Monroe Monarchs

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The Monroe Monarchs were a professional baseball team based in Monroe, Louisiana, which played in the Negro Leagues from the late 1920s to 1935. The team was created by Fred Stovall, a Texan oil drilling millionaire, who later financed the Negro Southern League. In the 1930s, a time of acute segregation, the team's games were watched by crowds of black and white people, alike. The most famous player with the team was Hall of Famer Hilton Smith.

When the team first formed it played in the semi-pro Dixie League until Stovall formed the Negro Southern League with four other teams in 1932. The Monarchs won that first season and lost to the Pittsburgh Crawfords in the Negro League World Series. Despite this success the team was excluded from the Negro Southern League when it was reorganized in the following season.

The team played in Casino Park in Monroe, at what became 29th and Hope. It was 360 feet (110 metres) in left, 450 feet (138 metres) in center and 330 feet (102 metres) in right. Built on Stovall's plantation, the park and its associated recreational facilities (including a swimming pool and a dance pavilion) were considered some of the finest in the league.

Stovall accommodated the players in houses on his plantation, provided a cook to prepare their meals, and bought three brand-new Ford cars in 1932 for the team's travel.

The team disbanded soon after 1935 and in 1937 Casino Park was leased to a local white team—Monroe Twins who became the Monroe White Sox in 1938—who played in the Cotton States League.

In 2006, the non-profit organization, The Monroe Monarchs Historical Foundation, began in 2005 by Scott Greer and Jeffrey Newman, worked with the City of Monroe to erect a historical marker dedicated to the legacy of the team. With the assistance of Honorary Members, Paul Letlow and Thomas Aeillo, a website, then a subsequent Myspace Page, was created to give updates on the organization's efforts and open discussion for those interested in the rich history of this team.

[edit] Notable players

• Chuffie Alexander
• Willard "Home Run" Brown
• "Blue Goose" Curry
• Porter "Big Boy" Dallas
• Sugar Dallas
• Ducky Davenport
• Harry Else
• Sam Harris
• John Matthew Markham
• "Smilin" Dick Matthews
• Leroy Morney
• Barney "Big" Morris
• Harold Morris^{[disambiguation needed]}
• Red Parnell
• Augustus Saunders
• Hilton Lee Smith
• W.C Walker
• Elbert Williams

[edit] External links

• [1] Monroe Monarchs Historical Foundation

[edit] References

• 'Interview with Marlin Carter', Black Ball News (1993) cited at 'Team History', Monroe Monarchs Historical Foundation (2005). Retrieved July 24 2005.
• Letlow, Paul J. cited at 'Ballparks', Negro League Baseball Players Association Retrieved July 24 2005.
• Loverro, Thom; Fields, Wilmer. Encyclopedia of Negro League Baseball
• Lowry, Philip J. Green Cathedrals
• O'Neil, John. Catching Dream: My Life in the Negro Baseball Leagues
• Peterson, Robert W. Only The Ball Was White, (New York: Prentice-Hall Englewood-Cliffs, 1970)