Baseball Games Under the Lights
They Were Much Earlier Than You Might Think
Fifty-five years before the first night baseball games were introduced to the major leagues in 1935, lighting was brought to baseball at lower levels.
Over the next five decades attempts to illuminate the game continued in the amateur, minor and African-American leagues, while big league owners balked at the idea, believing that lights would cheapen the game.
The Earliest Recorded Night Game
- On September 2, 1880, a crowd of three hundred gathered on the balconies of the Sea Foam House in Hull, Massachusetts, to watch a night game between two amateur department store teams. The lighting for the game was provided by Boston’s Northern Electric Company and consisted of 36 carbon lamps placed on three 100 foot wooden towers spaced 500 feet apart. Total light was estimated at 90,000 candles.
- The experiment was ruled less than a success by the Boston press. The light given off was quite imperfect; there were lots of errors made; and, the players had to bat and throw with caution. The game’s spectators became quickly bored as only the movements of the pitcher could be easily discerned and the ball, once hit, hardly seen.
Other Early Attempts
Night baseball was attempted throughout the late 1800s and early 1900s. Among these were the following:
- The first night baseball game involving a professional team was in 1883 when Quincy, Illinois, from the Northwestern League defeated Methodist College 19-11. The game was played in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and was generally criticized by the media, although The Sporting Life saw a possible future for night baseball if more lights could be used.
- In the early 1900s, businessman and entrepreneur, Al Lawson, began transporting light systems by railroad to minor league parks in the New York State League; and, in 1903, Des Moines, of the Western League, became the first team to use permanently installed lights.
- The short-lived Federal League almost became the first major league to have night baseball when the Brooklyn Tip-Tops announced that they would play a night game on September 29, 1915, for “those fans who have to work every day.” Unfortunately, the contractor could not complete installation by that date and the idea was scrapped.
Lights Become Acceptable
- By 1930, lights had become perfected to the extent that they were successfully used throughout the minor leagues and even on some sandlots. The then well-known barnstorming baseball team, The House of David, and the Kansas City Monarchs, a powerhouse of the Negro Leagues, even used their own portable systems when traveling.
- 1930 also saw the first major league baseball team play under the lights when the Cincinnati Reds played an exhibition game in Indianapolis against the minor league Indianapolis Indians. As reported by Time Magazine (August 11, 1930): “The lights turned the field to a vividly unreal color, like grass in a postcard, against which the figures of the players stood out sharply three-dimensional. Both teams were hitting well but the red-legged fielders (Cincinnati) were uncertain judging distances and fumbled.” The Reds lost 17-5.
Despite these advancements, it would still be another five years before the same Cincinnati organization would bring lights to the majors.
Sources:
Pietrusza, David, Lights On! (Scarecrow Press, 1997)
Orem, Preston, Baseball 1845-1881 (Self-published, 1961)
Miklich, Eric, Night Baseball in the 19th Century
The copyright of the article Baseball Games Under the Lights in Baseball History is owned by John K. Davis. Permission to republish Baseball Games Under the Lights in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
