Baseball Americana
Treasures from the Library of Congress
By Harry Katz; Frank Ceresi; Phil Michel
(Smithsonian, Hardcover, 9780061625459, 256pp.)
Publication Date: October 2009
Other Editions of This Title: Google eBook, Paperback
Categories: Baseball - General, Collections, Catalogs, Exhibitions
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A lavishly illustrated history of America's game, from the unparalleled collections of the Library of Congress
Baseball, the sport that helped reunify the country in the years after the Civil War, remains the National Pastime. The Library of Congress houses the world's largest baseball collection, documenting the history of the game and providing a unique look at America since the late 1700s. Now Baseball Americana presents the best of the best from that treasure trove. From baseball's biggest stars to street urchins, from its most newsworthy stories to sandlot and Little League games, the book examines baseball's hardscrabble origins, rich cultural heritage, and uniquely American character.
The more than 350 fabulous illustrations—many never before published—featured first-generation, vintage photographic and chromolithographic baseball cards; photographs of famous players and ballparks; and newspaper clippings, cartoons, New Deal photographs, and baseball advertisements. Packed with images that will surprise and thrill even the most expert collector, Baseball Americana is a gift for every baseball fan.
Harry Katz is the former head curator in the Prints and Photographs Division of the Library of Congress and a lifelong Red Sox fan. He divides his time between Washington D.C., and Del Mar, California.
Baseball Americana: Treasures from the Library of Congress reveals early baseball artifacts housed in the world's largest collection in Washington, D.C. It includes a diary entry from 1786 with a reference to "baste ball" and photographs of female players known as "bloomer girls." More at NPR.org
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“One of the most seductively designed books about the sport to come our way. … A book like this, so rich and deep in material. … brings baseball history to multifaceted life and reminds us that baseball is the sport that celebrates its history more than any other. … This book itself is a form of time-traveling — a pleasurable, often surprising and aesthetic trip.”
-San Diego Union-Tribune
“Totally intriguing … traces the glory of our national pastime over more than two centuries. … All this material and so much more could fill a whole bunch of postseason evenings while today’s knickered lads cavort until midnight and beyond.”
-Washington Post
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