Celebrity and Controversy : Professional Baseball in Eau Claire Before 1900

Abstract

During the aftermath of the Civil War, a new form of popular entertainment made its way onto the fields of Eau Claire and into the hearts of its citizens. Baseball reached its pinnacle in popularity in the 1885 when the Eau Claires, the city's first professional team, took to the diamond. The team was avidly followed and supported by local fans and by the local press. Conversely, some members of the community viewed professional baseball as the root of all evil in Eau Claire and the animosity that surrounded the controversies that the sport carried eventually led to the demise and failure of the Eau Claires and professional baseball in the city.