1891? Photograph on eBay
 

Just sold on eBay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...=STRK:MEWAX:IT

Does anyone know what this is? I was watching it, but didn't have the time to do the proper research.

Anyway, it would be great to hear what others think.

Thanks,
Charles

It could be American University in Washington DC...I think it's a bit later than 1891..possibly mid to late 1890s.

American University has never had a baseball team.

The tall guy in the upper right sure looks like a major leaguer to me...but can't say who offhand. Anybody else notice that?

More than likely it is a photo from the American Association. The young man in the middle sitting on the floor is also well known

Some of the faces seemed familiar to me, too. However, I couldn't actually make any matches. For example, the pitcher looks quite distinct, and like a major leaguer, but I couldn't actually match him to anyone.

And can anyone think of the reason for the "American" on the uniforms? It doesn't match up with any team names that I know.

FWIW, November 25, 1891 was a Wednesday, so it would correspond with the writing on the picture to date it to 1891.

Neat image. My best guess is that it's not a professional league team--the name "American" would be a little odd in any professional context I could imagine. I'd think it's some sort of industrial league team representing a company with a name like "American Tool & Die" or maybe even a newspaper--The American Standard. For every old photo of a pro team there are scores of amateur shots, so from a pure numbers standpoint it makes sense as well.