December 21: dig my hat

Dig my trusty, wool Chicago Whales (née ChiFeds) ball cap, a reproduction of the 1915 original. Two summers ago I stopped in the Ebbets Field Flannels store in Seattle and found this gem in a sale bin. It lives in Chicago full time now and I typically wear it in the morning when my hair is most frightful.

Interestingly, perhaps only to me, the Chicago Whales were owned by Charles Weeghman who built a nifty little ball park on the Northside for his team. The Whales folded after the 1915 season. The Cubs started playing at Weeghman Park in 1916. The field was re-named to Wrigley Field in ’27. Unlike the Willis tower I’ve never heard Wrigley referred to by it’s original name.