Vintage Baseball Glove Forum

Jerry has been holding out on us. Yesterday, we put his gloves in the galleries. Do a search for Mr. Mitt in the search box to see some of the most elegant gloves in the hobby. I have had the pleasure of seeing most of them at his home a few years ago and they are stunning. It’s been killing me not to show these to you. Enjoy.

Who else is holding?

JD

http://www.baseballglovecollector.com/gallery/index.php

I'm so glad I got Mr. Mitt to legally adopt me and leave me those gloves in his will.

Great collection Jerry! The Victorian mitt is gangsta! Thanks for sharing .

vintagebrett wrote:I'm so glad I got Mr. Mitt to legally adopt me and leave me those gloves in his will.

Tried to adopt before, a taut, 19-year old Swede. Unfortunately, my wife got a hold of the paperwork. Needless to say, I sent Sven back.

Thanks for the kind words...

I really like the Victorian catchers mitt with the adjustable finger guard. I've heard of full round mitts but never really seen one before. How did you determine it is a William Read mitt? Is it stamped or is there a catalog illustration? it is stunning in every way and I'd like a little more information on it. There were several patents for the full round mitt style and I included one that matches your mitt the closest.


here is a patent of 1899 of a full round mitt with symmetrical raised heel.

Absolutely beautiful gloves Jerry. Hard to pick a favorite glove, but I love the box with the 2 DiMaggio photos.

Scott

Thanks, Scott. That DiMaggio has always been one of my favorite gloves in the hobby since seeing it in a magnificent collection a very long time ago. I'm amazed the entire ensemble from the 1938 point of purchase remains intact.

As for the catcher's mitt. On the lower right quadrant of the back of the glove, you'll notice an oval. From the picture, it might appear to be the outline of where the base of a strap, or something, was once sewn. That's not the case. It's actually a black stamped oval, identical to the one on the face of this William Read Sons catcher's mitt seen here;


http://www.baseballglovecollector.com/g ... nt.jpg.php


Unfortunately, I've yet to see one pictured in a catalog. The mitt has attributes from several patents dating to the 19th century, but the one shown above is pretty close. For reference, it measures an absolutely huge 11" x 9.5". I'm very fortunate and grateful to have it.

I'm not an authority on this and don't mean to rain on your parade, but that oval may be generic and contain licensed patent information. Here is my Tryon mitt with the same oval with licensing info for the Draper grommet web patented in Oct. 27, 1891. I think you can see it pretty clearly. The other mitt you post features the same grommet web. Is there anything legible in the oval of either of your mitts? In the end it doesn't matter what brand it is. As Bing says "It is Gangsta" and one of a kind. You are very fortunate.

Not raining on my parade at all. I'm like you, Mike, I love researching, classifying and categorizing gloves. I had not seen that oval on any other example outside of the Wm. Read until you pointed it out on the Tryon. Absolutely looks like a patent marking with nothing to do with a specific manufacturer. I'll now have to broaden my 19th century catalog search and cast my nets in a much larger area, beyond just Wm. Read publications. Now, what the hell would you call this thing?!?! Personally, I like the Victorian term because of the ornateness of the mitt's back. To me, this is the first truly ornamented glove/mitt of the time period as opposed to being simply utilitarian in design. Any suggestions?

"Victorian Full-Round with Ornate Adjustable Finger Guard" is just too long, how about simply "Victorian Full-Round"?

it is a mitt you could go on and on about. I think "Victorian full round" mitt sounds good. It's descriptive of its shape, era and style.

The Victorian mitt is stunning. Everything about it screams first class. My favorite part is the color. It may be hard to see in the photos but it's a faded blue/green. I've seen that color on one other glove and I know the other glove dates to the early-mid 1890's. The leather, piping, and the brass are all very similar too, so they were most likely line siblings at one point.

Jerry,

Super collection of gloves and mitts. Those are just some outstanding pieces of leather. That Victorian mitt is a real eye catcher but the other gloves and mitts are amazing too.

Great collection.
Dave

Here is an ad from 1937 showing three Spalding gloves. The "DiMaggio" glove is interesting in the description of having A "Rainey Trap" web in addition to being a buckle back model. I've never seen the 222-31 model number. I thought if anyone, Jerry would know about this one.

Interesting that Spalding was advertising this model in 1937 as the 222- designation was for one year only, 1938. The 222-01 and 222-31 were available in the 1938 catalog, but not the 222-39. The 222-39, as far as I've seen, was never advertised in a catalog nor magazine. I've only seen two 222-01 Worlds Championship models, owned both at one point, but they were in rough shape. It was Spaldings top of the line fielder's glove for 1938 at $11. Surprising for an endorser coming off is rookie season to have the most pricy glove. As for the 222-31, I have never seen one surface, so I can't comment on the Rainey web. A few DiMaggio's had Raineys in the 40's, but never seen a pre-war model.