Early Games

The table below provides a chronology of the earliest documented baseball games played by Canadian teams, whether played in Canada or otherwise. It is primarily the fruits of the research of CCBR Director Martin Lacoste, augmented by the contributions and commentary of CCBR Director Bill Humber, Ottawa researcher Steve Rennie, and Tillsonburg researcher Graham Nickerson. Research covers all years through 1870, i.e. before the advent of the organized professional era with the National Association in 1871. Supporting documentation is included via links to the appropriate source in the BOX column; commentary and discussion can be found through similar links in the NOTES column. Discussion covers such issues as the rules under which the game seems to have been played, e.g. the New York rules or the rules of the 11-man “Canadian baseball”.

Please note that this table is a work in progress. Corrections and additions, preferably accompanied by underlying source documentation, are welcomed, especially for games played outside Ontario (Canada West).

Abbreviations:

BC        Buffalo Courier
BCOM Buffalo Commercial
BDC     Buffalo Daily Courier
BME     Buffalo Morning Express
BrC       British Columbian
BWE     Brantford Weekly Expositor
CG        Canadian Gleaner
DFP      Detroit Free Press
GA        Guelph Advertiser
GEM     Guelph Evening Mercury
GH        Guelph Herald
GM       Guelph Mercury
GWM   Guelph Weekly Mercury
G&M    Toronto Globe
HS        Hamilton Spectator
HT        Hamilton Times
HWS    Hamilton Weekly Spectator
HWT    Hamilton Weekly Times
IC          Ingersoll Chronicle
KBW     Kingston Weekly British Whig
KWS     Kingston Whig Standard
LFP       London Free Press
MA       Mitchell Advocate and County of Perth General Advertiser
MES     Montreal Evening Star
MG       Montreal Gazette
MH       Montreal Herald and Daily Commercial Gazette
NYC      New York Clipper
NYSM  New York Sunday Mercury
ODC     Ottawa Daily Citizen
ODJ      Ogdensburg Daily Journal
OIS       Orleans Independent Standard
OT        Ottawa Times
PDND  Port Dover New Dominion
REE      Rochester Evening Express
SCEJ    St. Catharines Evening Journal
SDC     Syracuse Daily Courier
SDS     Syracuse Daily Standard
STWD St. Thomas Weekly Dispatch
TO       Tillsonburg Observer
VC       Weekly British Colonist and Victoria Chronicle
VDC    Victoria Daily Columnist
VET     Victoria Evening Telegraph
WSOT Wilkes’ Spirit of the Times