Harwood Baseball Factory
{{Short description|World's first baseball factory}}
{{Infobox building
| name = Harwood Baseball Factory
| alternate_names = H. Harwood & Sons Factory
| image = Harwood Baseball Factory, Natick, MA, c. 1867–1877.jpg
| caption = Factory building {{circa|1867|1877}}
| address = 12 Walnut St.
| location_town = Natick, Massachusetts
| location_country = United States
| years_built = 1858
| embedded = {{infobox NRHP|embed=yes
| name = The Harwood Baseball Shop
| nrhp_type = cp
| partof = Natick Center Historic District
| partof_refnum = 77000186
| designated_nrhp_type = December 16, 1977
| coordinates = {{coord|42|17|10.4|N|71|20|52.8|W}}
}}
| closing_date = 1976
| known_for = World's first baseball factory
}}
File:Harrison Harwood Baseball Factory 1977.jpg
The Harwood Baseball Factory (also referred to as the H. Harwood & Sons Baseball Factory) was the first world's factory to manufacture baseballs. The factory was in operation from 1858 to 1976 and is located in Natick, Massachusetts.
Building
Built in 1858, the Harwood factory is a symmetrical three-story wooden building with more than {{Convert|9000|sqft|m2}} featuring a mansard roof and a partially exposed brick basement. Positioned on Walnut Hill, it faces south toward North Avenue and looks over Main Street. The structure includes a wide entablature with double wooden brackets supporting overhanging eaves, while the first and second-story windows feature projecting cornices. The south elevation contains eleven dormers topped with triangular pediments, while four dormers on the facade have truncated tops.{{Cite web |title=Historic Building Detail: NAT.105 – Harwood, Harrison Baseball Factory |url=https://mhc-macris.net/details?mhcid=nat.105 |access-date= |website=MACRIS |publisher=}}{{Cite web |title=Historic Area Detail: NAT.A – Natick Center Historic District |url=https://mhc-macris.net/details?mhcid=nat.a |website=MACRIS}}
History
File:Harrison Harwood Sr. (1811–1882).png
Harrison Harwood was born October 18, 1814, in North Brookfield, Massachusetts. He attended Westminster Academy before going into business in Adrian, Michigan. At the age of 25, he returned to Massachusetts and lived in Oakham, Fitchburg, and Winchendon before settling in Natick in 1858.{{Cite book |last=Gould |first=Levi S. |author-link=Levi S. Gould |url=https://archive.org/details/ancientmiddlesex1905goul/page/104/ |title=Ancient Middlesex with Brief Biological Sketches of the Men Who Have Served the County Officially Since Its Settlement |publisher=Somerville Journal Print |year=1905 |location=Somerville, Mass |pages=104–107}}{{Cite book |last=Hurd |first=D. Hamilton |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofmiddles01hurd |title=History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, With Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men |publisher=J. W. Lewis & Co. |year=1890 |volume=1 |location=Philadelphia |pages=559, 564–565}} Harwood was a town selectman in 1871–72 and served for twelve years as a Middlesex County commissioner. Harwood was also a co-founder of the Natick National Bank and a director of the institution.
Before Harwood’s factory, baseballs were handmade by individual craftsmen, leading to inconsistencies in size, shape, and materials. Harwood’s factory introduced standardized baseballs, implementing innovations such as the wound core and the figure-eight stitching pattern, which are still used in modern baseballs. The figure-eight stitching was originally developed by Ellis Drake in the 1840s and was later mass-produced by H. Harwood & Sons. Some historians, attribute the design to William A. Cutler, who sold it to Harwood in 1858.{{Cite journal |last=Schaefer |first=Robert H. |date=2009 |title=The Legend of the Lively Ball |url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/legend-lively-ball/docview/908415162/se-2?accountid=196403 |journal=Base Ball |publisher=McFarland & Company |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=91 |doi=10.3172/BB.3.2.88}}{{Cite book |last=Epting |first=Chris |title=Roadside Baseball: The Locations of America's Baseball Landmarks |publisher=Santa Monica Press |year=2009 |isbn=9781595800411 |edition=2nd |pages=46–47 |lccn=2009002306}}{{Cite news |last=Hurwitz |first=Hy |date=March 30, 1958 |title=Invent a Machine and You'll Be a Millionaire—52,000 Dozen Baseballs Made Yearly In Natick, Every One Hand Stitched |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/433658592/ |work=The Boston Sunday Globe |publisher=Globe Newspaper Co. |pages=61 |volume=CLXXIII |issue=90}}
Harwood employed over 200 women and organized the factory into specialized work areas, with each group handling a specific task. One team was responsible for cutting the figure-eight covers, which were then passed to another group that punched holes along the edges for stitching. While earlier covers were made from sheepskin, the factory transitioned to more durable horsehide. To soften the tough material for sewing, workers wrapped it in damp cloths. The balls were wound at the factory, then the covers were put on by the women at their homes. High-quality baseballs were stitched with silk thread, while more affordable versions used linen. Once completed, the balls were left to dry for several days.{{Cite book |last=Hample |first=Zack |author-link=Zack Hample |title=The Baseball: Stunts, Scandals, and Secrets Beneath the Stitches |publisher=Anchor Books |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-307-47545-9 |lccn=2010043551}}{{Cite news |date=June 18, 1905 |title=How a Baseball is Manufactured—Harrison Harwood Designs the Cover and Starts To Make Spheres In 1855 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-courier-journal-how-a-baseball-is-ma/172067706/ |work=The Courier-Journal |pages=19 |volume=CIV |issue=13,318}}
In 1871, the Harwood factory was described as “the greatest base ball manufactory in the world” and was noted as “the oldest established manufacturers of base balls in America,” filling single orders as large as 6,000 balls at a time.{{Cite news |date=April 30, 1871 |title=Bats, Balls and Mallets |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-new-york-times-bats-balls-and-malle/167766003/ |work=The New York Times |pages=3 |volume=XX |issue=6117}}
The facility remained operational for over a century before closing in 1976 and being converted into residential condominiums.
Harwood died August 27, 1882, in Natick. Harwood was elected into the Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame in 1959.{{Cite web |title=Harrison Harwood |url=https://nsga.org/hof-inductee/harrison-harwood/ |website=Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame |publisher=National Sporting Goods Association}}
Further reading
- "[https://www.milforddailynews.com/story/news/local/2020/07/23/natick-home-to-former-hp-harwood-and-sons-first-baseball-factory-in-us/114536662/ Natick sewn into baseball history]" Milford Daily News (2023){{Cite news |last=Schwan |first=Henry |date=July 23, 2020 |title=Natick sewn into baseball history |url=https://www.milforddailynews.com/story/news/local/2020/07/23/natick-home-to-former-hp-harwood-and-sons-first-baseball-factory-in-us/114536662/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230617140615/https://www.milforddailynews.com/story/news/local/2020/07/23/natick-home-to-former-hp-harwood-and-sons-first-baseball-factory-in-us/114536662/ |archive-date=June 17, 2023 |access-date= |work=The Milford Daily News}}
- "[https://www.newspapers.com/image/433483220/ First Baseballs Manufactured in Natick Plant]". The Boston Sunday Globe (1965){{Cite news |date=June 20, 1965 |title=First Baseballs Manufactured in Natick Plant |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/433483220/ |work=The Boston Sunday Globe |publisher=Globe Newspaper Co. |pages=228–229 |volume=187 |issue=171}}
Related patents
- {{Cite patent|country=US|number=397303A|title=BASE BALL WINDING AND ROLLING MACHINE|pubdate=1889-02-05|invent1=Newell|inventor1-first=B. B.|assign1=H. Harwood|url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US397303A/}}
- {{Cite patent|country=US|number=397362A|title=MACHINE FOR WINDING BALLS|pubdate=1889-02-05|invent1=Harwood|inventor1-first=H.|url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US397362A/}}
- {{Cite patent|country=US|number=923762A|title=BALL WINDING AND ROLLING MACHINE|pubdate=1909-06-01|invent1=Brewer|inventor1-first=Albert G.|assign1=Harrison Harwood|assign2=Robert G. Harwood|url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US923762A/}}
- {{Cite patent|country=US|number=999482A|title=BALL WINDING AND ROLLING MACHINE|pubdate=1911-08-01|invent1=Brewer|invent2=Hawes|inventor1-first=Albert G.|inventor2-first=Edward H.|assign1=H. Harwood and Sons|url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US999482A/}}
- {{Cite patent|country=US|number=88289S|title=DESIGN FOR A BALL|pubdate=1932-11-15|invent1=Hawes|inventor1-first=Edward H.|assign1=H. Harwood & Sons|url=https://patents.google.com/patent/USD88289S/}}
- {{Cite patent|country=US|number=1994703A|title=BASEBALL|pubdate=1935-03-19|invent1=Hawes|inventor1-first=Edward H.|assign1=H. Harwood & Sons Inc.|url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US1994703A/}}
- {{Cite patent|country=US|number=2645487A|title=BASEBALL|pubdate=1953-07-14|invent1=Hawes|inventor1-first=Edward H.|assign1=H. Harwood & Sons Inc.|url=https://patents.google.com/patent/US2645487A/}}