The Rich History of Chicago Cubs Memorabilia
The Rich History of Chicago Cubs Memorabilia
They aren't the hard-luck losers of movie, song and literature fame anymore, but for 100 years the Cubs ended each season with a hopeful "Wait until next year!"
Uncle Buck loved his Cubbies, as well as President Obama (after famously being given a midnight pardon by Theo Epstein). In one movie, Ferris Bueller spent part of his day off at a Cubs game. A century plus of being America's "lovable losers" is told through the items meticulously saved, preserved and beloved by fans.
Chicago Cubs is a true timeline of the rise, fall and long recovery of one of America's favorite sports teams.
Pre-history of the Chicago Cubs
The name of the team originally wasn't the Cubs. If you were searching for 1876 Chicago Cubs memorabilia, you won't find any. The Chicago baseball team that co-founded the was called the White Stockings.
Posters of the day show men with astonishing handlebar mustaches and stern expressions suited up for play. The team would lead the league for the first six years of play. The shine would wear off, though.
A couple of years of drought followed. In 1886, the team had to rebuild with many young, inexperienced players. Sportswriters of the day dubbed the team "Colts.”
This unfortunate development led to a decade without a championship after early success. By 1889 the proto-Cubs ditched their coach, Cap Anson, and their white uniform stockings. Sportswriters mercilessly called the team "Orphans" since they were left without the experienced hand of the previous 22 seasons.
When a few rebels of the team left to start with the newfangled American League club, the Chicago White Sox, sportswriters called the team "Remnants.” Chicago Cubs and other memorabilia collectors might be disappointed to find there are no "Remnants" jerseys out there.
Other names were tossed around at the time. Each sportswriter and each newspaper had their own pet name of the team. The team was called the Colts, the Orphans, the Panamas, the Zephyrs, the Nationals, the Spuds and most inexplicably, the Microbes.
Thankfully these names spent only a few years at most in the headlines before fading into history. They remain as part of the newspaper morgue.
