The Tonopah team was a minor league baseball team based in Tonopah, Nevada in 1907. The team moniker was noted to be the "Mollycoddlers," as Tonopah played the 1907 season as members of the Independent level Nevada State League. The 1907 Tonopah team was the only minor league team hosted in Tonopah, Nevada.

Tonopah "Mollycoddlers"
Minor league affiliations
ClassIndependent (1907)
LeagueNevada State League (1907)
Major league affiliations
TeamNone
Minor league titles
League titles (0)None
Team data
NameTonopah (1907)
BallparkUnknown (1907)

Tonopah also was home to the 1907 Tonopah Pullmans, possibly a negro leagues semi–pro team.

History

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In 1907, Tonopah was a charter member of the Nevada State League, which began minor league play in the 1907 season, operating as an Independent four–team league. The Nevada State League was formed under the direction of league president John T. Powers, who later was the first president of the Federal League. The 1907 Nevada State League was formed with the charter franchises based in Carson City, Nevada, Goldfield, Nevada, Reno, Nevada and Tonopah, Nevada.[1][2][3][4][5][6]

The 1907 Nevada State League was established with Powers serving as league president and Bert Ulmer serving as the league treasurer. On July 6, 1907 a league meeting was held. The meeting was hosted at the office of Senator James Boyd in Carson City and the Nevada State League Board of Directors was formed during this meeting. The directors chosen that day were Ben Rosenthal of Goldfield, Senator James T. Boyd of Reno, J.P Merder of Carson City and Thomas Kendall of Tonopah. Powers had previously served as president of the Wisconsin State League. Ulmer was an owner of the Elite Saloon in Goldfield. James T. Boyd was a member of the Nevada State Senate from 1906 to 1910. Rosenthal was Goldfield County commissioner. Kendall was a mining pioneer, owner of the Kendall Mine and a founder of Toonpah.[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]

References indicate the Tonopah team was known as the Tonopah "Mollycoddlers". The other league members were noted to have been called the Carson City "Capitals" Goldfield "Miners" and Reno "Mudhens," Unofficial records place the Tonopah team in third place, behind the 1st place Goldfield "Miners," who had a 9–5 record and Carson City with a 7–4–1 record. They were followed by the Tonopah "Mollycoddlers" with a 3–6 record and the Reno "Mudhens" with a 3–7–1 record. It is noted that the Reno team disbanded on July 15, 1907. It is likely the rest of the league, Tonopah included, followed suit in folding, as only three teams would have remained. Tonopah did not host another minor league team.[15][16]

There are photographs of a second Tonopah 1907 team called the Tonopah Pullmans. The Pullmans were possibly a negro leagues barnstorming or semi–pro team. It is noted that this team consisted of railroad workers who had formed their own Fraternal Lodge in Tonopah. The Pullmans' listed roster from September 27, 1907 included Buck, Underwood, Powell, Morris, Taylor, Lindsey, Clarence Townsend, Charles Townsend, Hall, Troutman and Curby.[17][18][19]

The ballpark

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The exact name and location of the 1907 Tonopah ballpark is unknown.[6]

 
Tonopah, Nevada in 1913

Timeline

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Year(s) # Yrs. Team Level League
1907 (1) 1 Tonopah "Mollycoddlers" Independent Nevada State League
1907 (2) 1 Tonopah Pullmans Unknown Unknown

Year–by–year records

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Year Record Finish Manager Playoffs/Notes
1907 3–6 3rd NA None held

Notable alumni

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No roster information for the 1907 Tonopah minor league team is known.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "1907 Nevada State League". Baseball-Reference.com.
  2. ^ "Register Team Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference.com.
  3. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2020-06-14. Retrieved 2021-02-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. ^ "Nevada State League (Independent) Encyclopedia and History". Baseball-Reference.com.
  5. ^ "Nevada State League". Baseball History Daily.
  6. ^ a b c "1907 Tonopah Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com.
  7. ^ "1907 Jul 7 Ben Rosenthal Elected Director of Nevada Baseball League". Nevada State Journal. July 7, 1907. p. 5 – via newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Minor League Researcher: A New Minor League, the 1907 Nevada State League".
  9. ^ "Minor League Researcher: The 1907 Nevada State League Games Scores".
  10. ^ "Nevada State Journal from Reno, Nevada on July 7, 1907 · Page 5". Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Benjamin Rosenthal – Goldfield Historical Society".
  12. ^ "Armed Himself To The Umpire Game" (PDF). Diamond In The Dusk. 1907.
  13. ^ "James T. Boyd". Ballotpedia.
  14. ^ "Goldfield, Esmeralda Co., NV - 1907-1908 Business Directory Names R-Z". R. L. Polk & Co.'s Nevada State Gazetteer and Business Directory (First Edition 1907-1908). USGenWeb.
  15. ^ "Reno Gazette-Journal from Reno, Nevada on July 15, 1907 · Page 6". Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "USA-Nevada". www.renor.org.
  17. ^ "Nye County History". nyecountyhistory.com.
  18. ^ "Tonopah Daily Bonanza_Sept 27, 1907_Pullman vs Carpenters Baseball game". Tonopah Daily Bonanza. September 27, 1907. p. 2 – via newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "0621116 - BASEBALL: BLACK TEAM, 1907. The Pullman Club baseball team, Tohopah, Nevada. Photograph, 1907". Granger.
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