Robert Spencer Cates, son of Spencer and Phebe Cates, was born near Fairbury, Livingston County, Illinois, on July 26, 1848. At the age of 17, with his parents, he joined an immigrant train of a hundred wagons and crossed the plains and mountains via the Oregon trail to their new home in northeast Oregon.
Five years later, he returned to Illinois to marry Miss Amanda Virginia Hess on December 7, 1870. The following spring they returned to Oregon and remained there until 1878, At that time, now with three sons (Lee, Clair and Robert) and a pregnant wife, Robert moved the family to Kansas. This was during the Indian wars in Idaho and Utah and was considered a very dangerous trip. Fortunately Mr. Cates could speak the Indian language as fluently as English and he had no trouble along the way. His oldest son, Lee, remembered the trip and how the Indians were camped many places along the way. In the fall, after arriving in Hutchinson, Mr. Cates filed on a claim a mile and a half southwest of Cleveland close by his father-in-law, Levi Hess.
Mr. Cates soon because a businessman and worked for the Davison Investment Company in Wichita. After doing very well, several million by today's values, he relocated to the young and growing town of Kingman. There he built the family home, referred to as "Cates Castle". His family had grown by two more sons by then, Ellis and Leonard.
In 1884 sons Lee and Clair worked together at the "New York" store in town. Lee was 12 and was paid 41 cents a day and Clair, age 8, got 25 cents. That year saw a great flood of the Ohio River. There had been a dramatic weather change of 84 degrees in just 17 days; it went from fourteen degrees below zero with a foot of snow on the ground at the end of January to 70 degrees on February 12. The Ohio river waters crested at 52.9 feet in Marietta, Ohio. It was the third highest level in city history. The flood swept 120 homes away, knocked 200 homes off their foundations and water was eight feet deep in town. The two boys put some of their earnings together and sent a dollar to Marietta, Ohio, flood victims with promises to send more. The Marietta Flood Relief Committee sent them a letter praising their generosity. The Cates family has saved this letter and passed it down several generations.
As Clair and Lee grew up in Kingman baseball was their passion. They were both known as good pitchers, but Clair excelled at it. In the 1890s Kingman played against other nearby towns and several of the semi-pro teams in eastern Kansas. Clair would be hired to pitch by other teams for $25 a day and his meals. His wife said he wanted to be a pro but didn't want to travel far away.
As Clair and Lee grew up in Kingman baseball was their passion. They were both known as good pitchers, but Clair excelled at it. In the 1890s Kingman played against other nearby towns and several of the semi-pro teams in eastern Kansas. Clair would be hired to pitch by other teams for $25 a day and his meals. His wife said he wanted to be a pro but didn't want to travel far away.
In 1900 the American League was formed. The legendary "Connie" Mack (shown on the left) was the manager of the new Milwaukee Brewers. In that first season they finished in second by four games to the Chicago Whitestockings. It would be two more years before there was a World Series so Mack formed an American League All-Star teams to go on tour at the end of September. One of their stops would be in nearby Newton, Kansas. Mack was even going to play his old catcher position after his regular catcher was injured. Clare would get his chance to show his stuff.
Things didn't quite work out. The Newton coach decided to use a local pitcher and put Clare at shortstop. There is no box score to tell us how Clare did. The final result was 11-5 in favor of the All-Stars.
In 1893 Clare and Lee had bought the monument stone business owned by Hance White in Kingman. They had been working for Hance, learning to be stone masons, for several years. In 1895 Mr. Cates has invented a soap tablet that is very popular and Clare goes on the road selling them at the same time.
By 1900 Robert has married and moved to Kansas City to work for the Doyle & Donaldson department store. Ellis is working at Sigmund New’s grocery store and Leonard is in high school.
In the next few years things change quite a bit. Clare and Lee had also bought a steam laundry business. But Lee and Clare never did work together really well family history says. Lee left the laundry business and sold Robert his part of the monument business. Robert left his job in Kansas City to work with Clare at the laundry. Lee then became a Special Police Officer in Kingman and married in 1904.
By 1904 Clare sells the laundry business and turns the monument business over to Robert. Ellis now has a dairy farm and Leonard is working at the Badger Lumber & Coal as an auditor. Robert, who is not a stone mason, gets Fred E. Doyle to be a partner and also had Lee working part time for him. And Mr. Cates loses his wife and is going into financial ruin.
By 1900 Robert has married and moved to Kansas City to work for the Doyle & Donaldson department store. Ellis is working at Sigmund New’s grocery store and Leonard is in high school.
In the next few years things change quite a bit. Clare and Lee had also bought a steam laundry business. But Lee and Clare never did work together really well family history says. Lee left the laundry business and sold Robert his part of the monument business. Robert left his job in Kansas City to work with Clare at the laundry. Lee then became a Special Police Officer in Kingman and married in 1904.
By 1904 Clare sells the laundry business and turns the monument business over to Robert. Ellis now has a dairy farm and Leonard is working at the Badger Lumber & Coal as an auditor. Robert, who is not a stone mason, gets Fred E. Doyle to be a partner and also had Lee working part time for him. And Mr. Cates loses his wife and is going into financial ruin.
In 1906 Robert has an idea and gets Leonard to help him. He decides to invent a new baseball card game. On September 21, 1906 he applies for a patent for it. It will not be approved for three years, but that does not stop him from producing them.
Robert forms the R. L. Cates Company of Kingman and looks for a printer for his cards. He finds Ulysses Sidney Weaver to do the work. He was a printer and former editor of the nearby Norwich Courant independent. Sidney, as a staunch labor man, was also a member of the Socialist Party of America.
Founded in 1901, the Socialist Party had grown rapidly in the years before World War I, claiming 113,000 members in 1912, making it, briefly, one of the largest socialist movements in the world. The SP won more than 900,000 votes in elections in 1912 and again in 1920. The movement's strength was evident also in the hundreds of party affiliated newspapers and the election of mayors, council members, and other officials in more than 300 cities.
The Red Scare that began in 1917 and the loss of the majority of members to the two communist parties founded in 1919 severely damaged the movement, but through the 1920s and 1930s the SP enjoyed significant strength in some states and cities.
Robert's game contained 59 cards. Twenty cards were for batters, thirty-eight cards for fielders and one umpire card. Instructions for game play were also included.
It was made to play with two teams of two players.
By the time the patent was accepted in 1909 the game was no longer produced it appears.
Only 5 known decks still exist.
There are two known versions that were made. The first appears close to what the brothers first designed for the patent...
And another version with more more pictures.....
The Cates Family
Back Row; Ellis Elton Cates, Robert Luther Cates, Ogle Clare Cates and Levi (Lee) Spencer Cates
Front Row; Robert Spencer Cates, Leonard Locke Cates and Amanda Virginia (Hess) Cates.
After seeing the family photo, and the ones used on the cards, I started wondering who posed for them? Did Robert pose for the early deck?
Back Row; Ellis Elton Cates, Robert Luther Cates, Ogle Clare Cates and Levi (Lee) Spencer Cates
Front Row; Robert Spencer Cates, Leonard Locke Cates and Amanda Virginia (Hess) Cates.
After seeing the family photo, and the ones used on the cards, I started wondering who posed for them? Did Robert pose for the early deck?
Robert makes the monument business very successful. By 1909 he moves to Wichita to expand there. In 1914 the business was renamed to the Southwestern Monument Works and also had a branch in Oklahoma. In 1918 he also buys into the Greenleaf Overland automobile business in Wichita for several years.
Robert died on March 3, 1942 after living a very successful life. He is buried in the family plot in the Walnut Hill Cemetery in Kingman. The cemetery contains many headstones made by his monument company.
Family history talks of how Leonard and Lee were very close brothers. Leonard's birthday was one week before Christmas and ever since Leonard was little Robert would give him one sock for his birthday and the other for Christmas. A tradition that lasted Robert's whole life.
Family history talks of how Leonard and Lee were very close brothers. Leonard's birthday was one week before Christmas and ever since Leonard was little Robert would give him one sock for his birthday and the other for Christmas. A tradition that lasted Robert's whole life.