In 1916 a group of Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
employees made some changes in the rules and the ball used for
indoor and outdoor baseball. They began playing a unique game
that evolved into softball. It is quite possible that softball
is a Kansas invention. The story begins when employees of
Topeka's Motive Power Building wanted to do something that would
provide both competition and exercise. At the time there was a
game of indoor baseball with equipment and rules that had been
altered from the outdoor version to fit a smaller space. Because
they had only a small area in which to play, the men decided to
use the indoor rules even though they were playing outside. They
purchased an indoor baseball bat and ball and began playing in
what was then a vacant space just south of their building, the
present location of the Santa Fe Motive Power Building. Because
of space constraints, the bases were placed about 34 feet apart.
The indoor balls in use at that time were soft so they could be
caught without gl