The Iowa Hill baseball team in the late 1800s. A typical small-town baseball team, with a couple of young kids hiding behind a tree. At one time, Iowa Hill was a prosperous mining town that was producing $100,000 a week in the mid-19th Century. Fielding a baseball team to play the other gold mining towns was the regular practice, as baseball was the pastime sport of choice in those days.

You never know what you're going to find out when we post these photos. We heard from a person who is the keeper of Iowa Hill's memories, and she related this story. "Native son and big-league baseball champion William "Seattle Bill" James was the waterboy--he is the child behind the tree. He returned to his home town for a visit in October 1914 following the World Series win of his Boston Braves against the "unbeatable" Philadelphia Athletics, largely due to Bill's pitching."

Wow, that young boy's fascination with the team grew into a career that took him far away from this old mining town. You never know what you'll find out with these old photographs from a time gone. Above is a photo of William pitching for the Boston Braves.

Photos: Placer County Museums