Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport

Robert Cvornyek

During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, occupied an important social and cultural space in Newport’s African-American community . Black athletic clubs, fraternal and civic organizations, and local neighborhood associations sponsored semi-professional and amateur teams that regularly competed against each other and nearby white teams . These teams functioned independently, but some found a home in the city’s organized amateur leagues . Whether independent or affiliated, these ball clubs represented Newport’s black neighborhoods and functioned as agents in the formation of racial identity and community . Equally important, minority players transformed the city’s ball fields into public spaces dedicated to the struggle for equality . In 1930, for example, William H . Jackson, an African-American political activist and Republican Party leader, reported to the Newport Daily News that he had recovered one of his community’s lost treasures . The cherished item, a silver trophy cup, stood approximately ten inches high and bore the following inscription: “ Won by the Newport Baseball Club, July 4, 1884 .” The Newports, an all-black team, won the cup and claimed title to the city championship by defeating the Live Oaks, an all-white team, by a score of 12 to 5 . The contest attracted an “overflow” crowd at Polo Lot, one of the few integrated public recreational spaces in Newport . The recovery of the trophy called to mind the role baseball once played in contesting white superiority, crushing negative stereotypes of black athleticism and promoting community through sport . This memory, set within Handwritten box-score that features Marcus Wheatland Jr. playing for the Orioles in 1921. the context of America’s national holiday and pastime, reminded Jackson and others that photograph courtesy of george d. donnelly jr. baseball was their game too 1. The history of African-American baseball in Newport occupies a significant, but untapped, source of information on the city’s social and cultural past . Newport’s black community established Rhode Island’s first black team, the Newports, in 1879 and routinely sent late nineteenth-century teams to Providence to compete in Emancipation Day celebrations . Newport witnessed the first non-white player to integrate the city’s amateur Sunset League, Marcus Wheatland Jr ., in 1920 . Wheatland’s father, a prominent doctor and pioneer in X-Ray technology, served as one the League’s earliest umpires . The city produced black state championship teams, like the Unions in 1908, and hosted professional Negro League teams that barnstormed through 2. Newport’s historic connection and rivalry with Providence repositions the local black game in a broader statewide context . Both cities established stable African-

Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 1 American communities during the nineteenth century that later embraced the national pastime following the American Civil War . In Providence, the first successful efforts to organize black teams occurred at approximately the same time as Newport . The Providence Colored Grays, for example, initiated play in 1886 just a few years after the Newports 3. The Providence Colored Giants replaced the Grays by 1902 and experienced a nearly uninterrupted run into the 1930s . In a similar vein, the Union Athletic Club initiated play in 1908 and continued, but not continuously, into the mid-1930s . African Americans in Providence integrated the city’s amateur leagues a bit later than Newport, but clearly in advance of integration at the national professional level . In 1926, for instance, the Providence Colored Giants assembled a team that included white players and gained affiliation in the previously all-white Providence Suburban League 4. Emancipation Day celebrations held at Point, in Warwick, customarily included a championship game that pitted the best black team in Newport against its counterpart in Providence . In fact, many of the earliest games to feature black teams and players took place on Emancipation Day observed on the first Monday in August . African Americans from across the state and throughout the region gathered at Rocky Point to commemorate the abolition of West Indian, not American slavery . The annual festival served as one of the community’s most significant cultural events . By the late nineteenth century, baseball became a featured attraction in Rhode Island that drew crowds, sometimes in the thousands, to watch teams square off against one another . These teams represented various sponsors and covered a spectrum of athletic talent . They included makeshift “picked nines,” supported by the black affiliates of fraternal organizations like the Odd Fellows, Knights Templar, and Elks, as well as organized semi-professional clubs from Providence and Newport . In 1883, the Newports defeated the Providence Whackers by a score of seven to six, to claim the state’s first black championship banner . In 1886, Providence retaliated and won its first title after the Colored Grays defeated the Newport-based Puritans by a tally of 11 to 6 5. There were times, however, when opposing African-American teams met in friendly competition for fun and camaraderie . This was certainly the case when players representing the Canochet Lodge of Newport and the Hope Lodge of Providence, both associated with the Grand Union Order of Odd Fellows, met in an amusing contest in 1893 . According to the Providence Journal, “the majority of the Newporters were arrayed in pink negligee shirts with black ties and at once became the especial pets of the ladies, who looked upon Daniel Whitehead, known as the Father of Black Baseball in Rhode the game as one of appearance rather than playing ”. 6 Competition between the cities Island, established and managed the Providence Colored Giants. lasted until the turn of the twentieth century . Thereafter, Emancipation Day games were (This photograph has been reproduced before. It originally appeared in the Providence Journal in 1908.) played between black teams from Providence that sought a city-wide championship . The change, most likely, occurred after Providence’s Golgathy Commandery of the Knights Templar assumed sponsorship of the celebration 7.

2 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 3 In the midst of this rich history, two examples help substantiate the relationship between race and sport and offer a glimpse into the community’s construction of racial identity . One story relates to the remarkable playing career of Herbert Wosencroft and the other recounts a memorable game at renowned Cardines Field in 1947 . Wosencroft’s case exemplifies the growing body of scholarship that finds racial attitudes and boundaries more fluid and complex at the local sports level, especially during the era of the Great Migration when millions of African-Americans moved from the South to urban areas of the North beginning in the early twentieth century . In Newport, for example, individual African Americans desegregated previously all-white teams while Wosencroft excelled in basketball and cross-country. His athletic talent earned him a place in the others simultaneously competed on all black teams . All of this occurred before 1921, Rogers High School Athletic Hall of Fame. rogers yearbook, 1929. courtesy of the rogers high school alumni association. the year when the first truly integrated team, the Orioles, fielded a team “composed partly of colored players and whites” to compete in the city’s amateur Sunset League 8. The standard narrative of “exclusion to inclusion” in American sport history simply fails to explain racial dynamics at the local level . The second example “New England Cross-Country features the presence of a professional Negro League team, the Baltimore Elite Giants, at Champions”: The Red & Black: Cardines Field in 1947 . This case illustrates that Newport’s black fans refused to abandon Graduation Number, 1928. Natalie Dunn, ed., Gladding their support for all black teams even in the face of Robinson’s successful integration of Print, May 23, 1928, white professional baseball . Newport’s black fans understood perfectly that racial identity p. 24. from the collection was shaped and determined by teams that represented their sensibilities, struggles, and of george d. donnelly, jr. cultural aesthetics . courtesy of the rogers high school alumni association. Herbert L . “Tweet” Wosencroft left an unforgettable legacy as a multi-sport athlete in baseball, basketball, and track and field . Born and raised in Newport, Wosencroft attended Rogers High School where, as a junior, he was selected to the first All-Rhode Island All-Star Basketball Team in 1928, an honor he also received during his senior year . In addition to his achievements on the court, Wosencroft’s fellow classmates celebrated Tweet as a mainstay on the school’s New England Championship Cross County team, record setter on the track team, and exemplary teammate on the baseball club . His yearbook inscription read that, “everything he has is always put into the game and Herbert Rosencroft is all the praise, which may be given, is justly due him .”9 second from the right, first row. “Basketball,” Wosencroft was born in 1909, the son of Herbert and Lucy Lee Wosencroft . The Red & Black: He married Ethel Louise Allston in 1937 and, together, the couple raised four sons Basketball Number. and seven daughters . In 1935, he accepted the position of Newport City Sergeant, a Natalie Dunn, ed., civil service job he held until his resignation in 1942 . He exchanged this livelihood Gladding Print, April 4, 1928, p. 13. for the Post Office where he worked for the next thirty-seven years until his retirement Photograph by in 1979 . He remained active in civic and fraternal organizations and served as the Samuel Kerschner. Assistant Secretary of the Douglass Republican Club, a member of the Credentials from the collection of george d. donnelly, jr. Committee for the state Republican Party; and Knights Chancellor in the Galahad Club . with appreciation to 10 He passed away in 1988 and was buried in Portsmouth’s Trinity Cemetery . the rogers high school alumni association.

4 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 5 Wosencroft’s career coincided with the “Golden Age” of baseball during the 1920s . later formed the nucleus of the Newport As professional baseball entered its highpoint during this time, so did amateur and Colored Giants, a team that competed semi-professional ball . In Rhode Island, Newport and Providence developed the most in the city’s Old Timers’ League . These organized and successful city leagues . These amateur federations were structured on players included Arthur Greene, John a competitive basis with the best teams belonging to the upper echelon divisions . In Wiggington, Harold Riley, and Ernie Newport, the Sunset League showcased the finest ballplaying in town . In Providence, the Jenkins 12. Tim O’Neil League that included the Amateur League division and the Melrose League In 1932, the Newport Colored attracted the finest ballplayers . On a less competitive level, Providence supported an Giants retained most of its players, but industrial league while Newport hosted a mixture of industrial and neighborhood teams . changed its name to the Union Athletic The least competitive associations included the Commercial and Church Leagues . Club . Tweet roamed centerfield for the After graduation from Rogers High School, Wosencroft accepted an offer to play Union Athletic Club, the only non-white for the Vernons in the city’s Sunset League . When he joined the team, it was “more or team in Newport’s Municipal League . less unknown to the fans,” since the Vernons had participated in the entry-level Junior The club’s stellar performance resulted League since 1921 . Gene Brooks, an African American who managed the club, believed in an invitation to join the city’s Sunset the 1929 club possessed the age, experience, and talent to make the leap into the upper League the following year . The move echelon of Newport baseball . Sunset League officials held Brooks in high regard for his placed Wosencroft back in Newport’s athletic ability and fan appeal and he clearly devoted considerable time to develop the most competitive amateur league playing Ernest Jenkins enjoyed a successful career as a Vernons and mentor its black players . So, when Brooks petitioned for admission into for the first African-American team in power hitter with several teams in the Sunset League the Sunset, the League overwhelmingly approved his application . The Vernons fielded an Sunset League history . Wosencroft made including the Fifth Ward Club and the South Ends. photograph courtesy of george d. donnelly, jr. integrated team that included mostly Irish and African-American players, who lived in his mark at “The Basin,” later renamed the Vernon Playground neighborhood . Wosencroft joined fellow black players Clarence Cardines Field, as a complete ballplayer “Clammy” Butler, a fire-ball pitcher, Spencer Remong, a middle infielder, Bennie Jordan, whom the press characterized as a “hard hitting ball hawk .”13 a utility player, and Ralph Williams, a talented outfielder, on the team 11. At the end of the 1933 season, Wosencroft and his teammates received an offer Local newspaper accounts also placed Wosencroft as the leadoff batter and from a familiar source, the 1908 Union Athletic Club . Considerate members of the centerfielder for the American Ice Company, an unaffiliated industrial team that played 1908 team promised to help outfit and equip the present team for the upcoming year . many of its games at the Vernon Playground . American Ice included several players who The veterans pledged to launch a fund-raising campaign that featured the team of twenty-five years before in a three-inning Old-Timers’ game against the newer team . Teammates Clarence “Clammy” Percy Wheeler, the former baseball and football star at Rogers High School, volunteered Butler and Arthur “Highpockets” his services as umpire . Additional activities including dances, socials and smokers were Greene on Joe and Vi’s Cubs. also planned . The old-timers stood solidly behind the team in appreciation of its fine They also played together on the Union Athletic Club in 1933 and showing in 1933, but the veterans also possessed first-hand knowledge of the financial 1934 and on the Newport Red challenges facing the newcomers to the Sunset League . At the turn of the century, Sox in 1937. This photograph is a Newport’s black community had nurtured the Unions . So much so, that the club detail from a photograph of the secured the Colored Championship of Rhode Island in both 1907 and 1908 . In 1909, Cubs team in 1934. kerschner- harrington collection, newport the team made it to the final game for the Colored Championship of New England . historical society. with thanks The Unions lost its bid for a regional championship to the Miles Standish Athletic Club to george d. donnelly, jr., who of Worcester in a contest played at Crescent Park, in East Providence . This relationship first identified this image for between the current Unions and yesteryear’s team demonstrated the connection between the author. past and present, reawakened memories of the city’s legendary black teams, and affirmed

6 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 7 Wosencroft also played basketball for the Union Athletic Club. The Club sponsored a team in the Sunset Basketball League in 1932. The Basketball League was established in 1929. photograph courtesy of george d. donnelly, jr.

The Union Athletic Club 1934 team photo. Herbert “Tweet” Wosencroft is located in the front row far left. On , the team’s official roster included Fred Young, William Trent, Charles Green, John Henry Wigington, Harold E. Riley, Spencer Remong, James Johnson, Arthur Greene, Ralph Williams, Clarence Butler, Frank Savoy, William Hurley, and Coleman Jones. photograph courtesy of the wosencroft family. the original, taken by samuel kerschner, can be found in the kerschner-harrington collection at the Scorecards for the Union Athletic Club baseball team. from the george donnelly collection, newport historical society. courtesy of george donnelly, jr.

8 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 9 the important role sport played in the social and cultural lives of Newport’s black residents . Events like the Old Timers’ game introduced past players to a new generation of baseball fans, but also strengthened a sense of racial identity and acknowledged a shared racial past 14. Another example, this one quite different in tone, exhibited similar aspects of racial solidarity, self-help and in-group cohesion . In early May, 1934, Wosencroft learned that his teammate, shortstop Charles Green, died tragically in a boat accident near Briggs Wharf . The team, in concert with the Sunset League, sponsored a benefit game to assist Green’s family . Pitcher Fred Young tried his best to secure the win for the Unions, but he could not handle the batters of the Harlows, the League’s first-place team . The Harlows defeated the Unions by a tally of 15-7 . According to the Newport

Daily News, “the highlight Glass plate negative depicting a Sunset League baseball game at Cardines Field, May 12, 1940. of the affair, however, did not collection of the newport historical society, newport daily news glass plate negative collection (p458). center on the performance of During Wosencroft’s playing career, black traveling teams, competing at the the two teams, but on the fans’ professional, semi-professional, and amateur level, had also visited Newport . Benefit game advertisement for Charles Harrison Green Jr. contribution of $100 .64 for the This tradition began in 1895 when the Cuban Giants, the nation’s first professional who died in a tragic boat accident on April 24, 1934. benefit of the parents of Charles black traveling team, began its long-term affiliation with the city . The Cubans were, Green lived on 57 Callendar Street and played shortstop Green ” . Baseball had always for the Union Athletic Club. photograph courtesy of in fact, an all-black team that chose the name to attract white opponents who would been more than just a game in george d. donnelly jr. otherwise shun an African-American team . The Giants initiated play at Freebody Park, Newport’s black community .15 but subsequent franchises shifted to recently opened Wellington Park in 1908 and Wosencroft began the 1934 season as a member of the Union Athletic Club, but after finally settled at Cardines Field the team lost its affiliation with the Sunset League, he found a home with the Pontiacs, in 1940 . The fans’ most popular an all-white team . He and teammate Harold Riley helped desegregate the Pontiacs, team to visit the city was which placed the club among one of the first integrated teams in the League . In 1935, the Colored Giants, he continued to play in the Sunset League, but now as a member of Luna Petroleum . sometimes referred to as the Boston Sunset luminaries William (Billy) Bull served as his manager and George Donnelly as Royal Giants . The Boston matches his fellow teammate 16. added a sense of regional rivalry to Donnelly, who later became the city’s premier sportswriter and sport historian, the contests and the Hub City played a crucial role in commemorating Wosencroft’s accomplishments . Donnelly’s rosters often included black newspaper column, “Sports in the News,” periodically mentioned Tweet’s role in the players from Rhode Island . The Sunset League’s rich history and his reputation as one of its most outstanding players . last significant team to play at More than anyone else, Donnelly, a former player, Sunset League official, and longtime Cardines Field featured legendary scorekeeper, documented Wosencroft’s contributions . Wosencroft indeed occupied a pitcher in a cameo Satchel Paige, one of the greatest baseball pitchers of all time, distinctive place in the city’s history as someone who used his athletic skill to help crush appeared at Cardines Field in 1950 with the Philadelphia Stars. role for the Philadelphia Stars in the barriers of racial discrimination and segregation 17. photograph courtesy of george d. donnelly, jr. 1950 18.

10 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 11 The immediate post-World War II period represented the “golden age” for Negro League clubs to schedule exhibition games against the city’s own Sunset Stars . The Sunset Stars were a picked all-star team that represented the best ballplayers in the Sunset League . These games proved immensely popular among local fans, especially African Americans, who seized the opportunity to witness the best black professional players . At that time, there were no Negro League teams located in New England, but clubs traveled, or barnstormed, there to supplement their revenue . The local press advertised these games as marquee match-ups between top-notch talent, and Sunset League officials scheduled the contests on days and times to attract the largest possible audience . Most games were played under the floodlights on Wednesday evenings at renowned Cardines Field . Fans purchased tickets at affordable rates, fifty cents for general admission and sixty-five cents for reserved seats 19. One of the most memorable matches occurred between the Baltimore Elite Giants and the Sunset Stars on July 23, 1947 . According to sportswriter George Donnelly, this game featured several of the most talented players to ever visit Newport 20. The Giants posted one of the strongest line-ups in the Negro (NNL) and the Advertisement for the Baltimore Elite Giants Floodlight game in 1947. Stars included the most skilled players in Newport’s highly competitive Sunset League . courtesy of george d. donnelly jr. Baltimore sent its hard throwing right-hander Joe Black to the mound and positioned Jim “Junior” Gilliam at second base . Both men would eventually join the Brooklyn Dodger organization and help the team achieve its first world championship in 1955 . The Giants also included the NNL batting champion, Henry Kimbro, in center field and perennial all-star Thomas “Pee Wee” Butts at shortstop .21 After a twelve-hour bus trip from Baltimore, the Giants arrived in Newport too late to take batting practice . According to one report, the team’s manager, George “Tubby” Scales, stated that his team “didn’t need any pre-game exercise,” and instructed his team to play ball 22. Scales, a former infielder with the Elite Giants and New York Black Yankees, felt confident that his players would overcome the stiffness of the bus ride once they batted and took the field . He was right . The Giants recorded three runs in the top of the first inning and never looked back . By the end of the game, Gilliam scored two runs and Black allowed two runs on three hits with a final score of 14-2 .23 Following the game, the team boarded its bus and traveled to New Jersey to begin a series with its NNL rival, the .24 Talent aside, the timing of this game offers valuable insight into black baseball, both regional and national . When the Elite Giants arrived in Newport, Jackie Robinson had already shattered the color line in as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers . Even to home, the Dodger organization had selected a city in New England, Nashua, New Hampshire, to establish the first integrated in the Baltimore Elite Giants official scorecard compiled by George D. Donnelly. . , a former catcher with the Baltimore Elite Giants, and courtesy of george d. donnelly jr.

12 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 13 , a pitcher with the Newark Eagles, joined the , which became an affiliate in the Class B in 1946 25. During 1947, Newport’s black baseball fans certainly supported Jackie Robinson’s historic achievements and closely followed the pitching career of Nashua’s Don Newcombe . This did not mean, however, that they lost interest in the Negro Leagues, especially the teams that traveled to Cardines to play against the all-white Sunset All-Stars . In subsequent years, Negro League teams, including the New York Cubans, Philadelphia Stars and New York Black Yankees, continued to excite black fans and fill the seats in Cardines Field 26. Sunset League financial records revealed that games featuring black teams set the highest paid attendance marks .27 Katie Grovell, who served as the Sunset Star’s batgirl during the 1940s, recalled that Negro League teams attracted a large local African-American following . For many black fans, the games presented a rare opportunity to watch professional black ballplayers . The Sunset League teams couldn’t compete with the star power of the Negro League clubs . Grovell, who is African- American, remarked that few, if any, black fans supported the hometown team .28

(above) Fifth Ward Team, 1946. Photograph by Samuel Kerschner. kerschner-harrington collection, newport historical society.

(below) The San Juan Stars, comprised of players from the Puerto Rican and Cuban Winter Leagues, defeated the Sunset Stars on September 1, 1948. Newport photographer Samuel Kerschner captured the following players, left to right, Jose Fernandez, Charles Rivera, Jose Burgos, Felix Andrade, Mario Alfonso, and Juan Ledee. photograph courtesy of george d. donnelly, jr.

Katie Grovell warming up the legendary Satchel Paige between innings at a game that featured the Philadelphia Stars and Sunset League All-Stars at Cardines Field on July 28, 1950. photograph courtesy of katie grovell.

14 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 15 In 1947, the Elite Giants encompassed a team of African-American players that competed under the sponsorship of a black owner, Thomas T . Wilson, and received the tutelage of a black manager and coaching staff . It must be understood that this model proved equally powerful in the fight to achieve recognition and full equality . Newport’s African-American community acknowledged the critical role that individual blacks were playing to desegregate the national pastime, but they also identified with black teams that contended successfully against local white clubs . African-American fans found a consistency and dignity in their black players that shaped racial identity and reinforced the notion that the struggle for racial equality can be found in several different arenas, including the baseball diamond . Within the past decade, sport has emerged as a new and promising field of historical inquiry 29. Sport has much to tell us about who we are and aspire to be . At various historical moments baseball, in particular, has mirrored and reinforced the prevailing racial climate, but it also challenged the dominant construction of race during the Jim Crow era . It both reflects and informs the formation of racial identity . The collision of race and sport has attracted considerable scholarly attention at the national level, but the local scene remains unappreciated and underdeveloped . Currently, minimal historical attention and scholarship exist on the everyday sports that engaged Newport’s racial minorities or how their experience differs from leisure activities experienced by others in the city . This essay offers a suggestive overview and speaks to the potential that sport history has for including those who left few historical records behind .

ENDNOTES

1  Newport Mercury, September 12, 1930, p. 2. For a brief biography of William H. Jackson, see Richard C. Youngken, African Americans in Newport: An Introduction to the Heritage of African Americans in Newport, Rhode Island, 1700-1945 (Newport: Newport Historical Society, 1998), 53. 2  The Newports, organized in 1879, became Rhode Island’s first black baseball club. The team competed until 1893 when it disbanded. The founding officers of the Newports included: president, Henry Johnson; vice-president, S. Gaines; recording secretary, G. Boardley; corresponding secretary, J. DeWitt; treasurer, Draft announcement for upcoming Floodlight Games written by George D. Donnelly. Donnelly occupied W. Weeden; directors, J. DeWitt, S. Gaines, and G. Mumford. One of the team’s most memorable games a pivotal role in Newport sports history. He played and managed in the Sunset League, occupied several occurred on July 4, 1884, when the club defeated the Live Oaks for the city championship. During the administrative posts in the League, and wrote a popular sports column for the Newport Daily News. post-game celebration, James Gordon Bennett presented the Newports with a silver cup to recognize its photograph courtesy of george d. donnelly jr. achievement. See Newport Daily News, September 12, 1930, for a reminiscence of the story. References to Marcus Wheatland Jr. are located in Newport Daily News, July 3 and July 31, 1920. For coverage of the game that Wheatland’s father umpired, see Newport Daily News, June 16, 1920, clippings located in the newspaper clippings files, George D. Donnelly papers. Donnelly’s papers and correspondence are in the possession of his son, George D. Donnelly Jr., who kindly gave the author of this article access to his father’s collection. For additional information on Wheatland, see Myra B. Young Armstead, “Lord, Please Don’t Take Me in

16 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 17 August”: African Americans in Newport and Saratoga Springs, 1870-1930 (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 22 “Sunset Stars Trounced by Elite Giants 14-2,” clipping located in the newspaper clippings files, 1999), 127-129. A brief history of the 1908 Unions can be found in Newport Mercury, September 22, 1933, George Donnelly papers. p. 6. For a complete list of the professional black traveling and Negro League teams in Newport, see 23 Ibid. The most substantive record of Scales’s managerial and playing career is Dr. Layton Revel and Luis “Black Traveling Teams in Rhode Island” in Robert Cvornyek, Black Grays and Colored Giants: Munoz, Forgotten Heroes: George “Tubby” Scales located at www.cnlbr.org, accessed March 8, 2015. African American Baseball in Rhode Island, 1879-1949, manuscript in author’s possession. 24 “Eagles and Elites in 3 Games at ,” The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, July 20, 1947, and “Newark Eagles 3 The Providence Colored Grays functioned as an authentic semi-pro team as evidenced by the following Seek Revenge for Elite Loss,” The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, July 25, 1947. report in the Providence Journal on September 21, 1886: “The game of baseball between the Pawtuckets and the Colored Grays of Providence, for a purse of $100 and the gate receipts, which was postponed from last 25 On the history of the African-American players on Nashua Dodger club, see Steve Daly, Dem Little Bums: Thursday was played yesterday at Messer Park in the presence of about 200 spectators.” The Nashua Dodgers (Concord, N.H.: Plaidswede Publishing, 2002) and for specific information on Roy Campanella, see Neil Lanctot, Campy: The Two Lives of Roy Campanella (New York: Simon and Schuster, 4 Providence Sunday Journal, August 1, 1886, p. 8. 2011), 48-77. 5 Providence Journal, May 23, 1926, p. 6 26 See “Top Semi-Pro Teams to Invade Newport,” Newport Mercury, May 21, 1948, p. 7. 6 Providence Journal, August 2, 1893, p. 8 27 For the paid attendance figures, see the financial report compiled by George Donnelly titled, “Floodlight 7 Providence Journal, August 2, 1901, p. 3. Baseball,” located in the Donnelly papers. 8 See Appendix I: Sunset League Integration Timeline at the end of this article; Newport Daily News, 28 Katie Grovell in discussion with the author, March 20, 2010. For information on Grovell, see also June 16, 1920, in Donnelly papers. Thomas Gannon,” Field of Dreams: Baseball Players Still Hit Homers in Cardines Field, One of America’s 9 Wosencroft’s athletic career at Rogers High School is summarized in the School’s 1929 Yearbook located in Oldest Ballparks,” March 12, 2004, http://www.preservationnation.org/magazine/story-of-the-week/2004/ the Donnelly papers. See: “Sheik,” a brief biographical sketch of Wosencroft, in the Yearbook. field-of-dreams.html , date accessed, March 4, 2015; George Donnelly, Jr., e-mail to the author, 10 For information on Wosencroft’s personal and professional career, see Newport Mercury, February 2, 1934, March 27, 2015. p. 7; October 19, 1934, p. 5; December 7, 1934, p. 7; September 11, 1936, p. 7; August 27, 1937, p. 4; and 29 Amy Bass, “State of the Field: Sports History and the Cultural Turn,” Journal of American History 101 November 1, 1935, p. 3; and May 8, 1942. For his obituary, see Newport Daily News, August 31, 1988, (June 2014): 148-172. Donnelly papers; Newport Daily News, May 15, 1929 and May 11, 1933, Donnelly papers. 11 Newport Daily News, May 15, 1929, newspaper clippings file, Donnelly papers; George Donnelly Jr. in discussion with the author, July 3, 2015. 12 Newport Mercury, April 24, 1931, p. 5; July 31, 1931, p. 3; and August 7, 1931, p. 5. APPENDIX I: 13 Newport Mercury, September 22, 1933, p. 6. The city granted a license for a dance to be held in support of African-American Teams in Newport the Union Athletic Club in October 1933. For details, see Newport Mercury, October 13, 1933, p. 8. 14 Newport Mercury, April 27, 1934, p. 3, and clippings in the Donnelly papers including the Newport Daily Team Years Status Field News for June 16 and 18, 1934. 15 Newport Daily News, June 18, 1934. Progressives 1885 Independent Unknown 16 Newport Daily News, June 6, 1934, and April 26, 1935, Donnelly papers. Puritans 1886 Independent Unknown 17 Newport Daily News, September 2, 1988, Donnelly papers. Resolutes 1885-1887 Independent Annandale 18 For a complete list of black traveling teams, see Appendix III. A good introductory piece on the Cuban Newports 1879-1892 Independent Freebody Giants remains Jerry Malloy, “The Birth of the Cuban Giants: The Origins of Black Professional Baseball,” Berkeley Ave. in Bill Kirwin, ed., Out of the Shadows: African American Baseball From the Cuban Giants to Jackie Robinson Morton (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2005), 1-14. Satchel Paige’s appearance in Newport received Union Athletic Club 1908-1909 Independent Civic League Grounds coverage in the Newport Daily News, July 29, 1950, p. 8. 1932 Municipal League Basin 19 The Boston Colored Giants represented the region, but did not hold membership in the Negro National League. For information on the Colored Giants, see Robert Cvornyek, “The Color of Baseball: Race and 1933-1934 Sunset League Basin Boston’s Sporting Community,” Black Ball: A Negro Leagues Journal 6 (Spring, 2013): 70-106. Newspaper advertisements for floodlight games at Cardines Field included admission costs and box office information. Mohawks 1909 Independent Basin See, for example, the newspaper clippings files in the George Donnelly papers. 20 George Donnelly, “Sports in the News,” Newport Daily News, September 3, 1952, p. 13. Newport Colored Giants 1931 Old Timers’ League Vernon 21 “Elite Giants to Play Sunset League Stars: Crack Baltimore Colored Team has a Formidable Array of Stars,” Freebody article located in the newspaper clippings files, George Donnelly papers. On the history of the Baltimore Richmond Elite Giants, especially the 1947 season and the careers of Joe Black and Junior Gilliam, see Bob Luke, Newport Youth Federation 1941-1944 Independent City League Cardines The Baltimore Elite Giants: Sport and Society in the Age of (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2009), 102-103, 125-127. For a list of all professional black teams to visit Newport 1945 see Appendix III: Black Traveling Teams in Newport.

18 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 19 APPENDIX II: APPENDIX III: Integration and Pioneer Black Players Black/Non-White Traveling Teams in Newport Rhode Island in the Sunset League Timeline Team/Opponent (Score) Date(s) Location

1919 Hayward Williams became the first African-American umpire in the Sunset League. He later managed Cuban Giants (4) July 15, 1895 Freebody Park the Orioles, the first integrated club in League history. Newports (5) Newport 1920 Marcus Wheatland played in fourteen games for the Brownies. On June 16, 1920, the Newport Daily Cuban Giants (11) July 18, 1895 Freebody Park News reported “Marcus Wheatland, who has recently returned home from college, stepped into the Newports (7) Newport Brownies line-up and crashed a home-run as well as two other hits.” Cuban Giants (5) August 8, 1895 Freebody Park 1921 The first integrated team, the Orioles, joined the League under the direction of Hayward Williams Newports (2) Newport as manager. Cuban Giants (10) August 9, 1895 Freebody Park 1922 Gene Brooks debuted as the starting left fielder for the Brownies. Newports (3) Newport 1924 Franklin, an African-American pitcher played for the (Naval) Training Station team. Cuban Giants (3) August 10, 1895 Freebody Park 1929 The Vernon Team, possibly named after the Vernon Playground, included several African-American Newports (2) Newport players including, Herbert “Tweet” Wosencroft, Clarence “Clammy” Butler, Arthur “Highpockets” Greene, and Eugene Brooks. After the Vernon Club disbanded, the players formed an ill-fated team called the Basins. When the Basins failed, they formed the Essanay-Spartans. By the end of the 1920s, On September 3, 1895, the Newport Daily News reported that arrangements had been made for a series of black players occupied positions on several teams including Arthur Greene on the Tabs and Clarence games between the Cuban Giants and teams representing Newport, Fall River, and New Bedford. Butler and Spencer Remong on Jarvis Drug. The team originated in the city’s Junior Circuit, most likely The Newport Daily News also reported that “Pawtucket lost money this season, and would probably have in 1926, and played its games at Vernon Playground. joined the four-club league if asked, so as to help the treasury.” This “four-club” league, sometimes refered to as the Four-Cornered or Quadrangular League sponsored games throughout September at various locations 1932 Joe Mayo, played for Indian Spring in the Sunset League. Prior to this time, he played for the Union including Freebody Park. The league commenced on September 2d with opening ceremonies and a Athletic Club. He finished his Sunset career as a member of the Red Sox. double-header at Freebody. According to the News, “The largest crowd of the season was present, more 1933 The first all-black team, the nionU Athletic Club, possibly named for the Union Congregational Church, than two-thousand persons being within the gates.” The season ended on September 22d with Fall River entered the Sunset League. The team previously competed in the Municipal League, a city-wide league defeating the Cubans for the championship. Newport had been eliminated earlier by New Bedford. considered slightly less competitive than the Sunset League.* At the close of the 1933 season, members of the legendary 1908 Union Athletic Club initiated a campaign to raise funds to outfit the team next season. The inaugural event was an exhibition game between the present club and the veterans. The 1908 team held the colored championship of Rhode Island title in 1907 and 1908. It is interesting Cuban Giants (3) September 2, 1895 Freebody Park to note that Clarence Butler, who played for the 1933 Union AC, also starred as a guard on the Jewels, a Newports (4) Game 1/Double Header Newport semi-pro basketball team in New York, and as a halfback on the All-Southern Collegians football team. Cuban Giants (3) September 2, 1895 1934 The Union Club withdrew from the Sunset League on June 27th. Prior to the team’s departure, it Newports (18) Game 2/Double Header played a benefit game to support the family of Charles Green, the team’s shortstop. Green had tragically drowned the previous May. The Newport Daily News reported on June 18th that the team Cuban Giants September 3, 1895* Freebody Park raised $100.64 to help support his family. By late June, former Union players landed on Sunset teams, Newports Newport including Arthur Greene who signed with Joe and Vi. The lion’s share of Union players transferred to a Cuban Giants (10) September 16, 1895 Freebody Park new team named the Pontiacs. The Pontiacs included Herbert Wosencroft, Harold E. Riley, and James Newports (4) Newport Buster Johnson. As the 1930s drew to a close, the Sunset League hosted several racially integrated Cuban Giants (7) September 17, 1895 Freebody Park clubs such as the South Ends, Joe and Vi, Pontiacs, Luna Petrol, and the Red Sox. Newports (6) Newport 1941 The Newport Youth Federation, Newport’s last African-American team, applied but did not receive membership in the Sunset League. In 1945, the NYF competed in the City League, sometimes referred The Newport Daily News reported on September 19, 1895 that, “it looks as though the four club league is to as the Twilight League. This is the only year the Sunset League was not in existence. about in the air. The Cuban Giants were to have played in New Bedford yesterday, but did not, and it is understood will play no more games in the series.” * During the 1930s, for example, the city hosted the Sunset League, Municipal League, Fifth Ward League, WPA League, City League, Industrial League, and Old Timers League * Score not available for this game.

20 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 21 Team/Opponent (Score) Date(s) Location Team/Opponent (Score) Date(s) Location

Cuban Giants (4) June 15, 1896 Freebody Park Watkins Colored Giants July 10, 1908 Wellington Newports (2) Newport Newports (Cancelled) Newport Cuban Giants (0) June 16, 1896 Freebody Park Watkins Colored Giants July 11, 1908 Wellington Newports (6) Newport Newports (Cancelled) Newport Cuban X-Giants (1) June 29, 1896 Freebody Park Watkins Colored Giants (1) July 16, 1908 Wellington Newports (6) Newport Newports (3) Newport Cuban X-Giants (2) July 1, 1896 Freebody Park Watkins Colored Giants (1) July 17, 1908 Wellington Newports (8) Newport Newports (7) Newport Cuban Giants (4) July 30, 1896 Freebody Park Watkins Colored Giants July 18, 1908* Wellington Newports (6) Newport Newports Game 1/Double Header Newport Cuban Giants (5) July 31, 1896 Freebody Park Watkins Colored Giants July 18, 1908* Wellington Newports (6) Newport Newports Game 2/ Double Header Newport Cuban Giants (15) August 2, 1896 Freebody Park Brooklyn Royal Giants (2) July 20, 1908 Wellington Newports (5) Newport Newports (1) Newport Cuban Giants (5) September 7, 1896 Freebody Park Brooklyn Royal Giants (4) July 21, 1908 Wellington Newports (9) Game 1/Double Header Newport Newports (7) Newport Cuban Giants (2) September 7, 1896 Freebody Park Cuban Stars (4) July 27, 1908 Wellington Newports (3) Game 2/ Double Header Newport Newports (1) Newport Cuban Giants (5) September 8, 1896 Freebody Park Cuban Stars (4) July 28, 1908 Wellington Newports (26) Newport Newports (2) Newport Cuban Giants (8) April 26, 1897 Freebody Park Cuban Stars (1) July 30, 1908 Wellington Newports (7) Newport Newports (1) Newport Cuban Giants (7) April 27, 1897 Freebody Park New York Colored Giants (6) July 31, 1908 Wellington Newports (8) Newport Newports (5) Newport Cuban X-Giants (18) April 28, 1897 Freebody Park New York Colored Giants August 6, 1908* Wellington Newports (6) Newport Newports Newport Genuine Cuban Giants April 25, 1898 Freebody Park New York Colored Giants August 7, 1908* Wellington Newports (Cancelled) Newport Newports Newport Genuine Cuban Giants April 26, 1898 Freebody Park Watkins Colored Giants (1) August 8, 1908 Wellington Newports (Cancelled) Newport Newports (3) Newport Cuban X-Giants April 28, 1898 Freebody Park Brooklyn Royal Giants (4) August 10, 1908 Wellington Newports (Cancelled) Newport Newports (2) Newport Cuban X-Giants April 29, 1898 Freebody Park Brooklyn Royal Giants (3) August 11, 1908 Wellington Newports (Cancelled) Newport Newports (1) Newport Cuban Giants May 8, 1899* Freebody Park Brooklyn Royal Giants (4) August 12, 1908 Wellington Newports Newport Newports (2) Newport Watkins Colored Giants (3) July 3, 1908 Wellington Cuban Stars (3) August 17, 1908 Wellington Newports (5) Newport Newports (1) Newport Watkins Colored Giants (0) July 4, 1908 Wellington Cuban Stars (4) August 18, 1908 Wellington Newports (1) Game 1/Double Header Newport Newports (0) Newport Watkins Colored Giants (1) July 4, 1908 Wellington Cuban Stars (10) August 20, 1908 Wellington Newports (0) Game 2/Double Header Newport Newports (0) Newport Watkins Colored Giants July 9, 1908 Wellington Brooklyn Royal Giants (5) September 14, 1908 Wellington Newports (Cancelled) Newport Cuban Stars (2) Game 1/Double Header Newport

* Score not available for this game. * Scores not available for these games.

22 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 23 Team/Opponent (Score) Date(s) Location Team/Opponent (Score) Date(s) Location

Brooklyn Royal Giants (3) September 14, 1908 Wellington Cuban House of David (from Santiago, Cuba) June 14, 1930* Unconfirmed Newports (4) Game 2/Double Header Newport Boston Colored Giants July 16, 1933* Unconfirmed Brooklyn Royal Giants (6) June 4, 1909 Wellington Boston Royal Giants (4) August 29, 1938 Freebody Park Newports (7) Newport Newport Red Sox (11) Newport Brooklyn Royal Giants (9) June 11, 1909 Wellington Cleveland Colored Giants June 12, 1939* Freebody Park Newports (1) Newport Newport Red Sox Newport Brooklyn Royal Giants (11) June 14, 1909 Wellington New England Colored Giants (5) June 20, 1940 Cardines Field Newports (3) Newport Sunset Stars (11) Newport New York Colored Giants (6) June 22, 1909 Wellington Pennsylvania Red Caps (3) July 3, 1940 Cardines Field Newports (2) Newport Sunset Stars (8) Newport New York Colored Giants (4) June 23, 1909 Wellington Danbury Cubans (4) August 7, 1940 Cardines Field Newports (2) Newport Sunset Stars (2) Newport Brooklyn Royal Giants (2) June 24, 1909 Wellington New York Black Yankees (8) August 13, 1941 Cardines Field Newports (3) Newport Sunset League All-Stars (0) Newport Brooklyn Royal Giants (12) June 26, 1909 Wellington Boston Colored Giants* June 12, 1946* Cardines Field Newports (10) Newport Sunset League All-Stars* Newport Cuban Giants (0) July 1, 1909 Wellington Boston Colored Giants July 17, 1946* Cardines Field Newports (3) Newport Sunset League All-Stars Newport Cuban Giants (7) July 2, 1909 Wellington Boston Colored Giants (4) September 2, 1946 Cardines Field Newports (4) Newport Sunset League All-Stars (2) Newport Cuban Giants (9) July 3, 1909 Wellington New York Black Yankees August 22, 1946* Cardines Field Newports (8) Newport Sunset League All-Stars Newport Brooklyn Royal Giants (7) July 27, 1909 Wellington Cincinnati Crescents (1) September 4, 1946 Cardines Field Newports (4) Newport Newport All-Stars (0) Newport Cuban Stars (11) September 14, 1909 Wellington New York Black Yankees September 12, 1946* Cardines Field Newports (0) Newport Sunset League All-Stars Newport Ormond Giants (8) July 2, 1910 Wellington Boston Colored Giants (1) July 16, 1947 Cardines Field Newports (4) Newport Sunset League All-Stars (2) Newport Ormond Giants (1) July 3, 1910 Wellington Baltimore Elite Giants (14) July 23, 1947 Cardines Field Newports (22) Newport Sunset League All-Stars (2) Newport Ormond Giants July 4, 1910* Wellington Philadelphia Stars (10) July 28, 1947 Cardines Field Newports Newport Sunset League All-Stars (3) Newport San Juan Stars (11) September 1, 1948* Cardines Field The Ormonds, promoted by Ambrose Hussey and captained by John “Pop” Watkins, originated in Ormond Sunset League All-Stars (3) Newport Beach, Florida, in 1910. Boston Colored Giants (6) August 5, 1949 Cardines Field Sunset League All-Stars (4) Newport Cleveland Colored Giants (2) July 23, 1922 Freebody Park Norfolk Royals (14) August 10, 1949 Cardines Field Trojans (7) Newport Sunset Stars (12) Newport Cleveland Colored Giants (0) July 8, 1923 Freebody Park Philadelphia Stars (16) July 28, 1950 Cardines Field Newport Town team (8) Newport Sunset Stars (4) Newport Cuban Stars August 5, 1923* Cleveland Colored Giants Game 1/Double Header Newport *Scores not available for these games. Cuban Stars August 5, 1923* Newports Game 2/Double Header Newport Information in Appendices is taken from the Newport Daily News, Newport Mercury and miscellaneous clippings and scorecards from the George D. Donnelly papers. George D. Donnelly Jr. offered additional * Scores not available for these games. information and served as a valuable resource on the history of the Sunset League.

24 v Newport History Touching Base: Race, Sport, and Community in Newport v 25