We have recently formed a vintage base ball club known as the Somonauk Blue Stockings. The name comes from a team that played locally and newspaper notices of games go back to the summer of 1876. We will be outfitted in period uniforms, use replica period baseballs, bats, and bases. We will play any 19th century era, but our main focus is the years just prior to and encompassing the civil war.

Among our goals is an attempt to provide a reflection of how baseball existed at an earlier time; to attempt to provide some historical context. As the character Terrance Mann told Ray Kinsella in Field of Dreams, "Baseball has been the one constant throughout American history." Yes, it's different in many respects from baseball today, but to realize that is still involves a ball, a stick, and kids -- just as it did 230 years ago -- is rather awesome.