Today in Wheeling History: June 12--Sol White, a pioneering African American baseball player, manager, executive, and author who played for the Wheeling Green Stockings in 1887 and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006, was born in Bellaire, Ohio (1868).
King Solomon "Sol" White, born on June 12, 1868, in Bellaire, Ohio, was a pioneering figure in the early history of African American baseball. He began his career in 1887 at the age of 19 with the Pittsburgh Keystones while studying at Wilberforce University. That same year, White joined the Wheeling Green Stockings of the Ohio State League, where he excelled, batting .370. However, the following season, his white teammates forced his release.
Throughout the late 1880s and early 1890s, White played for various Black teams in the Ohio Valley region and beyond, including the New York Gorhams (1889-1891), Cuban Giants (1892-1894), and Page Fence Giants (1895). In 1902, White organized the Philadelphia Giants, one of the era's premier African American teams, and managed them to multiple championships between 1904 and 1907.
White's impact extended beyond the baseball diamond. In 1907, he authored "Sol White's History of Colored Base Ball," providing the first definitive account of African American baseball. The book traced the sport's development from the formation of the first professional Black team in 1885 through the early 20th century, and served as a vital resource for future historians.
In his later years, White continued to contribute to the game as a sportswriter for the New York Amsterdam News and Cleveland Advocate. Although he died in 1955 in Central Islip, New York, just a few years after Jackie Robinson broke MLB's color barrier in 1947, White's legacy as a trailblazer in Black baseball was cemented. His remarkable journey from the sandlots of the Ohio Valley to the highest echelons of African American baseball was recognized in 2006 when he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
To learn more: (https://shorturl.at/elFPe) (https://shorturl.at/7Fo5n) (https://shorturl.at/6tza5) (https://shorturl.at/668Mq) (https://shorturl.at/xbPk0) (https://shorturl.at/4BOHR)
Photo credits: New York Public Library, Cleveland Gazette, Find a Grave, Wheeling Daily Intelligencer, Wikimedia Commons, Philadelphia Inquirer, Weelunk
King Solomon "Sol" White, born on June 12, 1868, in Bellaire, Ohio, was a pioneering figure in the early history of African American baseball. He began his career in 1887 at the age of 19 with the Pittsburgh Keystones while studying at Wilberforce University. That same year, White joined the Wheeling Green Stockings of the Ohio State League, where he excelled, batting .370. However, the following season, his white teammates forced his release.
Throughout the late 1880s and early 1890s, White played for various Black teams in the Ohio Valley region and beyond, including the New York Gorhams (1889-1891), Cuban Giants (1892-1894), and Page Fence Giants (1895). In 1902, White organized the Philadelphia Giants, one of the era's premier African American teams, and managed them to multiple championships between 1904 and 1907.
White's impact extended beyond the baseball diamond. In 1907, he authored "Sol White's History of Colored Base Ball," providing the first definitive account of African American baseball. The book traced the sport's development from the formation of the first professional Black team in 1885 through the early 20th century, and served as a vital resource for future historians.
In his later years, White continued to contribute to the game as a sportswriter for the New York Amsterdam News and Cleveland Advocate. Although he died in 1955 in Central Islip, New York, just a few years after Jackie Robinson broke MLB's color barrier in 1947, White's legacy as a trailblazer in Black baseball was cemented. His remarkable journey from the sandlots of the Ohio Valley to the highest echelons of African American baseball was recognized in 2006 when he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
To learn more: (https://shorturl.at/elFPe) (https://shorturl.at/7Fo5n) (https://shorturl.at/6tza5) (https://shorturl.at/668Mq) (https://shorturl.at/xbPk0) (https://shorturl.at/4BOHR)
Photo credits: New York Public Library, Cleveland Gazette, Find a Grave, Wheeling Daily Intelligencer, Wikimedia Commons, Philadelphia Inquirer, Weelunk
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