THE WAUPACA COUNTY POST

August 1, 1991

 

WHEN THEN WAS NOW

By Wayne A. Guyant

 

            An article in the January 20, 1916, issue of a local paper proclaimed: “Waupaca to have an Automatic Base Ball Game.”

            F. L. Lewis of Lodi rented the building on West Fulton Street next to the alley adjacent to Prink’s barbershop.  This, it would appear to be, is the present location of the U.S. Army recruiting office at 111 West Fulton.

            This is what the article went on to say:

            “The equipment consists of a large canvas placed at the back of the room, set at an incline to be perpendicular with the top edge of the canvas farther from the front than at the bottom end.  Marked across the canvas are three lines, the lower line represents a single, the second line represents a two-base hit and the top one a home run.

            “Immediately in front of the canvas is an automatic pitcher which throws the balls to the batsman who stands well to the front of the floor which is set at an incline in order to return the ball to the pitcher if the batsman misses it.

            “When the ball is driven straight into any of the fields on the canvas without first touching the floor in front of the canvas, the batsman scores as the legend on the canvas indicates.”

            In a March 16, 1916 paper, only two months later, was this notice:  “Base ball game did not prosper here.”

            The business thrived fro a time but soon the novelty wore off and the patronage declined to a point where it was not profitable to continue.  So Mr. Lewis struck out, took down his canvas, packed his equipment and returned to Lodi.