Timeline of Negro league baseball teams

The following is a timeline of the evolution of major-league-caliber franchises in Negro league baseball. The franchises included are those of high-caliber independent teams prior to the organization of formal league play in 1920 and concludes with the dissolution of the remnant of the last major Negro league team, the Kansas City Monarchs then based out of Grand Rapids, Michigan, in about 1966. (The Indianapolis Clowns continued on through about 1988, but they had morphed into an entertainment act much as the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team of today.) All teams who played a season while a member of a major Negro league are included. The major leagues are the original Negro National League, the Eastern Colored League, the American Negro League, the East–West League, the second Negro National League and the Negro American League. Teams from the 1932 original Negro Southern League are also included which allows for the inclusion of the few high caliber minor Negro league teams.

Graphical timeline

The two thick gray lines represent trying times: the first is the Panic of 1893 and the second is the Great Depression in 1933. Both crisis led to financial ruin and collapse of most teams and leagues. The two thick black lines represent the formation of organized league play in 1920 and the integration of Major League Baseball in 1946. After integration, the level of play deteriorated rapidly and dramatically. By 1950 all teams were considered to be of minor league status.

1920–1948: Negro major leagues

1920: Establishment of the Negro National League (NNL)

The NNL was established with eight teams, the first black baseball league to be designated a major league.

1921

• The Dayton Marcos departed as an independent team.
• A new Columbus Buckeyes joined.
• The Cuban Stars became the Cincinnati Cuban Stars.

1922

• The Chicago Giants and Columbus Buckeyes folded.
• The Cleveland Tate Stars and Pittsburgh Keystones joined.
• The Cincinnati Cuban Stars became the Cuban Stars again.
• The St. Louis Giants became the St. Louis Stars.

1923: Founding of the Eastern Colored League (ECL)

• The ECL was established with six teams.
• The Pittsburgh Keystones folded.
• The Milwaukee Bears joined the NNL.
• The Cleveland Tate Stars departed from the NNL as an independent team and were replaced by the Toledo Tigers. The Toledo Tigers then folded mid-season, and the Cleveland Tate Stars returned to the NNL as an associate member to finish the season.

1924

• The Milwaukee Bears folded.
• The Birmingham Black Barons and Cleveland Browns joined the NNL.
• The Harrisburg Giants and Washington Potomacs joined the ECL.
• The Indianapolis ABCs temporarily dropped out for the season in June and were replaced by the Memphis Red Sox.

1925

• The Cleveland Browns folded.
• The Indianapolis ABCs returned to the NNL.
• The Washington Potomacs moved to Wilmington, Delaware and became the Wilmington Potomacs and then folded mid-season.

1926

• The Cleveland Elites joined the NNL and folded mid-season.
• The Dayton Marcos returned to the NNL and departed mid-season as an independent team.
• The Newark Stars joined the ECL and folded mid-season.
• The Birmingham Black Barons and Memphis Red Sox departed the NNL and joined Minor League Baseball's Negro Southern League (NSL).

1927

• The Indianapolis ABCs folded.
• The Birmingham Black Barons and Memphis Red Sox returned to the NNL.
• The Cleveland Hornets joined the NNL.

1928: Last ECL season

• The Cleveland Hornets folded.
• The Brooklyn Royal Giants, Harrisburg Giants, and Hilldale Club withdrew from the ECL as independent teams.
• The Cleveland Tigers joined the NNL.
• The Philadelphia Tigers joined the ECL.
• The ECL then disbanded mid-season.

1929: American Negro League's (ANL) only season

• The ANL was established with six teams. Five of those teams were from the ECL. The independent Homestead Grays also joined the ECL.
• The Cleveland Tigers folded.
• The Philadelphia Tigers folded.

1930

• The Atlantic City Bacharach Giants and the Cuban Stars from the ANL folded.
• The Baltimore Black Sox, Hilldale Club, Homestead Grays, and New York Lincoln Giants became independent teams.
• The ANL disbanded.
• The Louisville Black Caps and Nashville Elite Giants joined the NNL.

1931: Last NNL season

• The Cuban Stars folded.
• The Birmingham Black Barons, Memphis Red Sox, and Nashville Elite Giants departed the NNL and joined the NSL.
• The Kansas City Monarchs departed the NNL as an independent team (though remains loosely associated with the league).
• The Cleveland Cubs and a new Indianapolis ABCs joined the NNL.
• The Chicago American Giants became the Chicago Columbia Giants.
• The Louisville Black Caps became the Louisville White Sox.
• The NNL disbanded mid-season; although, teams continued to play each other as independent teams.

1932: Negro Southern League's (NSL) only major league season and East–West League's (EWL) only season

• The Detroit Stars and St. Louis Stars folded.
• The Cleveland Cubs moved back to Nashville, Tennessee and became the Nashville Elite Giants again.
• The EWL was established with eight teams. Three of those teams, the Baltimore Black Sox, Hilldale Club, and Homestead Grays were from the ANL.
• The NSL was considered a major league for the season with 10 teams. Five of those teams, the Birmingham Black Barons, Chicago Columbia Giants, Indianapolis ABCs, Memphis Red Sox, and Nashville Elite Giants were from the NNL.
• The Chicago Columbia Giants became the Chicago American Giants again.
• The Newark Browns departed mid-season as an independent team.

1933: Establishment of the second NNL

• The Little Rock Grays and Columbus Turf Club folded.
• The Atlanta Black Crackers and Birmingham Black Barons withdrew as independent teams.
• The NSL was demoted to minor league status.
• The Cleveland Stars, Detroit Wolves, Hilldale Club, and Newark Browns folded.
• Pollock's Cuban Stars and the Washington Pilots withdrew as independent teams.
• The Baltimore Black Sox became the Baltimore Sox.
• The EWL disbanded.
• The second NNL was established with 7 teams. Five of those teams, the Baltimore Sox, Chicago American Giants, Homestead Grays, Indianapolis ABCs, and Nashville Elite Giants were from the NSL or EWL.
• The Pittsburgh Crawfords joined the NNL.
• The Indianapolis ABCs moved mid-season to Detroit, Michigan and became the Detroit Stars.
• The Columbus Blue Birds joined the NNL. The team disbanded and merged with the independent Akron Black Tyrites after the first half of the split season. The Akron Black Tyrites joined the NNL in place of the Columbus Blue Birds as the Akron Grays before they moved to Cleveland, Ohio and became the Cleveland Giants for one game.

1934

• The Cleveland Giants and Detroit Stars folded.
• The Homestead Grays withdrew as an independent team.
• The Cleveland Red Sox, Newark Dodgers, Philadelphia Bacharach Giants, and Philadelphia Stars joined the NNL.
• The Baltimore Sox became the Baltimore Black Sox again.

1935

• The Cleveland Red Sox folded.
• The Baltimore Black Sox and Philadelphia Bacharach Giants withdrew as independent teams.
• The Brooklyn Eagles and New York Cubans joined the NNL.
• The Homestead Grays returned to the NNL.
• The Nashville Elite Giants moved to Columbus, Ohio and became the Columbus Elite Giants.

1936

• The Chicago American Giants withdrew.
• The Brooklyn Eagles and Newark Dodgers merged and became the Newark Eagles.
• The New York Black Yankees joined the NNL.
• The Columbus Elite Giants moved to Washington, D.C. and became the Washington Elite Giants.

1937: Founding of the Negro American League (NAL)

• The NAL was established with eight teams. Four of those teams, the Birmingham Black Barons, Chicago American Giants, Kansas City Monarchs, and Memphis Red Sox were previously from the NSL or the first NNL.
• The New York Cubans withdrew.

1938

• The Cincinnati Tigers, the new Detroit Stars, the Indianapolis Athletics, and the new St. Louis Stars folded.
• The Atlanta Black Crackers, a new Indianapolis ABCs, and the Jacksonville Red Caps joined the NAL.
• The Washington Black Senators joined the NNL.
• The Washington Elite Giants moved to Baltimore, Maryland and became the Baltimore Elite Giants.

1939

• The Washington Black Senators folded.
• The Birmingham Black Barons withdrew.
• The New York Cubans returned to the NNL.
• The Indianapolis ABCs moved to St. Louis, Missouri and became the St. Louis Stars.
• The Atlanta Black Crackers moved to Indianapolis, Indiana and became the Indianapolis ABCs.
• The Jacksonville Red Caps moved to Cleveland, Ohio and became the Cleveland Bears.
• The Pittsburgh Crawfords moved to Toledo, Ohio and became the Toledo Crawfords.
• The Toledo Crawfords withdrew and joined the NAL mid-season.

1940

• The Indianapolis ABCs folded.
• The Birmingham Black Barons returned to the NAL.
• The St. Louis Stars split their home games between St. Louis, Missouri and New Orleans, Louisiana and became the St. Louis–New Orleans Stars.
• The Toledo Crawfords split their home games between Toledo, Ohio and Indianapolis, Indiana and became the Toledo–Indianapolis Crawfords.

1941

• The Toledo–Indianapolis Crawfords folded.
• The Cleveland Bears moved back to Jacksonville, Florida and became the Jacksonville Red Caps again.

1942

• The St. Louis–New Orleans Stars disbanded.
• The Cincinnati–Cleveland Buckeyes joined the NAL.
• The Jacksonville Red Caps departed mid-season.

1943

• The St. Louis–New Orleans Stars reformed and joined the NNL as the Harrisburg–St. Louis Stars, since they moved to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; although, they kept the St. Louis moniker as a part of their name. The team proceeded to withdraw in July to barnstorm, and then they folded.
• The Cincinnati–Cleveland Buckeyes left Cincinnati, Ohio and became the Cleveland Buckeyes.
• The Cincinnati Clowns joined the NAL.

1944 to 1947

• The Cincinnati Clowns split their home games between Cincinnati, Ohio and Indianapolis, Indiana and became the Cincinnati–Indianapolis Clowns, though would play more games in Indianapolis beginning in 1946.

1948

• The Cincinnati–Indianapolis Clowns stopped playing in Cincinnati, Ohio and permanently played in Indianapolis, Indiana and became the Indianapolis Clowns.

Legacy of Negro major leagues

• Due to the ongoing process of integration in Major League Baseball (MLB), the NAL lost its major league status.
• The New York Black Yankees folded.
• The NNL folded.
• All of the NNL teams, except for the newly independent Homestead Grays joined the NAL.

See also

• Timeline of Major League Baseball

References

Graphical timeline general references

• Seamheads.com Teams - All-Time
• CNLBR Negro League Teams & Minor League Teams

External links

• Seamheads.com Negro Leagues Database
• Center for Negro League Baseball Research
• Negro Leagues @ Baseball-Reference.com
• Negro League Baseball Players Association
• Negro Leagues Baseball Museum web site