Baseball Fraternity
The base ball fraternity began as an organized voluntary club made up of gentlemen, clerks, merchants, and brokers. The base ball fraternity had its beginnings in old bat-and-ball games in America. ... The base ball fraternity originated in 1845 in Manhattan on 27th Street when a man named Alexander Cartwright convinced men to organize into a club called the New York Knickerbockers Base Ball Club. The Knickerbockers contained elements of what would later make up the base ball fraternity. ... The important difference between the base ball fraternity and other sport fraternities was the fact that the base ball fraternity was based around organized clubs. The base ball fraternity proved to be both an athletic and social organization. ... Also, the base ball fraternity acted like other voluntary organizations by having elections, drawing up by-laws, and holding meetings.