Yank Adams

Yank Adams
Yank Adams sketch portrait from the June 14, 1891 edition of The Sun.[1]
Born	Frank B. Adams December 14, 1847 Norwich, Connecticut
Died	After January 1923
Other names	Yank Adams The Digital Billiard Wonder

Frank B. Adams, (December 19, 1847^[2] – after January 1923^[3]) commonly known as Yank Adams, was a professional carom billiards player specializing in finger billiards, in which a player manipulates the balls with his or her hands directly, instead of with an implement such as a cue stick,^[4] often by twisting the ball between the thumb and the middle finger.^[5] Adams, who was sometimes billed as the "Digital Billiard Wonder",^[6] has been lauded as the "greatest of all digit billiards players"^[1] and the "champion digital billiardist of the World."^[7] George F. Slosson, a top billiards player of Adams' era, named him the "greatest exhibition player who ever lived."^[1] His exhibitions would draw standing room only crowds of 1,000 or more spectators even in small venues.^[8]

Beginning with an aptitude for bowling, Adams picked up some billiard balls one day at the age of 25 and began to "bowl" on the table. Largely self-taught, Adams thereafter amassed a large repertoire of finger billiards shot. He procured a manager and began giving performances, first at a set engagement in New York City, and later traveling extensively giving exhibitions and taking on challengers in nearly every city in the United States and many in Europe. During his travels, Adams performed before the Vanderbilts and the Goulds, three U.S. Presidents, as well as Prince of Wales in London and the Comte de Paris in Paris. One of the largest matches ever played at any form of billiards took place at Manhattan's Gilmore's Gardens in 1878 between Adams, playing with his fingers, and the then reigning cue champion of the world, William Sexton, playing with a cue, where Adams ultimately prevailed over the three-day competition in the game of straight rail.

Early life

Adams was raised in Norwich, Connecticut, which led to his being nicknamed Yank later in life.^[9] From a young age, he exhibited the substantial hand strength required for finger billiards.^[2] When he was not yet a year old his grip could hurt his mother, who would give him chunks of bread to squeeze instead of her.^[2] Adams was large for his age and in 1863, at 14 years old, he was able to disguise his youth in order to join the Eighteenth Connecticut Volunteers. He served with them for three years^[2], fighting for the Union in the American Civil War.^[10] After being discharged, Adams worked as a carpenter from 1872 to 1875.^[2] Thereafter he became a traveling salesman for the American Sterling-Silver Company and traveled back and forth across the United States.^[2]

Beginnings in billiards

1887 Yank Adams cigarette card issued by Allen & Ginter

Adams finger billiards and exhibition work had its germination in his early bowling interest.^[11] At 17, Adams was a very adept bowler, often giving informal exhibitions of bowling tricks such as "cocked hat", "back frame", and letting the head pin remain standing.^[11] In a 1913 interview Adams relfected that "[i]n those days we rolled what was termed 'skew ball', similar to the english put on a cue ball in Billiards."^[11]

When Adams was 25 he accepted a position as a traveling salesman for the Derby Silver Company in New York. While waiting for customers one day in a Poughkeepsie hotel, he strolled into a billiard room, took half a dozen pool balls over to a billiard table, and commenced to "bowl".^[11] The attention of everyone in the place was attracted by the manner in which Adams made the ball travel.^[11] One man asked the privilege of placing the balls in a certain position for Adams to bowl at and Adams made the shot easily.^[11] This started Adams on his career as a finger billiard expert. In the next town he traveled to, he hired a table and performed the same stunts with the balls, and added a few new shots.^[11] For three months after that Adams did not miss a single day practicing various shots, and some of the shots developed during that time became part of his regular exhibition repertoire.^[11]

Returning to New York, Adams met with Maurice Daly, then the "dean of billiards". After listening to Adams' story, Daly said that he was not aware that any startling shots could be accomplished using only the hands.^[11] Offering Adams a set of four balls,^[11] Daly sat down to see just what he could do.^[11] After a dozen shots, Daly became greatly interested, often asking Adams to repeat shots.^[11] At the end of the performance, Daly told Adams that if he ever entertained any idea of entering the billiards field he would give him an engagement at his room.^[11]

Professional career

International success

The billiard germ soon began to work on Adams and he gave up his job with the silver company.^[11] Adams went to Sexton's billiard parlor in the Bowery and Sexton gave Adams an engagement at Miner's Bowery Theater at $115 a week.^[11] Adams sought to secure a manager as was typical of billiards professionals of the time;^[11] he was taken on by Billy O'Brien, a well known sports authority and one-time pugilist^[12] who managed Dominick McCaffrey later in his career.^[13] During his tenure as manager, O'Brien organized an exhibition tour of the United States for Adams.^[12] Three months into the tour, Adams reached Chicago, where he played a three week engagement for Billy Emmett at $500 a week.^[11] Leaving the stage, Adams opened at O'Connor's billiard room, at Fourteenth Street and Fourth Avenue, where he played nightly for a solid year.^[11] Adams then resumed traveling, giving exhibitions in nearly every city in the United States and a large number of cities in Europe.^[11]

Advertisement for comedy play, Billiards, sponsored by Yank Adams and William Sexton.^[14] Prior to the performance Adams and Sexton would play a billiard match for the audience.^[15]

In 1868 Adams appeared before the Prince of Wales in London and the Comte de Paris in Paris.^[6] While in London John Roberts, Jr. offered Adams $300 per week for one year to play afternoon and evening at his Argyle Rooms.^[6] After playing for the Comte de Paris, the Frenchmen wanted Adams to state his figures for an indefinite period.^[6] Adams also played for three U.S. Presidents and while in New York was paid $100 per night by the Vanderbilts and Goulds.^[6] Bullocks Billiard Guide said of Adams that he had made more than $70,000 for exhibition alone over 7 years, which was more than the balance of all other listed billiardists combined.^[6] Though champion players with cues sometimes dabbled in finger billiards, it was said even of such greats as Jacob Schaefer, George Slosson and Eugene Carter^[6] that "their work, compared with that of the Finger Wonder, is like a novice playing an expert."^[6]

Public exhibitions

Poster for a March 12, 1889 Yank Adams exhibition in New York City

Adams' first major public exhibition in New York was held on January 31, 1878 at the Union Square Billiard Rooms before a large audience, where he continued to perform nightly for a week.^[16] Reporting on the first night of the event, The New York Times wrote:^[16]

The intricacy of the various shots he played, as well as the marvelous accuracy with which they were executed, frequently roused the spectators to an unusual pitch of enthusiasm.... Many of Adams' shots are entirely new, never having been attempted before by any billiards expert. Among them may be mentioned the wonderful "bottle" shot with which last evening's exhibition was brought to a close. Two soda-water bottles were placed at the head of the left-hand rail, about a foot apart, a red ball being placed in the mouth of each bottle. A white ball was next placed against the right-hand rail, directly opposite the lower bottle. Everything being in readiness, Adams then took the remaining white ball in his hand, and masseing upon the ball in the mouth of the upper bottle, jumped his ball to the ball in the mouth of the other bottle, whence, falling upon the table it was carried by a reverse "English" to the middle of the top rail, whence it glided with unerring accuracy to the right-hand rail and caromed upon the first-mentioned white ball, its successful execution being greeted with great applause.^[16]

Competitive play and rivalries

From the June 14, 1891 edition of The Sun:^[1] Diagrams of 12 of 13 Yank Adams' finger billiard shots he devised for exhibition. Adams described them as "a baker's dozen ways of making one shot".^[1] Each shot shows a different method of making a straight rail count from the same starting position.^[1]

M. Adrian Izar

New Yorkers had previously been treated to finger billiards exhibition by French master M. Adrien Izar, who had astonished spectators with his finger billiards performance in an exhibition held on September 20, 1875.^[5] The game was little known in the United States prior to that display, and Izar was considered the game's champion player, at least in France and England.^[5] The night before the 1878 exhibition, Adams received a telegram from Izar challenging Adams to play for the championship and naming Chicago as the site for contest.^[16] Adams replied that he was unwilling to leave New York at that time, but that he would pay Izar's expenses to travel to New York.^[16] Adams later issued the following statement to newspapers:^[17]

I have never intended to play a public match in my line, having never arrogated to myself a superiority above other hand billiard players, although I have deemed myself the equal of any one living in my line, not excepting Mons. Izar, by whom continually letters are written, whose contents have for their purpose a derogation of my skill. That this may be checked, and summarily, I would state that I am willing to play Mons. Izar a match game for $500 a side, in New York City, Boston or Chicago, on a 5x10 table, full size balls and Collender cushion; the championship and gate money to be awarded the player showing the greatest variety of shots in connection with accuracy, and in all giving the most interesting exhibition of finger billiards.^[17]

William Sexton

Starting on March 15, 1878, a billiards match spread over three days^[18] at the game of straight rail^[19] took place between William Sexton (then cue champion of the world)^[11] and Yank Adams at Manhattan's Gilmore's Gardens (the predecessor venue of Madison Square Garden^[20]) that pitted Adams' finger billiards against Sexton using his cue^[18] for a purse of $500.^[21] The house was one of the largest that had ever witnessed a billiard game.^[11] The terms were that each day of the match Adams was required to score 2,000 points, while Sexton needed only 1,000.^[18]

On the first day of the match Adams ran 1,110 points employing finger billiards.^[18] Despite Adams' impressive opening performance, by the third and last day of the match Sexton was far in the lead.^[11] In Dewey-Defeats-Truman-style, many newspapers reported that Sexton won the tourney, as their reporters left the tournament before it was over at a time when Sexton had a seemingly indomitable lead.^[11] The New York Times, for example, reported that Sexton won the match, though they leavened the result by reporting that despite the prize fund, it was a "friendly match",^[19] geared toward exhibition, and that "Adams could undoubtedly have run the game out on three occasions, but preferred to make 'display' shots in place of his usual "nurse" play, against which a cue player stands no chance whatever."^[19] What actually occurred was that with Sexton needing only seven points to sew up the championship, Adams stepped to the table and ran out, making 1,181 points in a row for the win.^[11]

Louis Shaw

Adams' chief professional rivalry in later years was with Louis Shaw.^[22] In 1891 Adams and Shaw had a disagreement over the format of the finger billiards championship to be contested between them that year. Adams wanted the match to be played for a $500 stake, while Shaw wanted the match to be for charity, with the receipts to go to the firemen's fund.^[23]

Other accomplishments

In 1879 Adams was chosen as official referee for the championship Collender Billiard Tournament held at Tammany Hall where top players, Marice Daly, Albert Garnier, Eugene Carter, A. P. Rudolphe, Randolph Heiser, William Sexton, George F. Slosson and "the Wizard", Jacob Schaefer, Sr. battled for honors at the newly introduced carom billiards discipline called the champion's game^[24][25][26] (an intermediary game between straight rail and balkine^[4]).

In 1889 Adams broke the then standing world record run for successive straight rail points in a match with champion player Jacob Schaefer, Sr., scoring 4,962 counts in a row, which was 2,400 points more than any prior competition high run, albeit, with his fingers rather than with a cue.^[7] Adams stated in an interview in his later years that his personal high run was 6,900 consecutive straight rail counts.^[11]

Echoing the offers he had received in 1868 to stay for an extended exhibition period in Paris and London, in 1890 Adams returned to Paris after signing a contract with Eugene Carter to play at his billiard academy for thirteen weeks at 1,000 francs (approximately $200) per week, after which he went in London, under the management of M. Farini, to play at the room of John Roberts, Jr.^[27] On a previous trip to London in 1887, Roberts offered Adams £60 a week for six months to give exhibitions, but Adams demurred citing a need to superintend his sporting journal.^[27]

Adams was editor and proprietor of The Chicago Sporting Journal,^[28] as well as general manager of the New York Sporting and Theatrical Journal.^[29] With his association to the sporting journals, Adams was known to be an intermediary for the issuance of challenge matches, such as boxing bouts and to hold the winning stake and distribute the winnings upon the event's conclusion.^[30][31][32] Adams also owned a number of different billiard parlors during his lifetime including one in Chicago named the White Elephant^[1] another in Chicago called the Academy Billiard Hall,^[33] and a third above O'Connor Brothers on Union Square^[1] at 60 East 14th Street in New York City.^[34] Adams' business cards, at least during 1877, said simply "Yank Adams, champion finger billiardist of the world. Residence immaterial."^[28]

Later life

Adams continued to give exhibitions and was still able to perform well into his later years.^[35] For example, the New Rochelle Pioneer newspaper reported that Adams gave an exhibition on December 21, 1915 (at 68 years of age), at Chamberlain's Derby Billiard Academy in New Rochelle, New York, and that he was "at his best and made some exceptionally brilliant shots in the presence of 300 lovers of the game. While at the table he kept up a continuous humorous monologue to the great pleasure of his audience."^[35] Almost four years later in 1919 (at age 71), Adams was reported to have given an exhibition before a large audience at Lawler Brothers Billiard Academy of Brooklyn.^[36][37]

In 1923, when Adams was 76, the following newspaper story appeared in The Salt Lake Tribune, telling of his whereabouts:^[3]

Perhaps you old fellows, too, thought Yank had passed on, but he turned up in New York the other day and is now spending his last days in a Bronx flat. There was a time when Yank Adams was known in every billiard room in America. He was as much at home in Eddie Graney's room at San Francisco as at Tom Foley's in Chicago of Maurice Daly's in New York, and he knew all the billiard players and big and little room keepers from coast to coast. When the history of billiards is written and the names of Willie Hoppe, old and young Jake Schaefer and Welker Cochran are included with others of the great exponents of the indoor sport, there will be a distinct division for one man—the man who did the impossible, who could make the ivories travel the wrong way, or, in the language of the billiard realm, "make 'em talk all languages." That man is Frank B. Adams, known the world over as "Yank" Adams, at one time and even now the world's only finger billiardist who can make all the apparently impossible shots on the table without the aid of a cue. Adams is 76 years old, and after fifty years of exhibitions all over the world has retired from active work to live in the Bronx and conduct a billiard academy of his own at Burnside and Creston avenues in New York with his business manager for the last ten years, Samuel Polakoff. Yank now lives at 635 West 136th street In New York. When I told Tom Foley, the daddy of all the roommkeepers, that Yank Adams was back in the business he laughed and said: "I thought Yank had cashed in. But he's like all those billiard players. They never die."^[3]

Style of play

Yank Adams photograph showing him at 67 years old, from the February 23, 1913 edition of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle^[11]

Adams played only with his fingers, disdaining the cue stick entirely.^[16] He was known not just for his skill at finger billiards, but for the quickness of his play. In exhibitions it was sometimes advertised that Adams would attempt to make 100 shots in 100 seconds.^[4] He would always begin by "feeling out" the cushions on the table, as he met different cushions almost nightly is his travels, some fast and some slow.^[11]

Adams would sometimes take on various types of challenge matches at his performances.^[38] For example, at an exhibition held in Omaha Nebraska on November 20, 1889, Adams was pitted against twenty of the best players in the city, manipulating the "ivories" with his fingers, while his opponents used cues and were given a handicap equivalent to a 1,000 point lead.^[38]

Adams performed about 80 shots per exhibition and had a large repertoire of practiced shots—more than 500, affording him the luxury to not repeat a single shot when playing at an exhibition venue for a week's time.^[1] The abundance of shots in his bag was unusual, described by one sports writer as "more extensive than the entire billiard fraternity put together".^[1] The following is a description of shots appearing in an 1891 newspaper article on Adams, highlighted as "among his difficult feats":^[1]

Two quart wine bottles are placed at the short end of the table, three feet apart; a ball is placed on the top of each bottle, and a third ball, six feet from the bottles in the opposite corner. Adams makes the hand ball jump from bottle to bottle then to take an English in space, counting on the third bail, a double shot.

Fifteen balls are placed in a line, three inches apart. On the last ball is placed a piece of chalk, while two feet from the other end, at a square angle, is placed a single ball. Yank drops the hand ball with a Massé twist, which, after hitting the single ball, describes a semi-circle, taken the cushion first, then makes a carrom on the fifteen balls, but is played with such a delicate calculation as barely to reach the last ball; in fact, freezes against it so gently as not to dislodge the chalk previously placed thereon.

A derby hat is placed on the table, under which is a ball. One foot from the hat are two balls a foot apart, which he carroms on, the hand ball continues striking the rim of the hat, forces it up, and goes under making the stroke on the third ball, then returns from under the hat when it rocks the second time.

He also stand at the head of the table, throwing the balls with a hundred-yard force but has them stop eight feet away in such a position as to spell his name.^[1]

In another newspaper piece appearing in the St. Paul Daily Globe, the reporter summed up the events of an April 26, 1888 Adams exhibition as follows:^[39]

The great finger billiard exhibition came off last night at the Standard billiard hall to a packed house, and those who saw Yank Adams handle the spheres were more than delighted.... Shot after shot were made in lightning rapidity, spotting the ball, running the whole length of the rail, crossing over, with two cushions and counting, going under hats and in between them, cutting the letter S and making the carom, jump shots, masses and hundreds of others too complicated to put in type. Mr. A.M. Doherty played a game with the exhibitor, and at twenty-eight points left the balls in a scattered position, which were gathered at one shot by Mr. Adams, who made fifty shots in sixty seconds. What seemed his most difficult shot was that of placing fifteen balls in a line, and a piece of chalk on the last ball. The hand ball was then dropped a distance of two feet, described a semi-circle, making a carom on all of the balls and freezing against the last ball. Adams' finger shots discount Schaeffer, Slosson and J. Carter combined.^[39]

The public flocked to Adams' exhibitions and often the size of a pool room where he was performing could barely contain the crowd.^[40] When Adams performed in Rochester, New York in 1892 for example, the local paper reported that "[n]o man in these broad acres can draw the crowd "Yank" Adams does when an exhibition with the ivories is the card. Last night's crowd was banked up, against the walls, twenty deep in someplaces and many witnessed the exhibition from the table tops and window ledges."^[40]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l} "All Done With the Fingers: The Manner in Which Yank Adams Toys With the Spheres". The Sun (New York, NY): p. 16. June 14, 1891. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1891-06-14/ed-1/seq-16. Retrieved January 22, 2010. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f} "Frank B. Adams". The New York Clipper 26. August 31, 1878. http://www.fultonhistory.com/Process%20small/Newspapers/New%20York%20NY%20Clipper%201853%20-%201924/New%20York%20NY%20Clipper%201879-1880%20pdf/New%20York%20NY%20Clipper%201879-1880%20-%200594.pdf#xml=http://www.fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=76d1d5a5&DocId=2974419&Index=Z%3a%2fFulton%20Historical&HitCount=6&hits=b24+b25+b26+cd8+cd9+cda+&SearchForm=c%3a%5cinetpub%5cwwwroot%5cFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf. Retrieved February 2, 2010. 
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Famous Finger Billiardist Turns Up in New York" (fee required). The Salt Lake Tribune. February 10, 1923. http://www.newspaperarchive.com/PdfViewerTags.aspx?img=94637095&firstvisit=true&src=search&currentResult=9&currentPage=10&fpo=False. Retrieved February 4, 2010. 
4. ^ ^{a b c} Shamos, Michael Ian (1993). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Billiards. New York, NY: Lyons & Burford. pp. 46, 94. ISBN 1-55821-219-1. 
5. ^ ^{a b c} "The New Billiard-Player". The New York Times. September 21, 1875. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9400E0DD143EE73BBC4F52DFB5668383669FDE. Retrieved January 18, 2010. 
6. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h} "Finger Billiards: Yank Adams to Give and Exhibition at the Standard To-Night". The Saint Paul Daily Globe: p. 5. April 26, 1888. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90059522/1888-04-26/ed-1/seq-5. Retrieved January 21, 2010. 
7. ^ ^{a b} "Yank Adams, of Chicago". Omaha Daily Bee: p. 2. November 2, 1889. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99021999/1889-11-02/ed-1/seq-2. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
8. ^ "Fancy Shots". The Saint Paul Daily Globe: p. 5. May 1, 1890. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90059522/1890-05-01/ed-1/seq-7. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
9. ^ "A Billiard Expert". The New York Times. January 27, 1878. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9902E3DD113FE63BBC4F51DFB7668383669FDE. Retrieved January 18, 2010. 
10. ^ Evening Post Annual. Hartford, Conn.: Evening Post Association. 1892. OCLC 17937899. http://books.google.com/books?id=sKMrAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA158. Retrieved February 2, 2010. 
11. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa} "Still Playing Finger Billiards Although Sixty-Seven Years Old". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle: p. front page. February 23, 1913. http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%205/Brooklyn%20NY%20Daily%20Eagle/Brooklyn%20NY%20Daily%20Eagle%201913%20Grayscale/Brooklyn%20NY%20Daily%20Eagle%201913%20Grayscale%20-%200738.pdf#xml=http://fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=fffffffff88fe690&DocId=8224421&Index=Z%3a%2fFulton%20Historical&HitCount=2&hits=2d+2e+&SearchForm=c%3a%5cinetpub%5cwwwroot%5cFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
12. ^ ^{a b} "Death of Billy O'Brien". The Sun (New York, NY): p. 3. January 14, 1891. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030272/1891-01-14/ed-1/seq-3. Retrieved January 21, 2010. 
13. ^ "Another Sport Goes Over". The Morning Call (San Francisco): p. 2. January 20, 1891. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn94052989/1891-01-20/ed-1/seq-2. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
14. ^ "Court Square Theatre". (Direct link unavailable). The Brooklyn Daily Eagle: p. front page. September 6, 1878. http://eagle.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/Default/Skins/BEagle/Client.asp?Skin=BEagle. Retrieved January 21, 2010. 
15. ^ Brown, Thomas Allston (1902). A history of the New York stage from the first performance in 1732 to 1901. Dodd, Mead and company. p. 217. OCLC 2778331. http://books.google.com/books?id=CDALAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA217. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
16. ^ ^{a b c d e f} "The New Billiard Expert, Mr. "Yank" Adams' First Public Exhibition in This City". The New York Times. January 29, 1878. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9F02E7DF143EE73BBC4151DFB7668383669FDE. Retrieved January 17, 2010. 
17. ^ ^{a b} "Sports and Pastimes: Billiards". (Direct link unavailable). The Brooklyn Daily Eagle: p. 3. January 28, 1878. http://eagle.brooklynpubliclibrary.org/Default/Skins/BEagle/Client.asp?Skin=BEagle. Retrieved January 17, 2010. 
18. ^ ^{a b c d} "Finger Billiards vs. Cue Billiards". The New York Times. March 16, 1878. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9C02E1DD143EE73BBC4E52DFB5668383669FDE. Retrieved January 17, 2010. 
19. ^ ^{a b c} "Cue against Finger Billiards". The New York Times. March 17, 1878. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9400E0DD143EE73BBC4F52DFB5668383669FDE. Retrieved January 17, 2010. 
20. ^ Edwin G. & Wallace, Mike (1999). Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898. New York: Oxford University Press US. ISBN 978-0-19-514049-1. 
21. ^ "Cue and Finger Billiards". The New York Times. March 17, 1878. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9400E0DD143EE73BBC4F52DFB5668383669FDE. Retrieved January 17, 2010. 
22. ^ Brooklyn Citizen Almanac. Brooklyn: Brooklyn Citizen. 1893. p. 141. OCLC 12355298. 
23. ^ "General Sporting Gossip". The Montreal Herald. January 6, 1891. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ILYdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=clwEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1257,242980. Retrieved January 18, 2010. 
24. ^ "Ringing Chimes on the Billiard Balls". The New York Times. November 20, 1879. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=950CE2DF163EE63BBC4851DFB7678382669FDE. Retrieved January 18, 2010. 
25. ^ "Fine Billiard Playing". The New York Times. November 14, 1879. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9F05E1D6103EE73BBC4C52DFB7678382669FDE. Retrieved January 18, 2010. 
26. ^ "The New Champion's Game" (PDF). The New York Times. November 13, 1879. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9A01E3D61F3FE63BBC4B52DFB7678382669FDE. Retrieved January 18, 2010. 
27. ^ ^{a b} "Adams Going to Paris". The Saint Paul Daily Globe: p. 5. April 24, 1890. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90059522/1890-04-24/ed-1/seq-7. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
28. ^ ^{a b} "Big Billiards". The Saint Paul Daily Globe: p. 6. April 15, 1888. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90059522/1888-04-15/ed-1/seq-7. Retrieved January 21, 2010. 
29. ^ "Personal". Omaha Daily Bee: p. 5. July 4, 1884. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99021999/1884-07-04/ed-1/seq-5. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
30. ^ "Pat's Chin Music". Omaha Daily Bee: p. 8. October 21, 1888. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99021999/1888-10-21/ed-1/seq-8. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
31. ^ "Killen Challenges Kilrain". The Saint Paul Daily Globe: p. 5. August 16, 1888. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90059522/1888-08-16/ed-1/seq-5. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
32. ^ "The Myers-Needham Fight to Take Place in Minneapolis Sept. 3". The Saint Paul Daily Globe: p. 5. September 1, 1888. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90059522/1888-09-01/ed-1/seq-5. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
33. ^ "Blaisdell Beats Yank Adams". The New York Clipper 538. November 5, 1881. http://www.fultonhistory.com/Process%20small/Newspapers/New%20York%20NY%20Clipper%201853%20-%201924/New%20York%20NY%20Clipper%201881-1882.pdf/New%20York%20NY%20Clipper%201881-1882%20-%200534.pdf#xml=http://www.fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=1f927764&DocId=2975185&Index=Z%3a%2fFulton%20Historical&HitCount=7&hits=1150+1159+115a+184a+18e3+193f+196d+&SearchForm=c%3a%5cinetpub%5cwwwroot%5cFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf. Retrieved February 2, 2010. 
34. ^ Goulding's New York City Directory. 23. New York: L.G. Goulding. 1877. p. 1078. OCLC 12683349. http://books.google.com/books?id=j9oCAAAAYAAJ&pg=PT1079. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
35. ^ ^{a b} "Yank Adams Plays Here". New Rochelle Pioneer: p. 3. December 15, 1915. http://www.fultonhistory.com/Newspaper4/New%20Rochelle%20NY%20Pioneer/New%20Rochelle%20NY%20Pioneer%201915%20-%201919%20Grayscale/New%20Rochelle%20NY%20Pioneer%201915%20-%201919%20Grayscale%20-%200358.pdf#xml=http://www.fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=ffffffff8d7de9c7&DocId=10444922&Index=Z%3a%2fFulton%20Historical&HitCount=4&hits=b41+b42+c03+c04+&SearchForm=c%3a%5cinetpub%5cwwwroot%5cFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf. Retrieved February 2, 2010. 
36. ^ "Billiards at Lawlers'". Brooklyn Daily Eagle: p. 4. November 7, 1919. http://www.fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%205/Brooklyn%20NY%20Daily%20Eagle/Brooklyn%20NY%20Daily%20Eagle%201919%20Grayscale/Brooklyn%20NY%20Daily%20Eagle%201919%20a%20Grayscale%20-%201287.pdf#xml=http://www.fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=ffffffffdec25fa9&DocId=8296554&Index=Z%3a%2fFulton%20Historical&HitCount=2&hits=7b0+7b1+&SearchForm=c%3a%5cinetpub%5cwwwroot%5cFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf. Retrieved February 2, 2010. 
37. ^ "Ryan Beats Hanf in Billiard Match". The New York Times. March 29, 1923. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F00A17F93D5416738DDDA00A94DB405B838EF1D3&scp=1&sq=RYAN%20BEATS%20HANF&st=cse. Retrieved February 2, 2010. 
38. ^ ^{a b} "Yank Adams Nerve". Omaha Daily Bee: p. 2. November 20, 1889. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99021999/1889-11-20/ed-1/seq-2. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
39. ^ ^{a b} "Yank's Magic Fingers: Remarkable Billiard Shots By Editor Adams". The Saint Paul Daily Globe: p. 5. April 27, 1888. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn90059522/1888-04-27/ed-1/seq-5. Retrieved January 31, 2010. 
40. ^ ^{a b} "Wizard of The Ivories: "Yank" Adams's Exhibition at the Commercial Club". Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: p. 3. February 27, 1892. http://www.fultonhistory.com/Process%20small/Newspapers/Rochester%20NY%20Democrat%20Chronicle/Rochester%20NY%20Democrat%20Chronicle%201892/Rochester%20NY%20Democrat%20Chronicle%201892%20-%203350.PDF#xml=http://www.fultonhistory.com/dtSearch/dtisapi6.dll?cmd=getpdfhits&u=2c2866ff&DocId=2275597&Index=Z%3a%2fFulton%20Historical&HitCount=4&hits=bc+bd+61e+61f+&SearchForm=c%3a%5cinetpub%5cwwwroot%5cFulton%5fNew%5fform%2ehtml&.pdf. Retrieved February 2, 2010. 

Persondata
Name	Adams, Yank
Alternative names	Adams, Frank B.; Digital Billiard Wonder, the
Short description	American carom billiards player specializing in finger billiards
Date of birth	December 14, 1847
Place of birth	Norwich, Connecticut
Date of death
Place of death