Vintage Base Ball League to Play at Oatlands on June 12
The Loudoun Preservation Society (LPS) will hold 19th Century Base Ball Day June 12, at Oatlands.

MIDDLEBURG, VA, March 17, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The Loudoun Preservation Society (LPS) will hold 19th Century Base Ball Day on Sunday, June 12, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at Oatlands (20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane, Leesburg, Va. 20175). This unique, family-friendly event will feature teams from the Mid Atlantic Vintage Base Ball League, playing by the rules and customs of the 1860s: no gloves, no helmets, and no catching gear. Uniforms and equipment are authentic replicas of that time period. Bases were used but games were not played on the manicured diamonds we are familiar with today.

The Chesapeake and Potomac Nines Base Ball Clubs will play the Elkton Eclipse Base Ball Club in a mini-tournament of three games starting at 11 a.m. Historically, the day was a social event and 19th Century Base Ball Day will be the same. There will be food vendors, merchants, information booths and other activities to interest and entertain attendees when not watching base ball. Fans, or "cranks" as they were originally called, are encouraged to bring blankets or lawn chairs to watch the games.

"We are delighted to be able to bring this fun, family event to Loudoun County and the Washington, D.C. metropolitan region," said Lori Kimball, president of LPS. "Many aspects of the game will be familiar to attendees but some things, such as the lack of a formal playing field, will be different. Vintage base ball isn't a new way of playing the sport. Rather, it is a way of playing the game as our country was enthusiastically embracing it, as base ball was on its way to becoming our national pastime. Our unofficial slogan for 19th Century Base Ball Day is to come and see baseball in a new - and old - way."

The rolling fields of Oatlands will be the setting for Base Ball Day, and there is a historic baseball connection to the property. George Carter began construction of the mansion in 1804. His grandson, Conrad Powell "Nick" Carter, was born there in 1879. Nick was a standout baseball player at the University of Virginia and later pitched professionally for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1908. After his short-lived major league career, he played on various minor league teams for five more years. In 1925 he coached in the Florida League and in 1929 the West Texas League. Tours of the Oatlands mansion and gardens will be available to Base Ball Day attendees at a discounted admission.

A focus of both pre-event promotions and game day will be the history of baseball in Loudoun. The first known reference is an 1869 newspaper reporting that the Leesburg Tuscaroras played the Hamilton Magnolias in Hamilton. The Potomac Baseball Club formed in Leesburg in 1877, and the Loudoun County League was established with six teams in 1920. A book on Loudoun's baseball history will be released by a local author this spring, and a book talk and signing event is tentatively planned for mid-April at Oatlands.

All proceeds from 19th Century Base Ball Day will go toward LPS's Grant Program, which provides funds to Loudoun non-profits and government entities for preservation, restoration, and conservation projects and for research and publications about Loudoun's heritage. Since its inception, the Grant Program has provided over $818,000 to projects in the Loudoun community.

Sponsorships are available to support the event. For more information contact LPS@PreserveLoudoun.org, visit the web site at www.preserveloudoun.org/Events/Baseball/, or become a fan on Facebook.

The Loudoun Preservation Society is dedicated to the preservation of the county's historical, cultural, and natural resources. LPS does this by stimulating public consciousness; galvanizing public support for preservation-related initiatives; raising funds to support preservation and restoration projects; and supporting the enactment of relative legislation. Members have given tirelessly of their time, talents, and imagination. LPS has been fortunate to have partners on various projects, including local officials, the Bar Association, the Loudoun Museum, the Loudoun Symphony Orchestra, the Thomas Balch Library, local churches, and nonprofit organizations throughout the county.

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