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Baseball: A Little Known Chapter

Update February 10, 2014: The Negro League Baseball Museum has organized a traveling exhibition entitled, “Shades of Greatness: Art Inspired by Negro Leagues Baseball.”  The exhibition is on display through March 12th at the art galleries at Sinclair Community College.

Negro League Baseball was organized in February 1920 in Kansas City and included teams mostly in the Midwest like the Dayton Marcos and Cincinnati Cuban Stars. One could find black and white baseball teams playing each other in small towns across the country, but the major leagues were segregated until 1945. Up until then, Kenesaw Mountain Landis was the commissioner of baseball, and he opposed integration.

After the death of Landis in late 1945, the Brooklyn Dodgers signed Jackie Robinson to their farm team in Montreal, and he subsequently joined the Dodgers in 1947. This ultimately spelled the end of the Negro Baseball League and segregation of leagues.

Baseball: A Little Known Chapter is a one-hour special hosted by baseball fan Mark Heyne which will air on 91.7 WVXU on Sunday, February 22, from 8-9pm. This special focuses on the experiences of three players, Charlie “Whip Davis, Tom Turner and Ron “Bunny” Warren, plus historical insights from Chris Eckes, curator of the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum and John Erardi, sports writer and baseball historian for the Cincinnati Enquirer.

Baseball: A Little Known Chapter is a Black History Month special produced by Lee Hay with technical assistance from Seniors With a Purpose, the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, and Kevin Rowinski.

Links:

2010 Civil Rights Game Photo Gallery (photos by Tony Williams)

Negro League Baseball

Negro Leagues Baseball Museum

Civil Rights Game

Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum

The Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County