The purpose of this study was to narrate a history of baseball from its origins to the merger of the National and American Leagues in 1903. The author endeavored to produce a work that was interesting to sports enthusiasts and informative to researchers. He also attempted to relate the significance of the development of the institution of baseball to nineteenth-century American society. Based on accepted historical research and writing procedures, a study was completed which exposed the true birth of the game, the expansion and development of the sport from amateur clubs to professional teams, the growth of professionalism under the National League, the commercialization of the business, and the dominant players and teams of that era. The work interpreted the history of baseball in the nineteenth century by defending proposals in a chronicled account. By accomplishing his goals, the writer has added to the body of knowledge in this field. To a limited degree he explained the sociological evolution of the United States over that period of time.