This is a
vintage baseball stitching clamp Saddle. In the past
Baseball Stitching clamps were used to secure the
baseball during the process of sewing on the cover by hand. In the early days the
wooden clamps were made by locale woodworkers or
carpenters. The baseballs were both sewn at factories or at home, the work done mostly by women.
In the early days
in baseball towns like Cooperstown, baseballs were made locally, and
the women in the area were expected to stitch up some baseballs at the end of the days chores. A factory that made
Major League baseballs in Perkasie, PA. started in a kitchen. As neighbors joined in the
baseball stitching, the house was filled with stitchers. An addition was made to the home, but as the volume of work soon required a larger facility, the factory was opened. During the 1920's the factory employed 50 stitchers that worked at the factory, and about 300 home workers. During WWII home work became quite popular.
Two pieces of figure-eight-shaped cowhide is dampened to
permit pliability and placed around a string wound core,
then placed in the
stitching clamp. Pilot holes were pre punched
into the covers to help guide the stitching, and stapled
together to hold in place for stitching. The
baseball is then hand-stitched together with
216 raised stitches. It takes about 13-14 minutes to
hand sew a baseball.
With this Vintage Baseball Stitching Clamp A seamstress would sit on the
saddle,
place a baseball in the wooden pincers and depress the lever
as seen in the pictures below. Pulling the leather strap down for tension the
lever is inserted into the metal teeth on the leg, and
held in place. Most likely using the foot, the lever can
be loosened, and re-inserted to turn the baseball while
Stitching.
