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After 1898, an unwritten “gentleman’s agreement” barred black athletes from playing on professional baseball teams. This, however, did not keep African Americans from playing baseball, sometimes organizing community teams and “barnstorming” around the country playing any team that was willing.In 1920, Chicagoan Andrew “Rube” Foster (1879-1930) formed the Negro National League, the first professional black league. Other professional Negro leagues would soon follow. With highly skilled players, these teams garnered devoted fans while becoming centers of economic development and the focus of community pride. Negro League player Jackie Robinson (1919-1972) joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, successfully breaking the color barrier in Major League Baseball. As in other areas of American society, complete desegregation in baseball would take many more years—both on and off the field. The last Negro league, the American Negro League, folded in 1960 as more black players moved to the major leagues. Learn more about racial integration in baseball history, and see many artifacts from the Negro Leagues and Jackie Robinson’s career in Baseball As America. back >> |
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