The Last Time The Cubs Won, The Ottoman Empire Still Existed

Surely a furniture store named “Ottoman Empire” could explain why the World Series is 3–2.
WikiCommons

Any informed Chicago Cubs fan knows that the last time the team won the World Series — Oct. 14, 1908 — the Ottoman Empire still existed. (The dissolution officially occurred in 1923.)

This factoid resurfaces whenever the Cubs get remotely close to winning the baseball championship again for the first time in over 100 years. As the team is currently playing in the World Series, you’ve probably heard or read various references to this historical anomaly over and over again in recent days.

Wanting to do due diligence as an internet content creator (and lifelong Cubs fan), but failing to find a rep listed for the Ottoman Empire, I reached out to a furniture company named “Ottoman Empire.” I don’t know why the Cubs aren’t winning (at press time, the series was at 3–2), so I went searching for answers any way I could.

The store has yet to return my repeated attempts to secure an exclusive conversation about what life was like in the time when world-winning Cubs and world-losing Ottomans wandered the earth at the same time.

This story is ongoing and will be updated if any new information arises. A separate investigation into whether a Chicago Cub has ever sat on an ottoman also remains open.

Please send any and all tips you may have.

1908? More like 19-oh-great. Because that's when the Cubs won.
1908? More like 19-oh-great. Because that's when the Cubs won.
Chicago History Museum via Getty Images

Before You Go

Time Machine to 1908: Cubs Win the World Series

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