c. 1893 cabinet photo with Thomas Bruce

 Thomas Seth Bruce was a starter on Bates College football team from 1894-1898.  During his senior year Bates had one of their best seasons going 6-0.  Bruce broke the color barrier and was an early black football player for a predominately white college.  

What is interesting about this photograph is that he appears to be the captain of the team since he is holding the football.  I believe this photo is from Nichols Latin School which was a prep school for Bates College.  An NLS is seen on another players uniform in the image.

After graduation Bruce went to seminary school in Newton Massachusetts.  He played on the Newton Athletic Clubs football team who actually played Yale that season.  I believe he is one of the first black players on a major athletic club team.

Early 1880s Columbia football team cabinet

 There are very few early Columbia football team images circulating out there.  This is perhaps the earliest I have seen.  Based on a name on the back I attribute this image to around 1881.

1897 Jackson High School football cabinet

 Toward the end of the 19th century the popularity of football was spreading west.  The HYPs were not the only powerhouses anymore with schools such as University of Michigan, Wisconsin and Chicago starting to turn into national powerhouses.  Here is an interesting Michigan area high school football cabinet.  Not anything of real historical significance, but I love the looks of it with the barbed wire in the background and all the little kids trying to get in on the picture.  Also note on the back how they played other college teams.

Early 1880s Cabinet photo with Father of Dartmouth Football Clarence Howland

 Unsure what athletic group this is but I tired here is early Dartmouth University football pioneer Clarence “Cap” Howland.  For many years prior to 1880 Dartmouth had been playing games of association style football on campus.  When Howland entered Dartmouth in 1880 he was familiar with the rugby style game which he had played at Williston Seminary.  So in 1880 he organized and coached the first football team.  It wasn’t until 1881 that they were able to play their first intercollegiate game.  Until his graduation in 1883 he had coached and captained every team and helped jumpstart football at Dartmouth.

Eugene V Baker Yale 1877 Graduation Cabinet Photo

 If Walter Camp is the father of American football then Eugene Baker would be the grandfather.  Playing on the Yale team from 1873-77 he was responsible for recruiting Camp to be on the football team.  He was captain of the football team in 76’ and 77’.  The 1876 team was the first to defeat Harvard.  He was an important figure in overseeing the transition from a more Association style kicking game to a Rugby style of carrying the ball which ultimately transformed into what we are accustomed to today.

1889 Princeton University Cabinet Photo

 This is an image of the 1889 Princeton University National Championship team.  They went on to an undefeated 10-0 season on finishing of the powerhouse Yale 10-0.  Five players ended up taking home inaugural All-American awards including Captain Edgar Allen Poe who became the first QB to win that honor.  Other interesting players are “Snake” Ames and “Sport” Donnelly who went on to have early pro football careers.

1898 Gallaudet College Football Cabinet

Here is an oversized imperial photo of the 1898 Gallaudet College “Deaf-Mutes” of Washington D.C.  They didn’t let their handicaps hold them back as they were one of the best teams outside of the Ivy leagues during this time.  GC was also responsible for inventing the football huddle so when they played other hearing impaired schools they would not steal their signs.  Also included is a photo from an 1898 issue of Harper’s Weekly.

 

1888 Harvard Varsity Club Photo

This is a beautiful image of the varsity players from the major Harvard sports.  Included are the 1887 Harvard football team led by Captain Holden seen sitting with the football.  Also of Particular note is Arthur Cumnock who is on the varsity as freshman.  He went on to captain the national championship 1890 team and also invented the nose guard.

1879 Princeton university Football cabinet photos

 Here is a G.W. Pach images of the 1879 Princeton football team.  Led by Captain Bland Ballard they went undefeated going 4-0-1 with a tie against Yale.  They were retroactively named national champions.

c. 1896 Denver Athletic Club panoramic team photo

This is the earliest panoramic photo I have seen of a football team.  The photographer signature looks like Rose from Denver with an 1896 date.  I was able to photo match some players with those from the Denver Athletic Club.

1890 Dartmouth University Baseball team photo with Edward K. Hall

 Edward Hall was the captain of the 1891 Dartmouth football team.  He went on to coach at the University of Illinois both football and baseball from 1892-94.  When President Roosevelt demanded changes to the game of football in 1906 the NCAA was formed.  Hall helped develop changes to the rules such as the forward pass which made the game safer and more interesting.  He also replaced Walter Camp in 1906 as the Secretary of the Rules Committee.  He was inducted into the College HOF in the 1951 inaugural class.

1886 Harvard University Football Imperial Cabinet Photo

 Here is a Pach Bros image of the 1886 Harvard football team.  Harvard had struggled out of the gate in the early 1880s.  In 1885 the Harvard administration shut down the team from playing that season due to the violence of the sport.  The team came back with a vengeance in 1886 with a record of 12-2 with its only losses against the powerhouses of Yale and Princeton.  

1886 University of Pennsylvania football imperial cabinet photo

 This is a very attractive large size Gilbert and Bacon team photo of U of Penn from 1886.  They went 9-6-1 playing all the big teams of the day including Princeton twice.

Imperial 1878 Harvard football freshman Notman Cabinet

 This is a very early Harvard football image.  The 82 on their uniforms is for the class of 1882.  This image was taken in 1878.  Many of these players went on to play important roles on the varsity squad from 1878-1881.  One in particular William H. Manning was a 4 year varsity letter winner and 2 year captain of the 1880-1881 team.

William H. Manning

1900 Yale Football Team Large Albumin Photo

 This was one of Yale’s best teams of all time.  After 1894 Yale started losing some of the games they had previously dominated since the 1870s.  This changed in 1900 by the Gordon Brown Captained football team that cruised to a perfect season routing their opponents.  They are often dubbed the “team of the century.”  Gordon Brown had a very successful career at Yale and became one of a handful of other college players as a 4 time All-Anerican.  Every single starting player from this team went on to earn either first, second, or third team All-American votes.

c.1894 Victor Hungerford Columbia University football cabinet

19th century Columbia University photos are very hard to come by.  One of the reasons for this is the fact that they did not play outside competition for many years in the 1890s.  This image of Victor Hungerford is during the days when they would play class vs class.  Below is his individual cabinet with a team image showing the inter scholastic trophy.