What is Your Thoughts on This? "Base Ball Inverted Mantle"

smokelessjoe · #1 06-24-2009, 01:59 PM

I picked up this strange little container... Love the graphics, but am wondering what the connection with baseball is? My Thoughts: Perhaps used for lighting a baseball field? Maybe this is obivious and you guys already know all about these? I cannot find any record of another though.

I have found information on the "Frankel Light Co." as early as 1913 and as late as the 1930s. I still need to do more research.

Do you think it is legit?
Any guesses as to the date of the container?

Would love to here your thoughts!

canjond · #2 06-24-2009, 02:58 PM

Is the baseball part a label put onto the cylinder? Maybe I am being synical but I wonder if it was a created piece. Regardless, it still looks really cool and I hope I'm wrong.

smokelessjoe · #3 06-24-2009, 03:27 PM

Jon,

I do not have it in hand yet, but it could be a created piece? The Frankel Light Company did exist though and they did sell Mantels, Lamps and various other items that had to do with lighting...

While researching I did find some information about a city that was starting a night game series and it made mention of gas lighting and inverted mantles?

Perhaps I will have a better feel when I get it in hand.

smokelessjoe · #4 06-24-2009, 03:51 PM

Just found this one on Ebay, looks like these type of mantles came in cylinder containers back then...

canjond · #5 06-24-2009, 05:13 PM

Shawn,

I have no idea but I think it looks cool regardless. I just questioned whether an original container had a creation pasted over it to tie it to baseball. It was just an observation and I sure hope I'm wrong. Where is Carlton?!

smokelessjoe · #6 06-24-2009, 08:53 PM

Hey Jon,

I am with you on this... I hope I can tell one way or another once I get it in hand. And like you, I hope it is legit as well.

slidekellyslide · #7 06-24-2009, 09:35 PM

I think it's legit....I took a look on ebay and there are no red flags...the seller is legit and doesn't sell repro type and they wouldn't have placed such a low BIN if they were trying to screw someone on it.

Nicely done I think you got a real steal.

smokelessjoe · #8 06-25-2009, 05:03 AM

Thanks Dan,

I felt good about the seller, but sometimes good sellers do not know what they have. My biggest concern was that I had simply never seen one before. Dan, have you ever seen anything like it? I have been trying to find anything promoting lighting for ball fields to no avail.

I have read now that these Inverted Mantles were good for directing light downward or even at an angle. It would make sense perhaps to promote the use of these for baseball fields. Does anyone know when gas lighting for ball fields first started?

cincicards · #9 06-25-2009, 07:16 AM

From the address I found for Frankel Light CO and League Park in Cleveland, Ohio, it looks like they were two mile from each other.

http://www.mapquest.com/maps?1c=Clev...082&2v=ADDRESS

http://books.google.com/books?id=pf5...esult&resnum=1

cincicards · #10 06-25-2009, 07:23 AM

From Wikipedia; "Lights were never installed at League Park, and thus night games were not regularly played there. However, at least one night game was played on July 27th, 1931, between the Homestead Grays and the House of David -- who borrowed the portable lighting system used by the Kansas City Monarchs. For 1947, under the ownership of Bill Veeck, the Indians moved to Cleveland Stadium full-time. League Park became the last stadium used in Major League Baseball never to install permanent lights."

smokelessjoe · #11 06-25-2009, 07:23 AM

Wow Randall! I did not even think of that... Thanks

Here is a pic of what apparently came the the tubes... One hell of a Mantle!
These particular ones were patented on Oct. 9, 1900

Note: It is amazing where collecting vintage baseball can take you.

smokelessjoe · #12 06-25-2009, 08:47 AM

Randall,

I found this article in the 1909 Popular Electricity magazine, "Playing Base Ball at Night". The article is talking about lighting a ball field in Cincinnati. While this article is talking about electricity and not gas, I find it quite contradictory to everything thing else I have been reading. Everything I have read (so far) talks about "electric lighting" for ball fields at a much later date?

Anyway I thought you might be interested in the article and that you might be able to Identify the players and field???

Hal Kaplan · #13 06-25-2009, 09:00 PM

Smokelessjoe,

The field in your pics is Crosley/Palace of the Fans (home of the Reds). The middle pic shows the facade from the Palace of the Fans. Great piece!

smokelessjoe · #14 06-26-2009, 07:44 AM

Hal,

Thank you for the info!

I have read that the first Night Major League game was May 24, 1935 at Crosley Field, but it seems that since they installed lights in 1909 there would have been games played much earlier????

Dave4Reds · #15 06-27-2009, 08:53 AM

You are correct the photo is of the Palace of the Fans, but it burned down and was replaced by Redland Field (later named Crosley) in 1912. While we're on the topic of night baseball in Cincinnati, in 1931 the Dayton Shroyers amateur team had to substitute for the House of David for the re-introduction of night baseball in Cincinnati using the House of David lighting equipment at Redland Field against the Reds. The substitution was necessary since the House of David team had too many outlawed players for an exhibition game against an organized major league team.