Baseball’s First Dynasty: The Brooklyn Atlantics

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Baseball’s First Dynasty: The Brooklyn Atlantics

Today we delve into a little history of the origins of baseball with a few words about the Atlantic Base Ball Club, known as the Brooklyn Atlantics, who were baseball’s first recognized champions.

The Brooklyn Atlantics were one of the 16 clubs, all from Manhattan and Long Island, who were members of the National Association of Base Ball Players, formed prior to the 1858 season. The club was organized on August 14, 1855. In 1859, with a record of 11 wins and 1 loss, the Atlantics were baseball’s first recognized champions.They dominated organized baseball’s first decade in New York, winning National Amateur Association pennants in 1859, 1869, 1861*, 1864, 1865, 1866, and 1869.

 

Local photographer Charles Willliamson produced the remarkable team portrait, shown below, in 1865.This team portrait is considered the earliest existing dated collectable “baseball card,” and was handed out to Atlantic supporters and even to opposing teams in a gesture of bravado from the brash Brooklynites.

The Atlantics were named for Atlantic Avenue, one of Brooklyn’s major thoroughfares. They played their home games on the Capitoline Grounds in the Bedford section and were sometimes called “The Bedford Boys.” Sports Illustrated traced the lineage of the present-day Dodgers back to the Atlantics (see below).

The Atlantics are also the possessors of the first of baseball’s notorious “asterisks.” As indicated above, the championship in 1861 was tainted and an asterisk was inserted after their name in the record books. Here’s the reason: In 1860, Excelsior was leading the Atlantic club 8–6 in the third and deciding game for the championship. They had men on base, but were forced to withdraw by a rowdy crowd of Atlantic partisans and gamblers. The game was declared a draw – and the championship retained by Atlantic!

Great players of this era included Joe Start, Dickey Pearce, Charlie Smith, Fred Crane, and Tom Pratt, Bob Ferguson, and Lip Pike. The Atlantics had a 36-game winning streak was broken in June, 1866 by Irvington, NJ. There was tremendous anticipation when Cincinnati came to Brooklyn with an 89-game winning streak to meet the Atlantics on June 14, 1870 at Atlantic’s home Capitoline Grounds. An estimated crowd of fifteen thousand paid 50 cents apiece to see Atlantic win 8–7 in extra innings in one of the most significant games in baseball history.

The Brooklyn Atlantics joined the National Association (considered the first professional league and the precursor of the National League) in 1872, but suffered losing records in each of its four seasons in the league. The Atlantics were not invited to join the National League when it was formed in 1876, but continued to play an independent schedule until at least 1882.

Sports Illustrated’s lineage of the Atlantic Baseball Club to the Dodgers:
1855-1884 Brooklyn Atlantics
1885-1887 Brooklyn Grays
1888-1890 Brooklyn Bridegrooms
1891-1895 Brooklyn Grooms
1896-1898 Brooklyn Bridegrooms
1899-1910 Brooklyn Superbas
1911-1912 Brooklyn Dodgers
1913 Brooklyn Superbas
1914-1931 Brooklyn Robins
1932-1956 Brooklyn Dodgers
1957-present Los Angeles Dodgers

-Gary Livacari

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Photo Credits: “Baseball Americana” Treasures from The Library of Congress. Others from Public Domain.

Information: Edited from the source above; and from the Brooklyn Atlantics Wikipedia page.