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SAY WAH! Oof Wah! MEET CUBS PRESIDENT MURPHY  Charles W. Murphy, president of the 1908 Chicago Cubs, had a love-hate relationship with Cub fans. He built one of the most storied teams in the early 20th century, yet made enemies in Chicago and League management. Murphy turned his anger towards a group of excited, if not well meaning, group of Cub fans – the West Side Rooters Social Club. Murphy began to protest the noisy spectacle the Rooters created at the Cubs' home of West Side Park. The Rooters’ over-the-top enthusiasm for the Cubs and the game of baseball was not typical to the usually subdued and well-mannered crowd. The cheering was loud, constant and believed to be disruptive to the purists, like Murphy, who concentrated solely on the game. “All kinds of noisemakers are found in the stands… Even sedate men of maturer years get carried away by a renewal of boyish enthusiasm. It is questionable whether the thing can be stopped.” - The Chicago Daily Tribune
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| Yes, they had handle-bar moustaches, straw hats, corsets and petticoats, but they, like us, wanted one thing: another Chicago Cubs World Series victory! The Rooters Committee is preparing on these Web pages a historic look back at these die-hard “Ursine Colossi” fans and their sacred grounds of West Side Park through photographs, press clippings and cartoons of the day. Check back soon to discover the faces, language and lore of our fandom ancestors, the West Side Rooters Club. |
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ORIGINAL WEST SIDE ROOTERS PROGRAM
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NEWS FROM YESTERYEAR
August 28, 1908
The biggest crowd that ever jumped into the West Side park saw to-day’s game. It was estimated at close to 25,000, the biggest crowd that ever saw a ball game in Chicago. Half an hour before scheduled time for the game to begin every stand was packed to the utmost and the overflow went out on the field. As long as possible the fans were massed on foul territory from third to first back of the plate, but this space was quickly packed twenty deep and then they spread around the outfield, thousands watching the battle from that distance. Outside the ball park was a jam of humanity almost equal to the mob packed about the gates. All roads led to the West Side Ball Park and all these roads were packed and crowded with baseball enthusiasts flocking to the inclosure where the contest was staged. At noon the gates of the park were thrown open and the hundreds of fans who had been patiently waiting in the sun rushed into the stands, seeking the best points of vantage to wait three more long hours until time for the game to begin. Preparations had been made to take care of a mammoth gathering and the magnates were not disappointed. Fans and rooters came in a steady stream, soon filling the huge stands and the more than 5,000 reserved seats which had been provided for just such occasions. One of the noticeable features of this huge crowd was the large number of women scattered through it.
- The Chicago Daily News