ruppert

Sgt. Gibson was the army recruiting officer at Macon, Georgia where the Yankees trained before the season in 1917. He was assigned by the Army as a drillmaster for the team. On Opening Day, April 11, 1917, the Times headline read: "Donovan's Soldiers Do Military Stunts for 16,000 Fans, but Their Baseball Is Poor. GEN. WOOD REVIEWS DRILL " query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9902E7DD153AE4...

In the front is Major Dorey of Gen. Woods' staff, flanked by the team's owners. From the New York Tribune: "ln the major matter of military science, the Yankees, swinging in column of squads across the field, won a popular victory that was of much more consequence than a baseball game. Just before the bell rang for the Yankee practice period Manager Donovan gave a signal and the men scurried to the clubhouse. The band struck up a quickstep and then, out of the clubhouse into which the baseball players disappeared stepped the neatest and nattiest looking infantry platoon that ever marched. The men wore the white home uniform of the Yankee baseball team. They carried their bats on their shoulders. But it would have taken the quartermaster department only a few short minutes to put them into the olive drab and to hand them Springfield rifles, and they would have passed for a platoon of regular army infantrymen. Major Dorey, of Major General Woods' staff, let on the platoon. He was flanked of one side by the martial figure of Captain Tillinghast L'Hommedieu Huston and on the other by the scarcely less martial figure of Colonel Jacob Ruppert. Sergeant William Donovan (Wild Bill Donovan) acted as guide. [...] After doing light military calisthenics with their bats the Yankees were dismissed by their drill sergeant and became mere civilians and baseball player! once more." (April 12, 1917) chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030214/1917-04-12/ed-...

Thanks to both of you for this information. We'll add some of it to the records for these photos the next time we update.

Jacob Ruppert
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacob_Ruppert
"Jacob Ruppert Jr. (August 5, 1867 – January 13, 1939) was an American brewer, businessman, National Guard colonel and politician who served for four terms representing New York in the United States House of Representatives from 1899 to 1907. He also owned the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball from 1915 until his death in 1939."
- baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/ruppert-jacob

Walter Johnson
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Johnson
"Walter Perry Johnson (November 6, 1887 – December 10, 1946), nicknamed "Barney" and "the Big Train", was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 21-year baseball career in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher for the Washington Senators (aka Nationals for some periods) from 1907 to 1927."
- baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/johnson-walter

According to the [Washington] Evening Star. April 14, 1925, Page 30
- chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045462/1925-04-14/ed-...
The opening day of the American League season saw the Washington Nationals playing the Yankees at Yankee Stadium.

See photo of Johnson with President Warren Harding from 1923 in LoC's Bain stream


In 1924, the Senators had won the World Series in extra innings. A few years ago a silent movie reel including coverage of the game, in which Walter Johnson pitched the last 4 innings, was discovered. President Calvin Coolidge was present. See
- blogs.loc.gov/now-see-hear/2014/10/film-of-the-washington...
for the story of the discovery and the digitally preserved movie, with new accompaniment.

This is likely the occasion of the meeting to ratify a settlement in the streetcar conductor's strike on August 7, 1916 at the Lyceum Hall (see sign at street level, left) on E. 86th Street. A description of the meeting and the subsequent activities on the street around the hall are reported at query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=FA0616F73C5F13...
See comment under
This photo was taken looking northeast on the 200 block of E. 86th Street in Manhattan's Yorkville neighborhood. The Yorkville Central Garage, the building at street level under the bowling alley, was at 205-209 E. 86th. books.google.com/books?id=Xi06AQAAMAAJ&pg=RA2-PA130&a...

Are they the ones in the straw hats? ; )

I think so.

The five story building at center is all that's left of this part of E. 86th St., looking toward 2d Avenue: www.google.com/maps/@40.778613,-73.953481,3a,75y,74.52h,9...

Thanks, Art Siegel, for this information. We'll add some of it to this record the next time we update.