Come thrill to the crack of the bat and give it some ginger at a vintage base ball game; just leave the foul language at home – and look out for the daisy cutters. Watch the St. Croix Base Ball Club take on the Rochester Roosters in historic costume and with the original 1864 rules, also known as “The New York Game”.

The original rules demanded, among other things, the highest manners from players and spectators alike. Truly America’s sport, baseball began during the Civil War as young men looked to fill the interminable time between battles, and the game caught on like wildfire when the soldiers brought it home with them after the war. The game was full of colorful jargon: a bat was called “a willow” and the fans were called “cranks”. Pitchers were “hurlers” and batters were “strikers”. The rules challenge the contemporary die-hard: no gloves, no catching equipment, no pitching mound, the hurler throws the ball underhand, batters are out if the ball is caught in the air or after a single hop, and only one ball is used for the entire game.

Today there are 400 active clubs in the Vintage Base Ball Association. There is an annual two-day festival in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania where 24 teams play 48 games on five ball fields. For many years Northfield fielded a team known as The Silver Stars, but time and other diversions have taken their toll on the team.

The Northfield game will be played on The Bald Spot at Carleton College and the game will begin at 2:00pm on Saturday, August 1, 2026.  The Bald Spot is directly north of Skinner Memorial Chapel, 405 1st St. E. Due to ongoing construction, the best place to enter the campus is at the Winona St. and 1st St. E. intersection.

Music for the afternoon will be provided by RAVE Brass, a veteran Vintage Band Festival performer.