Found today in Florida

[ScottWNJ]

I picked up this old catcher's mitt at an antique mall in Florida today. I was intrigued by the stitching around the palm. Doesn't look like a repair as it is too neat. I cannot see any markings and won't attempt a cleaning until I get home next week. Any ideas on a maker or age? I'm thinking 1920s.


Thanks,

Scott

[mikesglove]

the section of the palm inside the stitching looks newer than the outside, so maybe there was another layer of leather stitched as pocket reinforcement that eventually was lost when the stitching wore off. The mitt looks to be around 1935 or newer because of the wrist strap and appears to be of mid level quality so maybe it was meant for the youth market. I have seen youth models with some older features like the reinforced pocket to protect the hands of young players. Maybe the stitching was all that was visible and the canvas reinforcement was under the front face. Did the stitching delineate a raised area around the perimeter of the face? In that case it may be softball. Just a guess. Don't have any idea of the brand but here is a 1935 Spalding catalog illustration of a mitt with what is described as a special stitched palm.

[ScottWNJ]

Thanks Mike for the information. The surface of the glove is the same level on both sides of the stitching. In fact, it is one piece of leather. A fair amount of the stitching is missing, so you can see that it is one piece of leather. My eyes may be playing tricks on me, but there appears to be a faint image in the shape of a home plate in the palm of the glove. Since we flew to Florida instead of driving, I left my source book, magnifying glass and glove cleaning materials in NJ. Guess I'll have to put together a cleaning kit to keep down here.

Scott

[Bill247]

Not for nuttin' but I have this Wilson softball glove with the same stiching in the pocket. No model number but I found a look alike in a 1941 Wilson catalog Model 534. Mine doesn't have any fingers. Interesting ?? BillIMG]http://i1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa441/Bill247PR/WilsonSoftballBack.jpg[/IMG]