On October 12, 1920, thousands of New Yorkers crowded into Times Square to catch play-by-play updates of that afternoon’s game between the Cleveland Indians and the Brooklyn Robins—aka, the Dodgers.
The nickname stemmed from manager Wilbert Robinson.
It was the last day of the series. The Indians won on their home turf, 3-2. Cost of a ticket to see the Dodgers at Ebbets Field? Between $1 and $6 tops.
Tags: 1920 World Series, baseball in the 1920s, Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn Robins, Cleveland Indians, New York in the 1920, Times Square broadcasts, Wilbert Robinson
Ephemeral New York 
October 6, 2009 at 5:06 pm |
[…] 90 years ago, thousands of baseball fans clogged Times Square to hear a broadcast of the World Series. [Ephemeral New […]
October 11, 2009 at 4:00 pm |
These fans were not following a radio broadcast but rather watching a large scoreboard on which was posted a pitch by pitch account of the game transmitted by telegraph from the ballpark.
Radio broadcasts of baseball games did not begin until 1921 when station KDKA in Pittsburgh carried a Pirate game from Forbes Field.
October 12, 2009 at 3:31 am |
Thanks for the correction. I’d love to see that scoreboard!
October 18, 2009 at 7:20 am |
Here is a New York Times story about people gathering to watch the score in the previous year. The scoreboard was operated by the Times on their building. After all, it was Times Square. Interesting here is the rather blithe discussion of folks in the crowd gambling on the game. Somewhat ironic since this was, of course, the infamous fixed “Black Sox” World Series.
http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9E0DEEDF1E30E13ABC4852DFB6678382609EDE
October 19, 2009 at 1:24 am |
Thanks for the link. The article has some nice touches in it–descriptions of the electric lights of the scoreboard at dusk and the crowd dispersing, going back to work.
February 27, 2014 at 5:42 am |
[…] As the city marched northward, so did the newspaper headquarters: to new enclaves named for them, like Herald Square and Times Square. […]