Morgan Bulkeley: Founding Father or Figurehead? David Krell

Along the banks of Pennsylvania's Schuylkill River lies the birthplace of freedom, never more salient since America declared her independence than in 1876-the centennial anniversary of the monumental event that launched the precepts of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness in a lasting government structure. In that year of national pride marked by Philadelphia's six-month Centennial Exhibition-May 10 to November 10-America spearheaded progress: Johns Hopkins University began in Baltimore, Alexander Graham Bell obtained a patent for a new device labeled the "telephone," and Mark Twain introduced literary icon Tom Sawyer.1876 is also the year, certainly, when baseball's evolution leaped to a new eon with the formation of the National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, commonly known as the National League. And Morgan Bulkeley was at its epicenter.Largely to the consternation of 19th century baseball enthusiasts, the Hall of Fame inducted Bulkeley in 1937, the year of its second class, which included John McGraw, Nap Lajoie, and Cy Young. Bulkeley, owner of the Hartford Dark Blues, arguably does not belong in Cooperstown, especially because 19th century icons Charles Ebbets and Charley Byrne of Brooklyn, among others, do not yet have a plaque indicating their invaluable contributions to the National Pastime.To lobby for Bulkeley's deserved inclusion is, in essence, a losing argument, considering his contributions were benign, at best: Bulkeley owned the Hartford team for four years, served one year as the National League president, and stood largely as an NL figurehead while Chicago White Stockings president William Hulbert and others engineered the logistics for the National League's creation in 1876.Yet, upon further scrutiny, Bulkeley's contributions elevate the argument for classification as a founding father of baseball rather than a mere figurehead.A prominent businessman whose family became iconic in the insurance industry - Bulkeley's father was a founder and the first president of Aetna Insurance-Bulkeley enhanced the new league's image simply with his name. So, Bulkeley's empty reign begs a question: Why didn't Hulbert arrange for himself to run the new league, which was his idea in the first place? He had business and baseball savvy, undoubtedly. Indeed, he succeeded Bulkeley as the NL's president. Hulbert's avoidance of governance in name during the league's inaugural year, if not in deed, stirs curiosity. Obviously, Hulbert needed Bulkeley's reputation to advance his plan for a new league to sustain.It was, after all, Hulbert's idea to eliminate the negatives of the National Association and build upon its positives. An open admissions policy, in particular, struck Hulbert as an inefficient business model. A future league needed strength on the financial ledger as well as at the ballpark.Accordingly, in 1876 Hulbert took the lead in assembling a new organization that would limit its membership to soundly run clubs located in the country's leading cities. The idea of a round-robin championship competition among member teams was taken from the NA. Besides the self-selecting membership and a minimum population threshold of 75,000, the critical new departure was a provision limiting NL membership to one club per city.1Bulkeley's presidency, while hollow in executive decisions, gave the nascent league its most important asset-respectability. Two previous leagues had disbanded: the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (1871-1875) and the National Association of Base Ball Players, also known as National Association (1857-1870). Raucousness in the stands, gamblers involved with players, and deficiencies in business management destroyed the two leagues. "Additionally, baseball's bad odor with the public was not exclusively a matter of on-the-field mischief," notes John Thorn. "Speculation in gold in 1869 and in rail stocks in 1873 had created a national economic panic, followed by chronic unemployment and a 'Long Depression' that ran uninterrupted into 1879: Only the onset of centennial fever provided the illusion of brief respite and a spur to patriotism, material culture, and bold enterprise. …