English cricket team in North America in 1859

The English cricket team in North America in 1859 was the first ever overseas cricket tour by an English team. The touring team is sometimes referred to as George Parr's XI.

The idea for the tour came from William Pickering, a former player who had emigrated to Canada in 1852 and first captained Canada against the United States the following year. Together with Robert Waller from St George's Cricket Club, Pickering opened discussions for a possible tour in 1856 but financial problems meant that it was three years before the money could be raised. The English team required a guarantee of £600, which Pickering obtained through the Montreal Cricket Club, Hamilton Cricket Club and St George's Cricket Club.

The English team comprised six members of the All-England Eleven and six of the United All-England Eleven. With George Parr as captain, the twelve players were effectively the cream of professional talent in the 1859 English cricket season that had just ended:

Five matches were played, all against XXIIs, so none had first-class status. Three exhibition games were also played in which the 12 England players divided and added five North Americans to each team to make up eleven-a-side matches. Including traveling time, the trip lasted two months and each English player (all professionals) cleared about £90, a sizeable sum at the time.

The team's opponents were:

Among their opponents were Harry Wright, a future pioneer of professional baseball, and Charles H. T. Collis, future Medal of Honor winner in the American Civil War.

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