Baseball dates back to the 1850s.  And in those early days, pitching was far different than it is today.  For starters, pitchers didn't stand on a mound.  Instead, they stood within a six-foot square similar to the modern batter's box.  The front edge of the pitching square was only 45 feet from home plate.  Yet the biggest difference was that the hitters actually got to call their pitches.  That's right; the batter could request the pitcher throw the ball high, low, or in the middle.     

In 1881, the pitching square was moved back five feet.  Six years later, the square was made smaller and batters lost the right to request pitches.  A pitching plate replaced the box in 1893, with the plate positioned at today's distance of 60 feet and six inches from the batter.  It's believed the pitcher was to stand only 60 feet away, but a mistake by the groundskeeper actually set the pitching plate six inches farther back.  

By 1903, the pitching mound came into existence, with the height set no higher than 15 inches.  Eventually, pitchers became so dominant, baseball had to take action and reduce the maximum height of the mound, so in 1968 the standard was cut back to just 10 inches in order to level the playing field between pitchers and hitters.   
   
Pitching has certainly gone through plenty of changes over the years, but one thing that has always remained is the nation's passion for the game.  Baseball truly is the American pastime.