The topic of this article may not meet Wikipedia's general notability guideline .(December 2023) |
Sport | Baseball, softball |
---|---|
Founded | 1927 |
Founder | Charles King Van Riper and Helen Van Riper Thorne Taylor Talbert Josselyn |
Ceased | 1938 |
Motto | You name the game, we'll win it! |
No. of teams | Shamrocks, Tigers, Giants, Rangers |
Countries | United States |
Headquarters | Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, US |
The Abalone League was an amateur baseball and softball club based in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California from 1921 through 1938. It was the first softball league in the Western United States. The League was incorporated on September 8, 1927. [1] The League was a Carmel focal point for many years. [2]
The Abalone League had its beginning on Carmel Point adjacent to Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, after World War I in 1921. [3] Games were held in a rough diamond field next to the Charles King Van Riper house among the pine trees overlooking the sea. Charles and Helen van Riper and his friends, aviator Thorne Taylor and writer Talbert Josselyn founded the first softball league in the Western United States, dubbed the Abalone League. The league got its name from the Abalone Cove, which was adjacent to the playing field. They played every evening in the summer months and on Sundays all year round. Six teams made up the league. Josselyn, Lee Gottfried, and Thorn Taylor were some of the first players. Charles Van Riper was the first "commissioner" and was responsible to begin each season. Journalist Robert Welles Ritchie served as the league's first umpire. They played two games on Sunday and had three playing fields, at Carmel Point, Carmel Woods, and the Hatton Fields. [4] [5] [3]
The “Abalone Song,” was penned in Carmel around 1907 by writer George Sterling, and his friends, Jack London, and Sinclair Lewis. They sang the song while pounding Monterey Bay abalone at gala Carmel beach parties. [6] [7]
Talbert Josselyn was known as the "Judge Landis" of the Abalone League. [8]
In 1925, the San Francisco Chronicle ran an essay entitled "Carmel Sports." The pictures showed members of the league. One picture showed artist Jo Mora at bat. Two Abalone Cup trophies were awarded at the end of each season with the losing team giving a gala banquet at the La Playa Hotel. One trophy was silver called the Hooper Cup, the other was an ornate stove top from the Monterey Herald stove, called the Herald trophy. Each year the winning team player's names were itched on each trophy and they were kept by the team until the next season. [4] [5] [9]
Each team had ten players, two women, and the rest men. Ages were between ten and fifteen on the same team as with forty and fifty-year-olds. The teams were made up of writers, artist, musicians, stars of the stage, and a grocery truck driver. Team names were Shamrocks, Sardines, Whales, Seals, Sanddabs, Goldfish, and the Sharks. Later the teams were uniforms. [4] [10]
On September 8, 1927, the Abalone League became a corporation and was chartered under the laws of the State of California. The articles of incorporation stated that the "Abalone League is a cooperative association organized for the purpose of fostering athletics, particularly baseball, and to provide for the physical benefit of Carmel's citizenry." As a corporation, the league was able to sell certificates of membership [1] to help fund the league's events. [3]
The Abalone League disbanded in 1938 just before World War II. [4]
In April 1927, the Abalone League bought the deed to the Carmel Arts and Crafts Club and theater on Monte Verde Street [11] [3] and the proceeds were used to pay off the Forest Theater debts. [12] At one point, the Abalone League renamed it the Abalone Theatre, and staged its own plays at the Arts and Crafts Theater, where the Golden Bough Playhouse now stands, to make money for the league. [13]
Byington Ford and his wife Ruth, were active in the Abalone League productions at the Arts and Crafts Theater. Original dramas by local playwrights as Martin Flavin, Perry Newberry, and Ira Remsen were produced in the Arts and Crafts Theater at that time. [14] The play The Bad Man, a three-act comedy by American playwright Porter Emerson Browne, was put on by the Arts and Crafts Theater on January 15, 1926. Artist Jo Mora, Byington Ford, and other Abalone Players were among the actors in the play. [15]
In 1929, the Abalone theater lost money and was sold it to Edward Kuster. Kuster remodeled the facility and renamed it the Studio Theatre of the Golden Bough. He moved all of his activities, plays concerts, traveling theatre groups, lectures, to the theatre on Monte Verde Street. In 1940, Kuster renamed the theater to the Golden Bough Playhouse and again put on plays, foreign films, and movies. [13] [2] [5] [16]
Carmel-by-the-Sea, commonly known simply as Carmel, is a city in Monterey County, California, located on the Central Coast of California. As of the 2020 census, the town had a total population of 3,220, down from 3,722 at the 2010 census. Situated on the Monterey Peninsula, Carmel is a popular tourist destination, known for its natural scenery and rich artistic history.
The Pacific Repertory Theatre is a non-profit California corporation, based in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, that produces theatrical productions and events, including the annual Carmel Shakespeare Festival. It is one of eight major arts institutions in Monterey County, as designated by the Community Foundation of Monterey County, and is supported in part by grants from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, the Berkshire Foundation and the Monterey Peninsula Foundation.
The Forest Theater is an historic amphitheater in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. Founded in 1910, it is one of the oldest outdoor theaters west of the Rockies. Actor/director Herbert Heron is generally cited as the founder and driving force, and poet/novelist Mary Austin is often credited with suggesting the idea. As first envisioned, original works by California authors, children's theatre, and the plays of Shakespeare were the primary focus. Since its inception, a variety of artists and theatre groups have presented plays, pageants, musical offerings and other performances on the outdoor stage, and the facility's smaller indoor theatre and school.
Lewis Byington Ford was a Monterey Peninsula real estate developer who developed Pebble Beach and Carmel Woods. Ford established the Carmel Valley Airport, the first airpark of its kind in the United States, and developed a nearby business district. He created the Carmel Realty Company, was a cartoonist, poloist, baseball player, coach in the Carmel Abalone League, and acted in and directed over 45 plays. Ford was involved in the social circle and society of Monterey Peninsula.
Jessie Hazel Arms Botke was an Illinois and California painter noted for her bird images and use of gold leaf highlights.
The Sunset Center is located in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, United States. It is a performing arts center which features concerts, comedy, theatre, and dance. Formerly the Sunset School, the site was purchased by the city of Carmel in 1965 with the plan to develop it into a cultural center. It is home to the Carmel Bach Festival. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 9, 1998.
The Carmel Arts and Crafts Club was an art gallery, theatre and clubhouse founded in 1905, by Elsie Allen, a former art instructor for Wellesley College.
Argyll Campbell was city attorney for Carmel-by-the-Sea, California from 1920 to 1937. He was former chairman of the California Democratic Party to elect governor Culbert Olson. Campbell was a leader in Monterey Peninsula civic life for twenty-eight years. He was known for his efforts to "keep Carmel from radical change."
Edward Gerhard Kuster was a musician and attorney from Los Angeles for twenty-one years before coming to Carmel-by-the-Sea, California in 1921. He became involved in theater and establish his own theatre and school. He built the Theatre of the Golden Bough in 1924, and a second theater, the Golden Bough Playhouse in 1952. Kuster directed 85 plays and acted in more than 50 roles in the 35 years he lived in Carmel.
The following is a timeline of the history of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, United States.
Louis Stanislaus Slevin, was an American photographer, known for his black-and-white images of the Monterey Peninsula. He was a pioneer in the early days of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, the first to open a general merchandise store in 1905, the first postmaster, first express agent, and first city treasurer. His photographs of Carmel from 1903 to 1835 are recognized as a record of Carmel's past. His photo collection is housed at the Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.
Carmel Point also known as the Point and formerly called Point Loeb and Reamer's Point, is an unincorporated community in Monterey County, California, United States. It is a cape located at the southern city limits of Carmel-by-the-Sea and offers views of Carmel Bay, the mouth of Carmel River, and Point Lobos. Carmel Point was one of three major land developments adjacent to the Carmel city limits between 1922 and 1925. The other two were Hatton Fields, 233 acres (94 ha) between the eastern town limit and Highway 1, and Carmel Woods, 125 acres (51 ha) tract on the north side.
Joseph W. Hand, was an early pioneer businessman, real estate agent, leader in civic affairs, actor, and first president of the Forest Theater in Carmel-by-the-Sea.
Ira Mallory Remsen , known locally as Rem Remsen, was an American painter, playwright and Bohemian Club member. He was the son of Dr. Ira Remsen chemist and former president of Johns Hopkins University. Remsen was the author of children's plays notably Inchling and Mr. Blunt, he produced at the Forest Theater in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California in the 1920s. His studio on Dolores Street became the permanent home for the Carmel Art Association in 1933.
Charles King Van Riper was an American newspaperman, writer, and playwright, best known for writing short stories for nationally circulated magazines, and as the founder of the Abalone League, the first organized softball league in the Western United States. He went on to build a successful ship-model shop and showroom in Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts. 285 of his ship models and archival materials are now part of the South Street Seaport Museum.
Ernest Seraphin Schweninger was an American actor, realtor, and grocer in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. He became owner of Carmel's first Bakery and the Schweninger's Grocery Store. Schweninger was a founding member of the Carmel American Legion Post No. 512 and the Abalone League. He appeared in many of the early plays at the Forest Theater and Theatre of the Golden Bough. He became a partner and sales manager for the Carmel Land Company that helped develop Hatton Fields, southeast of Carmel-by-the-Sea.
Hatton Fields is an unincorporated community southeast of downtown Carmel-by-the-Sea in Monterey County, California, United States. Homes have views of Carmel Valley, Point Lobos, and Carmel Bay. The residential neighborhood is bordered by Rio Road to the south, Hatton Road to the north, Hatton Canyon to the east, and Junipero Street to the west. The terrain is rolling and naturally landscaped with mature oaks, redwoods, and Monterey Pine trees. Carmel High School, Carmel Mission, and Flanders Mansion are landmarks in this neighborhood. Carmel Mission and Flanders Mansion are two properties that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Mission Trail Nature Preserve runs adjacent to Hatton Fields. Homes are part of the Carmel Unified School District.
Laura W. Maxwell, also known as Laura Maxwell, was an American artist. She played a role in the artistic community of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California, where she settled. Maxwell contributed to the establishment of the Carmel Art Association. Maxwell's artistic ability extended beyond the borders of Carmel and the Monterey Peninsula, as her floral paintings, marines, and landscapes in both oil and watercolor gained recognition in various art centers worldwide. Her works reached audiences as far as Paris, France, and made their way to exhibitions in Peking, China.
Dene Denny was an American musical theater producer who, along with co-founder Hazel Watrous, established the Denny-Watrous Management. They played pivotal roles in the founding of the Carmel Music Society, the Carmel Bach Festival, and Monterey's First Theater. Their residence, the Denny-Watrous Studio , served as a hub for hosting musical concerts and lectures.
John B. Jordan, was an American hotelier, actor, and politician. In 1922, Jordan purchased the Pine Inn in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. Jordan was a figure in both politics and theater. His involvement included an eight-year tenure on the city council, a two-year stint as mayor, and roles as a director for both the Forest Theater and the Carmel Arts and Crafts Club.