Handball

Phil Casey

Also printed as Philip Casey

Died 12 July 1904 (sources disagree, see below); active 1876 to 1909

Where the sources disagree

Date of death: sources disagree. The value from the stronger source (the lower rank number) is preferred.

Roles

Dated facts

  • 22 February 1876 (dated from the issue it appeared in): New York handball and racket players elect a provisional committee (Metropolitan Committee) at McQuade's court to hold an international tournament and form a permanent national organization to supervise the game

    chair James [Dunn], vice chair Denis Burns, treasurer P. J. Meagher, secretary Bernard McQuade; permanent national organization to be announced within a fortnight; tournament Easter Monday 17 April, later postponed to 1 June

    Source: The New York Herald (New York), 5 March 1876, p. 6

  • 26 October 1880 (dated from the issue it appeared in): Philip Casey, handball player and Alderman of Brooklyn's Tenth Ward, arrested on a charge of fraudulent voter registration

    Alderman for the Tenth Ward of Brooklyn

    Source: The Sun (New York), 27 October 1880, p. 1

  • 23 November 1880 (dated from the issue it appeared in): Courtney (New York) beats Burke (Philadelphia) in the closing series of a $100-a-side handball match, Madison Street, New York

    closing series at a Hand Ball Court in Madison street, New York; first series in Philadelphia, Burke 4 of 6

    Source: The Sun (New York), 24 November 1880, p. 1

  • 13 December 1883: Notice, not a report: a double-handed match 'will be played' on Thursday 13 Dec 1883 at Sweeny's Murray Hill court, 159 East 35th Street, New York, Alderman Phil Casey and ex-Alderman Jim Dunn of Brooklyn against Wm. Courtney and Frank Reynolds; no report of the match has been found

    Source: The Society News (Wilmington), 15 December 1883, p. 3

  • 29 November 1887 (dated from the issue it appeared in): Casey beat Lawlor in the first seven of the eleven New York games, winning the international match and the 'championship of the world', at the Brooklyn Handball Club court, Degraw Street

    Casey won games 1-7; match 11-6 on aggregate

    Degraw Street, Brooklyn (Brooklyn Handball Club court), not Sweeney's

    Source: The Sun (New York), 30 November 1887, p. 3

  • by 21 November 1890 (dated from the issue it appeared in): By 21 Nov 1890 Brooklyn courts play under the Sun's new service rule (serve only from the ace line); Casey endorses it

    rule restricts service to the ace line

    Casey heartily in favor of the new rule

    Sun suggested all service from the ace line; opposed by old-school players; adopted by Murray Hill court

    Source: The Sun (New York), 21 November 1890, p. 4

  • 4 January 1891: Brooklyn Handball Club resolves unanimously to play all games under the Sun's new rules; Murray Hill and South Brooklyn courts already adopted them

    Murray Hill court first to adopt THE SUN's new rule as the standard; South Brooklyn court follows

    Source: The Sun (New York), 5 January 1891, p. 6

  • 1 March 1892: Brooklyn Handball Club reorganised in Casey's parlor: Major John Carmody president, Col. Thomas Meehan vice-president, Frank J. Prendergast secretary, Philip Casey treasurer; committee on the playing ball

    Carmody president (from Mar 1892)

    Source: The Sun (New York), 3 March 1892, p. 4

  • by 18 January 1894 (dated from the issue it appeared in): Phil Casey writes that there has been no rule in his court for five years except 'The Sun's rules', which govern all six courts near him; leading courts everywhere follow the Brooklyn Handball Club's rules

    no rule in Casey's court for five years except The Sun's rules; all six courts within ten miles under them

    courts of any account in America conducted under the rules of the Brooklyn Handball Club

    reprint in SF Morning Call: 'no rule in my court for five years except the New York Sun's rules'

    Source: The Sun (New York), 18 January 1894, p. 8

  • by 5 April 1896 (dated from the issue it appeared in): Sun reports a handball convention planned at Cork for July 1896 to arrange uniform rules, at which 'THE SUN code used by the experts in America' would probably be adopted as the standard

    planned convention at Cork, July 1896, for uniformity in the rules; the Sun code probably to be the standard

    Source: The Sun (New York), 5 April 1896, p. 30

  • 23 June 1903 (dated from the issue it appeared in): Egan beat Timothy Twohill of Kanturk 7-0 at Jersey City (23 Jun) in the first half of a best-of-15 'international' match for the world championship, $1,500; second half in Ireland 12 July; Phil Casey referee, Dr. A. M. Gillen scorer

    announcement: best of 15, $1,500, half in America, half in Ireland

    first half 7-0 for Egan; Casey referee; Gillen scorer

    Source: The Minneapolis Journal (Minneapolis), 26 May 1903, p. 18

  • 12 July 1904: Phil Casey, for 25 years handball champion of the world, died at his Brooklyn home on 12 July 1904, aged 56

    held the title about 25 years; relinquished it voluntarily about seven years earlier (c.1897); public court in Brooklyn since the 1870s

    first reported dying of stomach cancer on 12 July

    Source: New-York Tribune (New York), 13 July 1904, p. 4

  • 16 February 1909 (dated from the issue it appeared in): Obituary of Edward J. Sweeney: his father and he established the handball and racquet court in 34th St, opposite the old police station, where Phil Casey and Jim Dunn had many matches

    Sweeney's court in '34th' [OCR 'S4th'] street opposite the old police station; Casey and Jim Dunn matches there

    Source: The New Haven Union (New Haven), 16 February 1909, p. 9

Sources

All people