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Negro Baseball Beginnings:

IN THE PERIOD OF RECONSTRUCTION AFTER THE CIVIL WAR, BLACK AND WHITE BALLPLAYERS OFTEN PLAYED ON THE SAME TEAMS. SOON AFTER, HOWEVER,THE COLOR LINE WAS BEING DRAWN ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY, SEPARATING WHITES AND BLACKS. AND BY 1899, JIM CROW LAWS AND AN UNOFFICIAL "GENTLEMAN'S AGREEMENT" HAD PUSHED NEGRO PLAYERS AND ALL PEOPLE OF COLOR COMPLETELY OUT OF ORGANIZED BASEBALL

Negro Americans played baseball throughout the 1800’s, and by the 1860’s notable black amateur teams such as the Colored Union Club, in Brooklyn and the Pythian Club, in Philadelphia had formed. All-black professional teams began in the 1880s, among them the St. Louis Black Stockings and the Cuban Giants (of New York). Reflecting American society in general, amateur and professional baseball remained largely segregated

During the 1890s, most professional black players were limited to playing in exhibition games on "colored" teams on the barnstorming circuit. Players on major league teams also barnstormed in cities and towns after the regular season was over. In some places black teams and white teams played each other, and some blacks played for all-black teams in otherwise all-white leagues.

1878: Bud Fowler, becomes the first Negro player to cross the color barrier as a pitcher for the Lynn, Mass. Live Oaks of the International League.
1883: Moses Fleetwood “Fleet” Walker, joins the minor league Toledo Blue Stockings as a catcher. When the Blue Stockings joined the American Association in 1884, Walker became the first Negro major leaguer.
1885: the (NY) Cuban Giants became the very first salaried professional black baseball team.
1887: In July of 1887, the International League banned future contracts with black players, although it allowed black players already under contract to stay on with their teams.
1894: Bud Fowler forms an independent Page Fence Giants team in Adrian, Michigan.
1901: In an attempt to bypass the color barrier, Baltimore Oriole manager John McGraw introduced his new player as Chief Charlie Tokohama, a full blooded American Indian. McGraw’s plan backfired when fans in Chicago recognized the ‘Chief’ as actually being Charlie Grant, a well known star for the Page Fence Giants.
1907: Pitcher Rube Foster begins his managerial career with the Leland Giants as a player-manager.
1920: On February 14, Rube Foster organizes the first black professional baseball league (Negro National League) consisting of eight teams: Chicago American Giants, Chicago Giants, Dayton Marcos, Detroit Stars, Indianapolis ABC’s, Kansas City Monarchs, St. Louis Giants, and the Cuban Stars.

The first successful organized Negro League was established on February 13, 1920, at a YMCA in Kansas City, Missouri. Andrew "Rube" Foster was the driving force behind the organization of this league and served as its president.

As a result of his leadership role in the early years of the leagues, Foster is known as "the father of black baseball." This first league was known as the Negro National League with member teams in the South and Midwest. The NNL operated successfully until 1931.

Three years after the founding of the NNL, the Eastern Colored League was formed on December 16, 1923, with Edward H. Bolden serving as chairman. In 1924, the very first Negro World Series was played between the ECL and the NNL champions. The ECL collapsed in the spring of 1928 but the member teams reemerged in 1929 as the American Negro League.

The depression years were especially difficult times for black baseball. In 1932, the East-West League was formed, but folded before the season ended. The Negro Southern League was the only black professional league to survive the 1932 season. The NSL was a minor league before and after the 1932 season.

In 1933, a second Negro National League was formed, and was the only black professional league operating until 1937. The league included teams from the East and the Midwest through 1935. By 1936, the NNL was operating exclusively in the East.

In 1937, teams in the South and the Midwest formed the Negro American League. The NAL and the NNL coexisted through the 1948 season. In 1949, the NNL was absorbed in the NAL, which operated as the last black major league through 1960.

As in the white major leagues, the Negro leagues had their own World Series. Over the years, eleven inter-league Black World Series were held. The NNL and ECL played from 1924 through 1927. Champions from the second NNL and the NAL competed from 1942 through 1948. Also in 1933, the black teams began all-star game competition. The game was known as the East-West game and was played each summer at Chicago's Comiskey Park. This game was considered more important than the World Series and annually attracted between 20,000 and 50,000 fans.

THE LEAGUES

ANL- American Negro League 1929. After the collapse of the ECL in the spring of 1928, the member teams reemerged in 1929 as the American Negro League.

ECL- Eastern Colored League 1922-1928. On December 16, 1922, the Eastern Colored League (chartered as the Mutual Association of Eastern Colored Baseball Clubs) is formally organized. The league will complete five seasons before folding in midsummer of 1928

IND - (I) Independent Club, no league affiliation.

LCBC - League of Colored Baseball Clubs; formed in 1887 and consisted of eight teams in Baltimore, Boston, Cincinnati, Louisville, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Washington. The league is recognized as an official minor league and protected under baseball's National Agreement, but it folded 13 games into its only season.

MSL - Middle States League 1889, a mixed color league (reorganized as the Eastern Interstate League in 1890) had the New York Gorhams and the Cuban Giants as member clubs. Unfortunately the Eastern Interstate League died mid-season with the Cuban Giants resurfacing in the Connecticut State League. That league also folded (1891) and the Cuban Giants returned to independent status.

NAL- Negro American League 1937-1950.

NNL- Negro National League 1920-1948

NSL- Negro Southern League 1932 - The Negro Southern League was the only major circuit to complete its schedule in 1932. The NSL was a minor league before and after the 1932 season.

NEWL - Negro East West League. Formed in 1932 and folded during its only season.

WCNBL- West Coast Negro Baseball League 1946

THE TEAMS

Algona Brownies of Iowa (IND) 1902-1903
All Nations Team (IND) 1912-1918
Argyle Hotel Athletics (IND) 1885
Atlanta Black Crackers (IND, NSL, NAL) 1938
Atlantic City Bacharach Giants (IND) 1916-1922, 1930-1933, (ECL) 1923-1928, (ANL) 1929, (NNL) 1934
Baltimore Black Sox (IND) 1916-1922, (ECL) 1923-1928, (ANL) 1929, (I) 1930-1931, (EWL) 1932, (NNL) 1933 1934
Baltimore Elite Giants (NNL) 1938-1948, (NAL) 1949-1950
Birminghham Black Barons (NNL) 1924-1925, 1927-1930, (NSL) 1926, 1931-1936, (NAL) 1937-1938, 1940-1950
Brooklyn Eagles (NNL) 1935
Brooklyn Royal Giants 1905-1942
(I) 1905-1922, 1934-1941,
(ECL) 1923-1927, (NNL) 1933
Chicago American Giants 1911-1950 (IND) 1911-1919, 1936, (NNL) 1920-1931, 1933-1935, (NSL) 1932, (NAL) 1937-1950
Columbia Giants of Chicago (I) 1899-1900
Chicago Giants 1910-1921
(I) 1910-1919, (NNL) 1920-1921
Leland Giants (I) 1905-1910
Chicago Unions (I) 1888-1900
Chicago Union Giants (I) 1901-1904
Cincinnati Buckeyes (NAL) 1942
Cincinnati Clowns (NAL) 1943
Cincinnati-Indpls Clowns (NAL) 1944-1945
CincinnatiTigers 1934-1937 (I) 1934-1936, (NAL) 1937
Cleveland Bears (NAL) 1939-1940
Cleveland Browns (NNL) 1924
Cleveland Buckeyes (NAL) 1943-1948, 1950
Cleveland Cubs (NNL) 1931
Cleveland Elites (NNL) 1926
Cleveland Giants (NNL) 1933
Cleveland Hornets (NNL) 1927
Cleveland Red Sox (NNL) 1934
Cleveland Stars (EWL) 1932
Cleveland Tate Stars (NNL) 1922
Cleveland Tigers (NNL) 1928
Cole's American Giants 1932-1935
(NSL) 1932, (NN) 1933-1935
Columbia Giants (I) 1933
Columbus Blue Birds (NNL) 1899-1900
Columbus Buckeyess (NNL) 1921
Columbus Elite Giants (NNL) 1935
Cuban Giants 1885-1899 (I) 1885-1888, 1892-1899, (MSL) 1889-1890,
(CSL) 1891
Cuban Stars (East) 1916-1929 (IND) 1916-1922, (ECL) 1923-1928, (ANL) 1929
Cuban Stars (West) 1907-1930 (IND) 1907-1919, (NNL) 1920-1930
Cuban X-Giants (I) 1897-1907
Dayton Marcos 1919-1926
(I) 1921-1925, (NNL) 1919,1926
Denver White Elephants (IND)
Detroit Cubs 1935 (IND)
Detroit Stars 1919-1931 (IND) 1919, (NNL) 1920-1931, 1933, (NAL) 1937
Detroit Wolves (EWL) 1932
Ethiopian Clowns (IND)
Harlem Stars
Harrisburg Giants 1922-1927 (IND) 1922-1923, (ECL) 1924-1927
Harrisburg-St.Louis Stars (NNL) 1943
Havana Red Sox (I) 1917
Havana Stars (I) 1917
Hilldale Daisies 1916-1932 (IND) 1916-1922, 1930-1931 (ECL) 1923-1928, (ANL) 1929, (EWL) 1932
Homestead Grays 1912-1950 (IND) 1912-1928,1930-1933,1949-1959, (ANL) 1929, (NNL) 1934-1938
Houston Eagles (NAL) 1949-1950
Indianapolis ABCs 1913-1926, 1931-1933, 1938-1939 (IND) 1913-1919, (NNL) 1920-1926,1931,1933, (NSL) 1932, (NAL) 1938-1939
Indianapolis Athletics (NAL) 1937
Indianapolis-Cincinnati Clowns (NAL) 1944
Indianapolis Clowns (NAL) 1943-1950
Indianapolis Crawfords (NAL) 1940
Jacksonville Red Caps (NNL) 1938, 1941-1942
Kansas City Kansas Giants (I) 1909-1915
Kansas City Monarchs 1920-1950 (NNL) 1920-1931, (I) 1932-1936, (NAL) 1937-1950
Little Rock Black Travelers (IND)
Long Branch Cubans (I) 1915-1916
Louisville Black Caps (NSL) 1932
Louisville Black Colonels
Louisville Buckeyes (NAL) 1949
Louisville White Sox (NNL) 1931
Memphis Red Sox 1923-1950 (IND) 1923, (NNL) 1924-1930, (NSL) 1926,1932, (NAL) 1936-1950
Miami Ethiopian Clowns (IND)
Milwaukee Bears (NNL) 1923
Mohawk Giants (IND) 1913-1915
Mobile Black Bears (IND)
Monroe Monarchs (NSL) 1932
Montgomery Grey Sox (NSL) 1932
Nashville Elite Giants 1921-1934 (IND) 1921-1925, (NSL) 1926-1929, 1932 (NNL) 1930, 1933-1934
New Orleans Eagles
New Orleans-St.Louis Stars 1940-1941 (IND) 1940, (NAL) 1941
New York Black Yankees 1932-1950 (IND) 1932-1950, 1949-1959, (NAL) 1936-1948
New York Cubans 1935-1950 (NNL) 1935-1936, 1939-1948, (NAL) 1949-1950
New York Gorhams (I) 1887-1891
New York Harlem Stars (IND)
New York Lincoln Giants 1911-1930 (IND) 1911-1922, 1927,1930, (ECL) 1923-1926, (ANL) 1929
New York Lincoln Stars (IND) 1914-1916
Newark Browns (EWL) 1932
Newark Dodgers 1933-1935 (IND) 1933, (NNL) 1934-1935
Newark Eagles (NNL) 1936-1948
Newark Stars (ECL) 1926
Page Fence Giants (I) 1894-1898
Philadelphia Giants (I) 1902-1916
Philadelphia Pythians (IND)
Philadelphia Stars 1933-1950 (IND) 1933, (NNL) 1934-1948, (NAL) 1949-1950
Philadelphia Tigers (ECL) 1928
Pittsburgh Crawfords 1931-1938 (IND) 1931-1932, (NNL) 1933-1938
Pittsburgh Keystones (I) (LCBC) 1887
Pittsburgh Keystones (II) (NNL) 1922
St.Louis Giants 1909-1921 (IND) 1909-1919, (NNL) 1920-1921
St.Louis Stars (I) (NNL) 1922-1931
St.Louis Stars (II) 1937-1943 (NAL) 1937, 1939, 1941 (I) 1940 (NNL) 1943
St.Paul Gophers (I) 1909
Stars of Cuba (I) 1910
Toledo Crawfords (NAL) 1938
Toledo Tigers (NNL) 1923
Washington Black Senators (NNL) 1938
Washington Elite Giants (NNL) 1937-1938
Washington Pilots (EWL) 1932
Washington Potomacs 1923-1924 (IND) 1923, (ECL) 1924
Wilmington Potomacs (ECL) 1925
Zulu Cannibal Giants (I) 1934-1937

The remaining teams listed below may also have hosted colored players or played independently.

Ligon All-Stars, Houston Buffaloes, House of David, Boston Giants, Bismarck, Acme Giants, Gilkerson's Colored Giants, Muskogee Cardinals, Harlem Queens, Nashville Stars, Hollywood Beavers, Jacksonville Eagles, Brooklyn Cuban Giants, Buchanan All-Stars, New Orleans Creoles, Florida Cubans, San Francisco Cubs, Havana Cuban Giants, Omaha Rockets, New York Harlem Black Yankees, Havana La Palomas, Cincinnati Crescents, Texas Jasper Steers, Louisiana Travellers, Twin City Gophers, Ethiopian Clowns. Piney Woods Collegians, San Antonio Black Missions, House of Alexander Wiskered Wizards, Dunseith Giants, Colored House of David

THE ABOVE INFO WAS PROVIDED BY

The Negro League Baseball Players Association