From collection Catharine Sargent Marston Collection
Ball Game, Sargentville, Me
A postcard photo: "Ball Game, Sargentville, Me". A batter, catcher or umpire, and other players on an open grassy field with trees in the distance. A large number of spectators are along the sidelines and others are sitting in the rocky and grassy area behind them. Even though baseball became a professional sport in the 1850s, at the end of the 19th century almost every Maine town, large and small, still had its own baseball team. Evie Barbour's photo makes clear how little a town needed in order to play the game. Here the team has established a ballpark in an open field without any special equipment in sight. Even gloves and bases seem to be absent. The men in their shirt sleeves gather to play and kibbutz while the women, protected from the sun by their hats and parasols, look on. [description courtesy of Mazie Hough, 2015]
