Exhibit Curated and Digitized by Cathy Dalton

Baseball has been in Lynchburg from the middle of the 19th century.

Baseball was announced in the news, photographed in the parks, written home about, participated in by the young and watched by the old. Lynchburg dedicated a great deal of property to playing fields including two stadiums.  In 1886, Lynchburg fielded its first professional team, the Lynchburgs. Lynchburg hosted Major League exhibition games as the teams left spring training to head north. Today the Lynchburg Hillcats are a Minor League Baseball team that plays in the Carolina League and is the Single-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. The season begins every April, PLAY BALL!

Baseball has been America’s pastime for over a century. A clip from The Lynchburg News from August 9, 1887, states: 

Some idea of the baseball craze may be formed when it is stated that in the city of New-York alone 1000 horse hides and 10000 sheep skins are now used annually to cover base-balls. A horse’s hide covers twelve dozen baseballs and a sheepskin three dozen.

Baseball Fields

Baseball fields have permeated Lynchburg real estate and were located in almost every neighborhood :

·   Fairgrounds/Miller Park (Fort Avenue and Langhorne Road)
·   Old City Stadium/Municipal Athletic Park (13th and Court Streets)
·   City Stadium (Fort Avenue)
·   College Hill field (Old Lynchburg College) Wise and 11th Streets
·   Guggenheimer-Milliken Park (Grace Street)
·   YMCA Island
·   Rivermont (Ruffner School grounds)
·   Every school including colleges!

So many fields were needed to accommodate all levels of play, from t-ball, Little League, Babe Ruth League, club teams, recreation teams, school teams, college teams, and professional teams.  Early teams played at the city fairgrounds and at the Municipal Stadium at Court and 12th Street.  In 1939, the city built the current city stadium at Fort and Oakley Avenues. In 2014 the stadium was renovated and became the Bank of the James Stadium, where the Hillcats play home games on the Calvin Falwell Field.

Photos:

Playground Baseball
Early 1900s
Transfer from The City of Lynchburg / Parks & Recreation Dept.

Entrance to Stadium
Scrapbook photograph, 1930. Sign over gate reads Municipal Athletic Park; sign on booth at right indicates sale of V.M.I. (Virginia Military Institute) tickets only, and sign on booth at left indicates sale of Clemson tickets only.
Transfer from The City of Lynchburg / Parks & Recreation Dept.

Old City Stadium
A c. 1930's image of a baseball game at the old City Stadium at Thirteenth and Court Streets. Houses on Diamond Hill are in the background.
Transfer from The City of Lynchburg / Parks & Recreation Dept.

Lynchburg City Stadium Field
1963. Shows the left and center field fencing, billboards, scoreboard, and lights. There is a person working on the lights. Now Calvin Falwell Field.
Transfer from The City of Lynchburg / Parks & Recreation Dept.

Boys Playing Baseball
At Guggenheimer-Milliken field, 1940. Identified on the back as DuVal Woodfort, Bill Jim Glass, "Skillitt" Malloy, Russell Morriss, Clyde Paris, Woodrow Hunt
Transfer from The City of Lynchburg / Parks & Recreation Dept.

YMCA Island Playground
Postcard image of the baseball field, looking across the river to Madison Heights.
Gift of Mrs. E. Alban Watson (Lucille McWane)

Baseball at Ruffner (Rivermont)
An undated image of a baseball game at Ruffner School (Rivermont) playground.
Transfer from The City of Lynchburg / Parks & Recreation Dept.

Glass Field 1961
Color slide transparency of the baseball field at E. C. Glass High School with players on the field and on the side lines.
Transfer from The City of Lynchburg / Parks & Recreation Dept.

Baseball Uniform & Patch
This 1969 jersey is gray cotton with red trim, red lettering front “Lynchburg,” red numbers on back “28.” The patch is from 1970 and is inscribed "E. C. Glass/Western District Champions/Western Regional Champions/1969-70.”
Gift of Tom Webb

Letter and Letter Head from Babe Ruth League
Dated 7/1963 to Lynchburg Moose Lodge #715
Donated by Lynchburg Covenant Fellowship

Cartoon of Rivermont Athletic Club Baseball Team 1912
Identities listed: C. McLeod, T.K. Menafee, F. Scruggs, A. Campbell, S. Andrews, R. Campbell, WM. McLeod, R. James, S. Payne, J. Menafee, W. Flaherty
Donated by Mrs. D. F. Dinsmore Scruggs (Claudia)

Photo Rivermont Athletic Club baseball team at New London Academy. 
Members listed on obverse as:  top row-l - r - G. Hancock, J. Wilkins, R. Smith, J. Andrews, W. McLeod (capt. coach) 2nd row - W. Flaherty, F. Scruggs (mgr.) Lovett Gilfoyle, Baldwin bottom row- Charles McLeod, Spence Andrews, Archey Snead
Donated by Mrs. D. F. Dinsmore Scruggs (Claudia)

Craddock-Terry Star Baseball Player
1924 Many businesses, churches, and neighborhoods sponsored baseball teams.
Transfer from The City of Lynchburg / Parks & Recreation Dept. 

Memorabilia

Collecting baseball memorabilia is also an American pastime. Baseball hats are one of three hats synonymous with Americans.  First came the coonskin hat which originated with Native Americans and was often worn by settlers and frontiersmen, then came the cowboy hat that protected ranchers and cowhands through all the elements thrown at them in the American West.  Finally, the most pervasive hat was the ball cap.  The New York Knickerbockers first chose to add a hat to their uniform.  The straw hat changed to a billed cap by 1860.  Logos were added in 1901, and in 1903, the longer bill was stitched to make it sturdier.  During the 1980s the cap became a fashion accessory and is worn world-wide.

• Musketeers Baseball Uniform Cap
  1918 This is a baseball uniform cap belonging to Lt. Guy Alex Dirom, worn during his tour of duty in France in 1918.
  Gift of Guy Alex Dirom

• Musketeers Charles MacLeod, T. K. Menefee, and John James served in the Virginia National Guard assigned to the Army 1st Battalion, 29th Infantry Division, 116th Infantry Regiment. Photo from 1916.
  Gift of Guy Alex Dirom

Along with trading cards, pins were a way for companies to use the popularity of early baseball players to promote their products. Created by Benjamin Whitehead in the early 1890’s, they were called “pin-backs” and resembled a small button.   The earliest of these baseball pins were made for Pepsin Gum in 1897. The front featured a photo of an early Hall of Famer, his name, and team, the back had a small advertisement for the company.  

As the popularity of the game increased in the pre-war era, so did baseball trading pins. Candy, tobacco, and other companies created their own sets to give out to entice fans. Quaker Oats created a Babe Ruth Fan Club in 1934 with a set of pins that people could sign up for. These pins of the Sultan of Swat are some of the most sought after by collectors today.  Pins eventually gave way to trading cards as the Century progressed. But they made a return in youth sports in the early 1980’s.

Photo Captions:

• Little League Cap of Coach Wayne Hopper
  Gift of Dennis Cooley

• Babe Ruth Quaker Oats Pin

Many fans also collect trading cards, autographs, baseballs, jerseys, programs, and tickets.

Photo Captions:

• Rain Check Tickets for the Lynchburg Baseball Club at Municipal Stadium, 1900. Weldon Williams, & Lick, Ft. Smith, Ark. Since 1898
  Note tickets of this style are still used today for raffles and local ticketed activities.  The company is still creating tickets for events. 
  Gift of Jack Pollard

• 1994 Lynchburg Red Sox baseball season tickets. Ticket Craft
  Class A league opponents included Wilmington (NC), Kinston (NC), Prince William (VA), Salem (VA), Winston-Salem (NC) and Durham (NC).  Each ticket has the Lynchburg Red Sox logo printed in red with price, seat number, date and time of game, game number and name of opponent.
  Donated by Mrs. William Brunson (Sarah A. McDonald )

• 1983 Carolina Champions Lynchburg Mets Autographed Baseball
  On loan from Vince Sawyer, Lynchburg baseball historian 

Baseball has found adoring fans and collectors in Lynchburg since the middle of the 19th century.

Professional Baseball in Lynchburg

In 1886, Lynchburg fielded its first professional team, the “Lynchburgs.” The Hill City hosted Major League exhibition games as the teams left spring training to head north. Today the Lynchburg Hillcats are a Minor League Baseball team in the Carolina League and a Single-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians.

Although the “Lynchburgs” was the first professional team name, many of the later team names reflected Lynchburg’s unique heritage:

• Hill Climbers 1894
• Tobacconists 1895
• Shoemakers 1906–1912, 1917
• Lynchburg Red Sox 1915
• Lynchburg White Sox, “a colored baseball aggregation” was organized and played a full season against Charlottesville, Richmond, Roanoke, and others.
• Lynchburg Grays 1939
• Senators 1940-1942
• Lynchburg or LYN- (Senators, Cardinals, White Sox, Twins, Rangers, Mets, Red Sox)
• Hillcats 1995-present (Pittsburgh Pirates from 1995 to 2009, Cincinnati Reds in 2010, and Atlanta Braves from 2011 to 2014, currently Cleveland Guardians)

In 2024, the Hillcats name for 30 seasons is celebrated. Lynchburg has seen tremendous success since switching over to the Hillcats title, winning five of their eight league titles in that span, most recently in 2017.

Prior to the 2017 season, Lynchburg looked to launch a complete rebrand of the organization. Fans were allowed to vote on a new name for the team, but the community voted to stick with the Hillcats. The team would announce a new logo and color scheme before the season, switching from black, forest green, and yellow, to midnight blue, cyan, green, and white. Thirty years later, the name holds strong as a staple of the Lynchburg community.

Photo Captions:

• Copy of Photo of the Lynchburg Tobacconists
  Original 1895 photo given to owner from Al Orth's son
  On loan from Vince Sawyer, Lynchburg baseball historian

• Photograph: Lynchburg Grays Baseball Team Lynchburg Grays team roster: Charles Badurski (b. 1917), Sherwood Barnes (b. 4-11-1915), Eugene Boedecker (b. 1919), William Booker (b. 11-7-1915), James Brooks, Louis Cipalla, N. Cline, Pat Cooper (played in majors, b. 11-26-1917), Paul Crain (b. 1917), Benny Donatucci (b. 10-14-1915), John Fesh (b. 1918), Henry Franz (b. 1919), Edward Gallasso, Walter Gorman (b. 1-27-1921), Bennie Haswell (b. 1920), Lawrence Hudson, Jamieson, William Matheny (b. 1919), Horace Powell (b. 1919), Nick Rhabe (b. 6-10-1916), Herman Robinson (b. 1915), Michael Scott (b. 1921), James St. Clair (b. 1914), Fair Swaim (b. 3-4-1916), Martin Weeks (b. 1918), Mike Winseck (b. 1918).
  Gift of Chris Holaday

• Ticket, Baseball:    Men's ticket to Opening Day of the Lynchburg Senators, 1942.  There is a rain check stub attached to the ticket.
  Donated by Mr. Charles N. Wright
  99.39

• Program for the Lynchburg Senators 1959
  Donated by Mike Cronk
  2015.58.2

• Lynchburg White Sox Program, 1963
  This was the first full season for the Lynchburg White Sox after their franchise moved from Savannah.
  Gift of Mike Cronk
  2015.58.4

• Lynchburg Cardinals (1943-1955), by Al Silver; Wallace McKenna in coat and tie identified as General Manager.  1947
  Gift of Tom Webb
  90.26.2

• Mets Baseball Team Logo Patch: 1980
  Gift of Lonnie and Kathy Goodwin
  2018.26.2

• Reserved Parking Permit for 1994 Lynchburg Red Sox baseball season at City Stadium.
  Donated by Mrs. William Brunson
  94.33.7

• Lynchburg Hillcats Official Souvenir Program
  1995 Progress Printing Inc., Lynchburg, Virginia. The program commemorates the Hillcats inaugural season.
  Donated by Mr. Tom Ledford
  95.22.1

• 30th Anniversary Hillcats Jersey 1995-2024
  Wilson Sporting Goods
  On loan from Hagen Allred, Director of Sales, Lynchburg Hillcats

• Hillcats Banner 2017
  On loan from Hagen Allred, Director of Sales, Lynchburg Hillcats

Friday, August 24-Sunday, August 26, 1962

After the Washington Senators pulled out of Lynchburg in 1959, Lynchburg was without a Professional Team. Vince Sawyer a Lynchburg Baseball historian tells of Calvin Falwell, Jr's surprising weekend accomplishment:

“An amazing set of circumstances would result in Lynchburg’s gaining a team, and a relationship with Major League baseball, which continues to this day. In 1962 the owner of a Chicago White Sox South Atlantic League (AA) farm team in Savannah, Georgia (known as the Savsox) was losing a lot of money due to a boycott of the team’s games. Two black players (Grover “Deacon” Jones (1934-2023) and Don Buford) were married. Seating was segregated and the black players’ wives’ seats were in an area in the sun. The white players’ wives were seated in the shade. One hot July day, Virginia Jones and Alicia Buford had decided that they didn’t want to sit in the hot sun, and they moved to seats next to the white players in the shade. The team’s insistence that they return to their seats in the sun, and their refusal, precipitated an NAACP boycott of the Savsox games. Calvin Falwell and other city leaders who had advocated for professional baseball in Lynchburg for years, learned of the situation from a White Sox connection. The team owner was open to moving the team to Lynchburg, and after weeks of discussion with city officials about the use of City Stadium, lighting improvements needed, etc. In mid-August he agreed to the move. Calvin Falwell, with the blessing of city officials, flew to Savannah on Friday August 24 and met with the team that evening. Calvin remembered that Deacon Jones did ask about the origin of our city’s name. The story of our Quaker founder apparently satisfied Jones. The team moved to Lynchburg by bus Saturday, and played their first game in City Stadium on Sunday, August 26. 5,500 people showed up and professional baseball once again had a home in the Hill City.”

The baseball diamond at the City Stadium is named in Calvin Falwell Jr’s honor.

Photo Captions:

• 74.492.1 1993 L-Sox Program Page 32 W. Calvin Falwell Day at Lynchburg City Stadium

• Grover Deacon Jones Lynchburg White Sox

Exhibition Games

The Hill City hosted Major League exhibition games as the teams left spring training to head north. Lynchburg was convenient for travel by train.

Photo Captions

• Nat Fein Pulitzer Prize winning photo The Babe Bows Out, June 13, 1948
  Nat Fein (1914-2000)
  The first sports photograph to receive the Pulitzer, Nat Fein's image of Babe Ruth being honored at Yankee stadium in 1948 depicts the ballplayer from the back as he stands on the field before the spectators. For Fein, a staffer who covered human-interest items for the New York Herald-Tribune, the fortuitous absence of the usual sports photographer resulted in an opportunity to step up and capture the image that became one of the most well-known photographs in American sports. Part of its power comes from Fein's choice to position himself where The Babe faces away from the camera. Even without the famous No. 3 on his uniform, Ruth's figure is unmistakable. This perspective gives the viewer the same perspective as George Herman Ruth (February 6, 1895–August 16, 1948)
  Courtesy of the Maier Museum of Art at Randolph College, Lynchburg, Virginia

• Babe Ruth in Lynchburg
  April 3, 1920 The News p 8

• Three Days of Major League Baseball Advertisement
  The News March 23, 1952

• Major League Baseball Advertisement
  April 7, 1952 The News p 7

• April 7, 1952 Brooklyn Dodgers vs. Boston Braves Exhibition Game Scorecard signed by Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella
  Found in the Dr. R. Walter “Whirlwind” Johnson home (1422 Pierce Street) while undergoing renovation. Jackie Robinson and other African American players ate and stayed on Pierce Street while visiting Lynchburg on their way north from spring training during the Jim Crow era.
  Courtesy of the Whirlwind Johnson Foundation

• Dodgers Wallop Braves at Stadium before 5,005
  Jackie Robinson (42) and Roy Campanella play "Who’s On Second’’ during the fifth inning. Robinson was trapped between second and third after Campanella hit back to the pitcher and upon returning safely to the keystone sack found his team mate had rounded first and was also perched there. Campanella was out. (Staff photo by Wood) 
  April 8, 1952 The News p 10

Baseball—Part of Lynchburg’s Past, Present, & Future

The Lynchburg Daily Virginian’s editor and publisher Charles Button promoted the formation of teams in Lynchburg.  Several clubs formed in Lynchburg and surrounding areas in the summer of 1867.  The first team The Hill City Club had its first game on June 3, 1867 on a drill field (Wise and 11th Streets) on College Hill. There are many reasons baseball in Lynchburg has survived over 150 years.  Lessons are learned from the sport: competition, leadership, teamwork, even determination.

PLAY BALL!!!!!

Baseball at Miller Park, 1924 
Transfer from The City of Lynchburg / Parks & Recreation Dept. 2000.39.239