Connie Morgan
| Connie Morgan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Second Base | |
| Born: October 17, 1935 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US | |
| Died: October 14, 1996 (aged 60) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| Negro leagues debut | |
| 1954, for the Indianapolis Clowns | |
| Last Negro leagues appearance | |
| 1955, for the Indianapolis Clowns | |
| Teams | |
Constance Enola Morgan (October 17, 1935 – October 14, 1996) was the third woman to play professional baseball in the Negro league.
Career
[edit]A native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Morgan graduated John Bartram High School in 1953 and attended William Penn Business Institute.[1][2] She joined the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro American League in 1954, playing second base under Baseball Hall of Fame skipper Oscar Charleston. She was signed "to a contract estimated at $10,000 per season" by Clowns owner Syd Pollock at the same time as female pitcher Mamie "Peanut" Johnson.[3][4] She replaced Toni Stone, who had been the first woman to compete in the league, and who had been traded to the Kansas City Monarchs prior to the season.[2] Described as standing 5 feet 4 inches (1.63 metres) tall and weighing 140 pounds (64 kilos), she was "slated to get the regular female assignment in the starting lineup."[5] On opening day, 23 May 1954, "she went far to her right to make a sensational stop, flipped to shortstop Bill Holder and started a lightning doubleplay against the Birmingham Barons."[6] Making her first appearance in her native Philadelphia in July, the Clowns took both games of a doubleheader from the Monarchs, one of the preeminent teams in the league.[7] Morgan played with the Clowns through 1955. Before her tenure with the Indianapolis, she played catcher for five seasons with the North Philadelphia Honey Drippers, an all-women baseball team, batting .338 in that time.[1][8][3]
Post-baseball life
[edit]At the end of the Clowns' championship season, she "switched from bats to books as she resumed her studies" in accounting at William Penn Business Institute, with the goal of becoming a "top-flight worker in a business office".[9] She completed her program in 1955 and eventually worked for the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) until her retirement in 1974.[2][8] 1995 saw her inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, and she died in Philadelphia 14 October 1996, 3 days short of her 61st birthday.[8]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b "Connie Morgan". nlbemuseum.com. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
- ^ a b c Joe Swide. "Connie Morgan: A Female Baseball Powerhouse". ebbets.com. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
- ^ a b "Indianapolis Clowns Sign Female Player" (PDF). Cleveland Call and Post (1934-1962). 13 March 1954. p. 5C.
- ^ Delmont, Matthew. "Connie Morgan and Women in Negro League Baseball". Black Quotidian: Everyday History in African-American Newspapers. Retrieved 28 June 2020 – via ProQuest.
- ^ "Hometown Miss To Replace Toni Stone At Second Base" (PDF). Philadelphia Tribune (1912-2001). 9 March 1954. p. 10.
- ^ "6,000 see Connie Morgan in sparkling performance" (PDF). Afro-American (1893-1988). 29 May 1954. p. 15. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
- ^ "Schoolmates Greet Star". Philadelphia Tribune. Black Quotidian. 24 July 1954. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
- ^ a b c Nielsen, Euell A. (13 October 2016). "Morgan, Constance Enola (1935-1993)". BlackPast.org.
- ^ "Connie Morgan A Student: Clowns' Star Returns To Accounting Course" (PDF). New Journal and Guide (1916-2003). 30 October 1954. p. 20. Retrieved 28 June 2020.