Formerly | Pennsylvania State League |
---|---|
Classification | Class A, Class B |
Sport | Baseball |
Founded | 1896 |
Ceased | June 1900 |
President |
|
No. of teams | 8 |
Country | United States |
Most titles | Richmond Bluebirds (2) |
The Atlantic League was a minor league baseball league that operated between 1896 and 1900 in the Northeastern United States. It was the successor of the Pennsylvania State League, which had operated from 1892 to 1895. The name has subsequently been reused twice, for another short-lived league in 1914, and for a contemporary independent minor league.
Season | Champion | Record | Class | League size | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1896 | Newark Colts | 82–61 (.573) | A | 6 teams† | [1] |
1897 | Lancaster Maroons | 90–45 (.667) | A | 8 teams | [2] |
1898 | Richmond Bluebirds | 77–44 (.636) | B | 8 teams | [3] |
1899 | Richmond Bluebirds | 63–25 (.716) | A | 8 teams‡ | [4] |
1900 | Scranton Miners | 26–7 (.788) | A | 8 teams‡ | [5] |
Source: [6]
Notes:
Source: [6]
Teams denoted in italics disbanded during the season.
April 30–June 14
Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
---|---|---|---|---|
Scranton | 26 | 7 | .788 | — |
Wiles-Barre | 24 | 13 | .649 | 4 |
Reading | 16 | 16 | .500 | 9.5 |
Allentown | 14 | 20 | .412 | 12.5 |
Philadelphia / Harrisburg | 10 | 17 | .370 | 13 |
Elmira | 11 | 19 | .367 | 13.5 |
Newark | 8 | 12 | .400 | N/A |
Jersey City | 7 | 12 | .368 | N/A |
The Soby Cup, made of silver, was given to the league by tobacco businessman Charles Soby of Hartford, Connecticut, in September 1896. [7] In its first season, the cup was to be awarded to the winner of a postseason series between the league's top two teams; in subsequent years, the holder of the cup would play a series against the league's top finishing team. [8]
Standings at the end of the 1896 season, which had Newark finishing first, were formally protested by the Paterson team, claiming that some of Newark's games were actually exhibitions. [9] With that protest pending, the next two teams in the standings—Paterson and Hartford—arranged to play a series for the Soby Cup. [10] Paterson won the seven-game series, four games to two. [11] The protested standings were not ruled upon until the league's annual meeting in late November; despite inconsistencies in record-keeping, Newark was declared the pennant winner. [12]
Following the 1897 season, the Soby Cup series should have been contested between Lancaster, that year's top team, and Paterson, who had won the cup in 1896. [8] However, league officials decided to have the top two teams of 1897—Lancaster and Newark—play for the cup. [8] After Lancaster and Newark could not agree to terms for a series, [13] the Soby Cup was awarded to Lancaster, the pennant winner. [14]
Prior to the 1898 season, the league abolished the postseason Soby Cup series, and returned to the cup to its donor. [15] By 1951, the cup was at the Baseball Hall of Fame, [16] where it remains as of 2019 [update] . [17]
Notable players in the Atlantic League (1896–1900) include: [6]
The Bergen County Line is a commuter rail line and service owned and operated by New Jersey Transit in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The line loops off the Main Line between the Meadowlands and Glen Rock, with trains continuing in either direction along the Main Line. It is colored on NJT system maps in grey, and its symbol is a cattail, which are commonly found in the Meadowlands where the line runs.
The Lancaster Red Roses baseball team, originally known as the Maroons, changed its name at the start of the 1906 season during a bitter match with the York, Pennsylvania-based White Roses. Some sources indicate that the rival teams were named for the opposing factions in England's historic Wars of the Roses. The Lancaster Red Roses played at Stumpf Field in Manheim Township, Pennsylvania, which is still used today by local baseball and softball leagues.
The Interstate League was the name of five different American minor baseball leagues that played intermittently from 1896 through 1952.
The National Association Football League (NAFBL) was a semi-professional U.S. soccer league which operated between 1895 and 1898. The league was reconstituted in 1906 and continued to operate until 1921.
Harrison Park is a former baseball ground located in Harrison, New Jersey, a town adjacent to Newark, New Jersey. The ground was home to the Newark Peppers of the Federal League in 1915. The field was also known as "Peppers Park" or "Peps Park". In publications such as city directories and newspapers, it was often called Federal Baseball Park even during its International League days.
Orange High School is a three-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in tenth through twelfth grades from Orange in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as part of the Orange Board of Education. The school has been accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools since 1928.
The Connecticut League, also known as the Connecticut State League, was a professional baseball association of teams in the state of Connecticut. The league began as offshoot of the original Connecticut State League, which dates back as far as 1884. In 1891, the Connecticut State League included the Ansonia Cuban Giants, a team made up of entirely African-American ballplayers, including future Hall of Famers Frank Grant and Sol White. In 1902, it was a Class D league with teams in eight cities. In 1905, the league became Class B, which lasted until 1913, when the league became the Eastern Association due to several teams outside of the state entering the league. Also a Class B league, it survived two more seasons, then folded after the 1914 season.
Richard Joseph Harley was an American baseball outfielder, manager, and coach.
John Albert Rothfuss was a professional baseball first baseman. He played 35 games in Major League Baseball for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Rothfuss was 5 feet, 11 inches tall and weighed 195 pounds.
Richard Henry Cogan was a professional baseball player and manager who played three seasons in the major leagues. He was 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighed 150 pounds.
The Atlantic Association was a minor league baseball organization that operated between 1889 and 1890 and again in 1908 in the Northeastern United States.
The Paterson Silk Weavers were a minor league baseball team based in Paterson, New Jersey. From 1896 to 1899, Paterson played exclusively as members of the Atlantic League, winning the 1896 league championship amidst controversy. Baseball Hall of Fame charter member Honus Wagner played for the 1896 and 1897 Paterson Silk Weavers, before making his major league debut in 1897. Fellow Hall of Fame member Ed Barrow was Wagner's manager in 1896, after scouting him and signing him to the team. Barrow managed the Paterson team again in 1899.
The 1964 Bucknell Bison football team was an American football team that represented Bucknell University during the 1964 NCAA College Division football season. Bucknell was awarded the Lambert Cup as the best small-college football team in the East.
The 1956 Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football team was an American football team that represented the University of Delaware as an independent during the 1956 NCAA College Division football season. In its sixth season under head coach David M. Nelson, the team compiled a 5–3–1 record and outscored opponents by a total of 151 to 108. Vincent Grande was the team captain. The team played its home games at Delaware Stadium in Newark, Delaware.
Calista Vinton Luther was an American missionary and medical doctor, born in Burma (Myanmar). She was a physician after completing her medical degree in 1885, and ran a small sanitarium in New Jersey.
The Philadelphia Athletics was the primary moniker of the minor league baseball teams based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The minor league Philadelphia teams played various seasons in Philadelphia between 1877 and 1900.
Wethersfield Avenue Baseball Grounds, also sometimes known as Clarkin Field or Clarkin's Field (I) was a baseball park located in Hartford, Connecticut. The facility was home to the following minor league teams:
The Richmond Bluebirds were a minor league baseball team based in Richmond, Virginia. Between 1895 and 1901, the Bluebirds played as members of the Virginia League in 1895 and 1896, Atlantic League from 1897 to 1899, Virginia League in 1900 and Virginia-North Carolina League in 1901. The Bluebirds won league championships in 1895, 1896, 1898 and 1899, all while playing under manager Jake Wells.
The Newark Colts were a minor league baseball team based in Newark, New Jersey. From 1896 to 1900, the Colts played exclusively as members of the Atlantic League, winning the 1896 league championship. The Colts hosted home games at the Hamburg Place Ballpark. The ballpark site evolved to become Wiedenmayer’s Park in 1902 and today's Riverbank Park, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Norfolk Jewels were a minor league baseball team based in Norfolk, Virginia. In 1897 and 1898, the Norfolk Jewels played as members of the Atlantic League in both seasons. The Jewels were immediately preceded by the 1896 Norfolk Braves of the Virginia League.