Help with uniform ID--New Bedford Whalers 1912?
I acquired this recently and wonder if this could be the New Bedford Whalers from 1912. The penciled ID on the back is New Bedford /June 1912.
In the background is another player carrying a bat with a diamond shaped B insignia on the same arm as the catcher. Furthermore, all four players in the photo are wearing hose with the same design.
Any help on identifying the teams?
1912 New Bedford team pictured.There were 3 teams that started B as the last name of the team in the 1912 New England League, Fall River Brienies, Lawrence Barristers and the Worcester Busters.
Thank you, Don. I'm aware of all three teams starting with -B in the NE League. However, I don't have a 1913 baseball guide so I couldn't check the team photo. And the photo does not show the diamond B on the left sleeve of any of the players. I guess I was guided to the Whalers because of the notation on the back of the card.
The photo could also be one of at least three other New Bedford teams playing in 1912.
Last edited by Michael Peich; 03-08-2018 at 08:48 PM.
You're welcome Michael and here's a list of the guides you can use.
Most New England League teams during this period did not have formal nicknames, thus their uniforms would not have reflected the nicknames you find in Baseball Reference. Fall River was called the Brinies in some newspaper stories because their manager was John O'Brien, and Lawrence was tabbed the Barristers because their skipper, Louis Pieper, was an attorney. As I recall, Worcester chose Busters in some sort of a contest, likely because they were often called (Jesse) Burkett's Busters, but I doubt they would have put a B on their uniform as a result. If it is New Bedford 1912, the opponent is Brockton, the only team in the league that year that began with a B.
Last edited by spec; 03-08-2018 at 09:39 PM.