African-Americans
began to play baseball in the late 1800s on military teams,
college teams, and company teams. They eventually found
their way to professional teams with white players. Moses
Fleetwood Walker and Bud Fowler were among the first to
participate. However, racism and “Jim Crow”
laws would force them from these teams by 1900. Thus,
black players formed their own units, “barnstorming”
around the country to play anyone who would challenge
them.
In
1920, an organized league structure was formed under the
guidance of Andrew “Rube” Foster—a former
player, manager, and owner for the Chicago American Giants.
In a meeting held at the Paseo YMCA in Kansas City, Mo.,
Foster and a few other Midwestern team owners joined to
form the Negro National League. Soon, rival leagues formed
in Eastern and Southern states, bringing the thrills and
innovative play of black baseball to major urban centers
and rural country sides in the U.S., Canada, and Latin America.
The Leagues maintained a high level of professional skill
and became centerpieces for economic development in many
black communities.
|
