Chauncey was a native of
Brooklyn, New York, and a baseball fan. He got into the sport by financing the formation of a team in the
Players' League of 1890 that became known as
Brooklyn Ward's Wonders, named for
manager and
shortstop John Montgomery Ward. Chauncey also financed the construction of a stadium for the Wonders in
Brownsville, called
Eastern Park. The team and the league lasted only one season. In 1891, Chauncey arranged a merger of his team with the
National League's
Brooklyn Grooms. The deal saw him accumulate a large share of the Grooms stock and he convinced the other owners to leave their previous home at
Washington Park for his facility at
Eastern Park. He also insisted that manager
Bill McGunnigle, who had just won two league championships, be fired and replaced with Ward, which the other owners, desperate for his cash, agreed to. Chauncey's time as owner of the Brooklyn team came to an end in 1897 when he sold his shares in the team to the other owners
Ferdinand Abell and
Charles Byrne. Chauncey had multiple business interests in banking and real estate, including being president of a bank from 1902 to 1914 then
chairman until his death, and was president of a real estate company. He was a
Freemason and an avid
angler. He was interred at
Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, and was survived by his wife and three children. ==References==