rise to the rank of Major General careers. At the same time, though, Pres-
and served with distinction during ident Franklin Delano Roosevelt issued
These are just a few of the places the Battle of Gettysburg. what is now known as the “Green Light
where the history of our National Letter” to encourage play to continue. He
Pastime and American history have WORLD WARS I AND II deemed the game a necessary morale
crossed... booster during the difficult times.
During World War I, 227 major
leaguers served in various branches The War years also saw the founding of
of the military. Among them were the All-American Girls Professional Base-
several future Hall of Famers, in- ball League, established in part to com-
cluding Christy Mathewson, Branch pensate for the loss of many of the best
Rickey, George Sisler and Ty Cobb, major league players to the war effort.
who all served in the Chemical
Warfare Service, commonly referred CIVIL RIGHTS
to as “The Gas and Flame Divi-
sion.” These baseball icons were African Americans played baseball on
instructors, training U.S. troops and Southern plantations during the 1850s.
“A Whole New Ballgame” conducting drills. A century later, Jackie Robinson became
documents the changes
and cultural significance One of these drills sent soldiers R e f e r e n c e : M a j o r L e a g u e B a s e b a l l . ( 2 0 0 1 ) T h e O f f i -
of the game from 1970 on. into an airtight chamber into which c i a l S i t e o f M a j o r L e a g u e B a s e b a l l . M a j o r L e a g u e B a s e -
b a l l , U n i t e d S t a t e s . [ A r c h i v e d We b S i t e ] R e t r i e v e d f r o m
actual poison gas was released. t h e L i b r a r y o f C o n g r e s s , h t t p s : / / w w w. l o c . g o v / i t e m / 7 7 d -
0 4 2 0 c 0 5 0 d 0 f c c 7 6 8 4 0 7 b 3 c e f 5 3 e 4 e / .
46 | Waves Magazine | May 2019 Issue