About this Famous Person


American Abner DOUBLEDAY

United States Army officer and Union general in the American Civil War

Source :  Tim DOWLING

Born: on June 26, 1819 in Ballston Spa, New York, USA
Died: on January 26, 1893 in Mendham, New Jersey, USA


Doubleday was born in Ballston Spa, New York, in a small house on the corner of Washington and Fenwick Streets. The family all slept in the attic loft of the one-room house. His Doubleday grandfather, also named Abner, had fought in the American Revolutionary War. His maternal grandfather joined the Army at 14 and was a mounted messenger for George Washington. His father, Ulysses F. Doubleday, fought in the War of 1812, published newspapers and books, and represented Auburn, New York for four years in the United States Congress. Abner spent his childhood in Auburn and later was sent to Cooperstown to live with his uncle and attend a private preparatory high school. Abner practiced as a surveyor and civil engineer for two years before entering the United States Military Academy in 1838. He graduated in 1842, 24th in a class of 56 cadets, and was commissioned a brevet second lieutenant in the 3rd U.S. Artillery. One of the persistent legends of baseball history is that Doubleday invented the game in 1839, although he was in West Point at the time.

Source :  http://www.wikipedia.org/