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The Oneida Football Club, founded and captained by Gerrit Smith Miller in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1862, was the first organized team to play any kind of
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
.History of Professional Soccer in New England by David A. Litterer
at Sover.net (archived, 22 Feb 2008)
No Christian End! The Beginnings of Football in America
By PFRA Research (Originally Published in The Journey to Camp: The Origins of American Football to 1889 (PFRA Books))
''THE BOSTON GAME''
article by Michael T. Geary at academia.edu

by Roger Allaway at sover.net (archived)
The game played by the club, known as the "
Boston game The Boston game, also known as the Boston rules, was an early code of football developed by the Oneida Football Club, formed in 1862 and considered by some historians as the first formal "football" club in the United States.
", was an informal local variant that combined association and
rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...
football and predated the codification of rules for
American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
. The team, made up of students of Boston's elite preparatory schools, played on
Boston Common The Boston Common (also known as the Common) is a public park in downtown Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest city park in the United States. Boston Common consists of of land bounded by Tremont Street (139 Tremont St.), Park Street, Beac ...
from 1862 to 1865, during which time they reportedly never lost a game or even gave up a single point. After Oneida disbanded, former members established the Harvard University Football Club, which continued to play under the Boston game rules."THE FOOTBALL H: A CRIMSON H ON A BLACK SWEATER ''The H Book Of Harvard Athletics 1852 1922''
(archived, 21 Ago 2010)


History

Gerrit Smith Miller started his sports career playing
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...
. In 1859, with 14 years old, Miller organized the "BoboHnk B.B.C. (Base-Ball Club)" of Peterboro, N. Y., where he was elected president, captain and pitcher. In 1861, he joined the Lowell BBC of Boston, where he was also captain and pitcher. Miller then attended
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...
, where he was part of its
baseball team Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...
. Miller then entered Epes S. Dixwell's school, a private
college preparatory school A college-preparatory school (usually shortened to preparatory school or prep school) is a type of secondary school. The term refers to public, private independent or parochial schools primarily designed to prepare students for higher educat ...
, where
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
was played as a fun and exercise for students. At the time there were no formal rules for
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
games, with different schools and areas playing their own variations. This informal style of play was often chaotic and very violent, and Miller had been a star of the game while attending Dixwell. However, he grew tired of these disorganized games so in 1862 he organised the "Oneida Football Club of Boston", choosing players from not only Dixwell's but from other schools in order to form a strong and competitive team. The name was suggested by R. Clifford Watson, after the lake of that name in New York State, not far from Miller's home. The team was composed of the following players: Edward L. Arnold, Robert A. Boit, Edward Bowditch, Walter Brooks, George Davis, Robert M. Lawrence, Gerrit S. Miller (captain), Francis G. Peabody, Wlnthrop S. Scudder, Louis Thies, Alanson Tucker, R. Clifford Watson, Huntington F. Wolcott (Dixwell); J. Malcolm Forbes, and John P. Hall (
Boston English High School The English High School of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, is one of the first public high schools in America, founded in 1821. Originally called The English Classical School, it was renamed The English High School upon its first relocation ...
); and J. D'W. Lovett (
Boston Latin School The Boston Latin School is a public exam school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was established on April 23, 1635, making it both the oldest public school in the British America and the oldest existing school in the United States. Its curriculum f ...
). Miller was elected president and Clifford Watson secretary and treasurer, and their only uniform was a red silk handkerchief tied around the head, knotted behind. In the 1862 and 1863 seasons the Oneidas played matches with the Boston Latin and the English High schools and one with the combined teams of the
Roxbury Roxbury may refer to: Places ;Canada * Roxbury, Nova Scotia * Roxbury, Prince Edward Island ;United States * Roxbury, Connecticut * Roxbury, Kansas * Roxbury, Maine * Roxbury, Boston, a municipality that was later integrated into the city of Bo ...
and Dorchester High Schools, all of which they won. On 7 November 1863 Oneida played vs the combined EngHsh High and Boston Public Latin Schools. In that match, the Oneidas allowed their opponents sixteen men, they, themselves, playing their usual fifteen. In 1864, J. Huntington Wolcott, older brother of Roger Wolcott afterwards
Governor of Massachusetts The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the chief executive officer of the government of Massachusetts. The governor is the head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonwealth's military forces. Massachuset ...
, was elected President of the Oneida Club and in this same year, a challenge was sent to the Harvard freshmen, for a match. Although it was accepted, the match was never carried out. Some sources stated that the Harvard upper classes, fearing a defeat, suggested the freshmen not to play.


Code

The game played by the Oneida Football Club is known as the "
Boston game The Boston game, also known as the Boston rules, was an early code of football developed by the Oneida Football Club, formed in 1862 and considered by some historians as the first formal "football" club in the United States.
". This informal local football variety later took hold at
Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...
and was an important precursor to
American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
.The Boston Game: Origins of Football
/ref> Although it has been claimed by much later followers of both association and American football, the club predated formal rules of any football variant.


Legacy

The Boston rules developed by Oneida were also the code used in the first (of two) 1874 games between Harvard and McGill Universities,"Foot Ball"
clipping from ''The Boston Post'', May 16, 1874, p. 3
although the Harvard players left them behind after those series.Best of the 1870s: The defining players and teams of college football’s first decade
by Matt Brown on The Athletic, 28 Jan 2019
The
ball A ball is a round object (usually spherical, but can sometimes be ovoid) with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used f ...
used in the Oneida match vs the EngHsh High and Boston Public Latin Schools combined in November 1863, was treasured by Captain Miller (along with his red handkerchief) for 49 years until in 1922 he presented them to the "Boston Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities" (now
Historic New England Historic New England, previously known as the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities (SPNEA), is a charitable, non-profit, historic preservation organization headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. It is focused on New England ...
), putting them in its Museum, in the old Harrison Gray Otis House, on Cambridge Street, Boston.Football - Roundish, rubber football; won by the Oneida Football Club of Boston in 1863
at Historic New England
On November 7, 1923, a bronze plaque was unveiled in honor of Oneida's founder and captain, Gerrit Smith Miller at the
Noble and Greenough School The Noble and Greenough School, commonly known as Nobles, is a coeducational, nonsectarian day and five-day boarding school for students in grades seven through twelve. It is near Boston on a campus that borders the Charles River in Dedham, Massa ...
. The date commemorated the 70th. anniversary of the most prominent game won by Oneida. The plaque was inspired on Webb Ellis's dedication as the inventor of
rugby football Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union and rugby league. Canadian football and, to a lesser extent, American football were once considered forms of rugby football, but are seldom now referred to as such. The ...
. During the ceremony, a
cablegram Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
by
Rugby School Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. ...
of England congratulating Miller was received.''Gerrit Smith Miller: An Appreciation''
by Scudder, Winthrop S. (Winthrop Saltonstall) - published in 1924
Former Oneida player Winthrop S. Scudder wrote a history of the team named ''Gerrit Smith Miller: An Appreciation'', published in 1924. It described the history of the Oneida FC through the life and career of its founder and captain Miller. On November 21, 1925, a
stone monument In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's o ...
was unveiled at Boston Commons to honor ''the Boston boys''. Its inscription reads: "On this field the Oneida Football Club of Boston, the first organized football club in the United States, played against all comers from 1862 to 1865. The Oneida goal was never crossed"."Remembering the first high school football games"
on ''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'', 21 November 2012


See also

* History of soccer in the United States


Bibliography


''Muscle and Manliness: Rise Of Sport In American Boarding Schools'' by Axel Bundgaard. Published by Sports and Entertainment (2005)
at
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical ...
-
''An Historical Sketch of the Oneida Football Club of Boston: 1862-1865'' by Winthrop Saltonstall Scudder - The Massachusetts Historical Society (1926)
at HathiTrust Digital Library


Notes


References

{{Authority control Sports clubs established in 1862 Sports clubs disestablished in 1865 History of soccer in the United States Soccer clubs in Boston History of American football Defunct soccer clubs in Massachusetts Athletics clubs in the United States 1862 establishments in Massachusetts 1865 disestablishments in Massachusetts