In 1868 in Peterboro, New York, two women's clubs played one of the first recorded baseball games between
female teams. Peterboro was a small
upstate village about 75 miles from Seneca Falls, where the women's suffrage
movement was gaining momentum. The illustration above appeared soon after the
game in a New York newspaper called It's The Day's Doings, and is now
reproduced on the cover of the Play Ball! baseball scorebook. It's The Day's Doings
in 1868 also published a quaint (and unfortunately sexist)
account of that early game, which read as follows:
"THE LAST ILLUSTRATION OF WOMAN'S RIGHTS--
A Female Base-Ball Club at Peterboro, N.Y.
"We hear on all sides of woman-- of her rights and of her wrongs-- we
hear of her from our pulpits, we read of her in our novels and essays, we see
her occasionally on the lecture-- a speaker or at the meetings of politicians,
we find her demanding her rights as a representative-- and lately, some of the
more favored portion of our rural districts have beheld her as a practical
advocate of muscular Christianity and a player of base-ball. In the latter
capacity, at least, she deserves our unqualified attention and commendation.
Physical exercise is one of the needs of American men, especially of American
women. The Grecian Bend, and other kindred absurdities, have had their day,
(so let us devoutly trust) and in their stead attention is being directed to
physical sports of a bracing and healthful character. Every well-wisher of
woman-- (and what man with a wife, sweetheart, sister or daughter is not
such a well-wisher)-- will wish our female base-ball clubs, and similar
organizations, all success, and only wish that there were more of them.
"The last success in female base-ball, occurred at Peterboro, a
thriving little village in New York State, and is thus recorded by the local
paper:
"The young women of Peterboro, N.Y., jealous of the popular sports
enjoyed by the more muscular portion of mankind, have organized a baseball
club, and have already arrived at a creditable degree of proficiency in play.
There are about fifty members belonging to it, from which a playing nine has
been chosen, headed by Miss Ninnie Miller as captain. The nine have played
several games outside the town and away from the gaze of the curious. Having
thus perfected themselves, this nine lately played a public game in the town
of Peterboro, as may well be supposed, before a multitude of spectators."
