STONINGTON — As America celebrates its 250th Anniversary in 2026, no sport has been more intertwined in American history than baseball, dubbed the national pastime.
Chelsea Mitchell, director of Historic Stonington’s Woolworth Library & Research Center, has scheduled events to celebrate American heritage this year. On deck is an 1864-style baseball.
An “old school” 1864 baseball doubleheader will be played Saturday at Stonington Community Center’s Bears’ youth baseball diamond in Stonington Borough. The games will turn the clock back to pre-Major League Baseball times as a local team, the Stonington Cannons, join two National Association of Historic Base Ball Clubs squads for a doubleheader starting at 3 p.m.
Two national period teams, the New York Mutuals and Providence Greys, will open. A team of locals, the Stonington Cannons coached by Stonington softball coach Ann Marie Houle, will play one of those teams at 4:30 p.m.
“Celebrating baseball in an event such as this was a no-brainer,” Mitchell said. “What is more American than baseball? Sports is a great way to bring communities and families together. This should be a fun event.”
Spectators might not recognize the games as a typical modern game where pitchers can dominate.
“Pitchers throw underhand,” Mitchell said. “A fielder can also record an out by catching a hit or fielding it on a bounce.”
The games will be played with 1864 equipment: a softer and larger baseball, bare hands to use for fielding, no batting helmets and a round home plate that was used back then. Players will wear 1864 era uniform jerseys and caps.
The Cannons have practiced a few times with coach Houle organizing but making sure the tone is light and entertaining, while ensuring the players stay true to 1864 style of baseball.
“This whole experience so far has been amazing,” Houle said “The group of players at our practices were so energetic and eager stay authentic to the history of baseball. The camaraderie was instant which made it so much fun. It is a perfect group of players and the common thread is the respect for the game that everyone has.”
Houle hopes the event become an annual one in Stonington. The Borough boasts a proud baseball history as it was the birthplace (1880) of Matty McIntyre, a Major League standout with the Tigers and White Sox in the “Deadball Era” from 1901 to 1912.
McIntyre was an outfielder and one of eastern Connecticut’s most successful MLB players, accumulating 1,066 hits and a .267 batting average in 11 seasons. He once led the American League in runs scored (105) and at bats while playing for the Tigers. Hitting home runs out of the park was not common in MLB until Babe Ruth’s rise with the Yankees in the 1920s. McIntyre hit just four career homers among his 1,066 hits.
His fascinating life came to a close early when he died of flue complications in Detroit in 1920 at age 39.
MLB pitchers threw overhand in the early 1900s but batters did not wear helmets, let alone batting gloves or elbow guards that are used today as the ball was not nearly as tightly-wound as it is today. The 1864 event brings back baseball history even further back than the “Deadball era.”
“I hope everyone shows up to watch the professional teams play each other and then watch our team play the winner,” Houle said. “Historic Stonington has done a tremendous job of organizing it all and making this dream become a reality. We are hoping to make this an annual event.”