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The First Blues Jersey Is Found

Back in August 1966 two Blues jerseys were unveiled that look like no jersey the team has ever worn. One of the two has been found.

By Brad Lee
Lynn Patrick and Sid Salomon III sporting jerseys that never saw the ice.
Lynn Patrick and Sid Salomon III sporting jerseys that never saw the ice.
Bruce Bennett Studios/Getty Images

When St. Louis was awarded an NHL expansion franchise in February 1966, the team didn't have a logo or even a name. Just owners, Sid Salomon Jr., his son Sid Salomon III and another investor, Robert Wolfson. On August 30, 1966, more than a full year before the Blues would take the ice, original head coach and general manager Lynn Patrick and Sid the Third modeled the original Blues jerseys, one blue and one white. They don't look anything like the jerseys the Blues would wear during their first season in the NHL. They don't look like any Blues jersey ever. So it's safe to say those first two jerseys are the only two ever made.

Simply put, this is the birth of the franchise, the birth of the Bluenote. It is the first tangible item associated with the franchise. This jersey represents very beginning of the team we love and obsess about. It's an artifact. And for decades no one was sure what happened to either of them.

Well the white jersey has surfaced. Our friend @STLBlueshistory on Twitter has an incredible story about how he came into contact with the owner - oddly enough, it happened on the 50th anniversary of the expansion award to St. Louis - and what's happened to the jersey since.

I'm going to be on CBS Sports Radio 920 AM RIGHT NOW at 3 p.m. talking about the jersey. You can stream the show live at InsideSTL.com. Below are two photos. You can see the origins of the Note we all are familiar with, but it's not the same. And you can read the full story RIGHT NOW by purchasing our fan-run paper we sell outside every Blues home game. GO HERE to get a PDF of tonight's paper. Or if you want the hard copy, find us at 5:30 p.m. at:

  • By the driveway to the garage attached to Scottrade Center
  • Just north of the 14th Street doors to the building
  • Outside the City Hall parking lot on the northeast corner of 14th and Clark.

Here are two photos of the found jersey.

white original jersey

The first white Blues jersey ever.

And here's a closeup of the crest:

closeup

Closeup of the original Bluenote.

We'll have more about the jersey on the Game Time site on Monday morning.

Thanks for reading. And Let's Go Blues!