Mid-1800's Baseball Comes To Montgomery County

The old ball game wasn't always what it is today.

One of America's oldest, greatest, and most iconic pastimes will take on its mid-19th century iteration in Montgomery County on June 25.

Pennypacker Mills will host a "vintage" game that Saturday at 1 p.m., featuring the Athletic Base Ball Club of Philadelphia versus the Brandywine Base Ball Club.

"From a distance, it looks and sounds like a regular baseball game: the crack of the bat, the cheering from the bench, the sliding into home plate. But a closer look at the field shows something is very different. They’re pitching underhand. They’re playing on a rough grass field. Score is being kept on a blackboard. No one isusing a batting helmet, fielding glove, or catcher’s mask. Men are wearing floppy hats and have groomed mustaches! It’s vintage base ball," the county's flyer for the event reads.

With rules and cheers from another time, organizers hope everyone can feel the thrill of baseball as it was originally played.

Guests are encouraged to stop by the information table and pick up a brochure with “appropriate”
cheers so they can be part of the historic fun.

The Athletic Base Ball Club of Philadelphia ’s one of a growing number of teams nationwide that recreates the
19th century game through historically accurate uniforms, period rules, and cheeky nicknames, and
by spelling “baseball” as two words, the county said.

“It brings people back to a simpler time, before million-dollar contracts, TVs, cars, steroids, and gloves,” Mid-Atlantic Vintage Base Ball League commissioner Bruce “Early” Leith said in a news release.

After the game, kids can play “Town Ball” with the team members. Town Ball was an early version ofbase ball and is especially fun for kids. No need for a glove or bat; the team provides all the instructions and equipment, the county said.

Pennypacker Mills is located at 5 Haldeman Road in Schwenksville.