Vintage Baseball Glove Forum

I picked up a Ripon Base Mitt last week. Don't know much about this brand except what I have read here. It has no model number or endorsement, just stamped "Ripon" and "Professional Model". It feels really good on the hand and looks like a well made glove. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Ah Ripon, the mystery glove maker. I can only add a little bit (and a lot of conjecture) to the original post. I came across a 1940 article from The Milwaukee Sentinel that mentioned a change in the management at Ripon. The two new directors were going to add some new products to the existing line of knit mittens, slippers, etc. The article didn't give any specifics, so this is all guess work on my part. Let's say they decided to make baseball gloves. I honestly have no idea how long it would take them to get set up for glove production, but say they had a line of gloves ready for sale in spring of 1941. December of 1941 we're pulled into WW2. Most of Ripon's production is wool socks and gloves for the war effort. Did they go back to making gloves after the war ended in 1945? Possibly, but if they did it was only for a short while, because we haven't seen any in the new styles of the late 40's-early 50's. All the ones that have turned up look like they were made in the 1940's. That short window would explain why no ads for their gloves turn up and why their Historical Society hasn't found any info about their glove making period. At least that's my guess
I found the bookend to your Ripon base mitt a while back, and I agree that they were well made.


Jim Daniel's most excellent web site has a gallery of Ripon gloves.

http://www.baseballglovecollector.com/gallery/ripon/

That zippered heel Ripon that JD has is really cool. I got an unusual glove at a cheap price--gotta call that a win!

Thanks Chip. Ripons are cool. Paul Gertsen was kind enough to trade that zipper heel to me many, many years ago.

JD

For those zipper-inclined ... here's a Stall & Dean zipper perimeter.