Full Name John W. Fowler Name Bud Fowler Nationality American Role Baseball Player | Ethnicity African American Years active 1877–1895 | |
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Known for Professional baseball player Died February 26, 1913, Frankfort | ||
CV S SS vs Milford 2019
John W. "Bud" Fowler (March 16, 1858 – February 26, 1913) was an African-American baseball player, field manager, and club organizer. He is the earliest known African-American player in organized professional baseball; that is, the major leagues and affiliated minor leagues. He played more seasons and more games in organized baseball than any African American until Jackie Robinson played his 11th season in 1956.
Contents
- CV S SS vs Milford 2019
- Early life and education
- Baseball career
- Keokuk
- Final playing days
- Death
- Legacy and honors
- References
Early life and education
The son of a fugitive hop-picker and barber, Bud Fowler was christened John W. Jackson. His father had escaped from slavery and migrated to New York. In 1859, his family moved from Fort Plain, New York, to Cooperstown. He learned to play baseball during his youth in Cooperstown. It is unknown why he adopted the name "Bud Fowler", although biographer L. Robert Davids claims he was nicknamed "Bud" because he called the other players by that name.
Baseball career
Fowler first played for an all-white professional team based out of New Castle, Pennsylvania in 1872, when he was 14 years old. He is documented as playing for another professional team on July 21, 1877, when he was 19. On April 24, 1878, he pitched a game for the Picked Nine, who defeated the Boston Red Caps, champions of the National League in 1877. He pitched some more for the Chelsea team, then finished that season with the Worcester club. Largely supporting himself as a barber, Fowler continued to play for baseball teams in New England and Canada for the next four years.
He moved into the Midwest. In 1883, Fowler played for a team in Niles, Ohio; in 1884, he played for Stillwater, Minnesota, in the Northwestern League; Keokuk Indians in Iowa, 1885 and, in 1888, he played for a team in Terre Haute, Indiana.
Keokuk
Keokuk, Iowa had not had a professional baseball team since 1875. However, in 1885, local businessman R. W. "Nick" Curtis was the chief force behind starting a new team and hired Bud Fowler for it. Johnny Peters, the manager of the then-disbanded Stillwater, Minnesota team, helped Fowler get connected with the new team in Keokuk.
Fowler became the most popular player on the Keokuk team. The local newspaper, the Keokuk Gate City and Constitution, said of him, "a good ball player, a hard worker, a genius on the ball field, intelligent, gentlemanly in his conduct and deserving of the good opinion entertained for him by base ball admirers here."
He also commented to the local newspaper on issues with the "reserve clause," the contractual mechanism that allowed teams to hold on to players for their entire career. Fowler stated, "...when a ball player signs a league contract they can do anything with him under its provisions but hang him."
Final playing days
The Western League folded that season due to financial reasons, leaving Keokuk without a league. Fowler was released and moved to play with a team in Pueblo, Colorado. In 1886, he played for a team in Topeka, Kansas. That team won the pennant behind Fowler's .309 average. He also led the league in triples. Eventually, Fowler moved to Binghamton, New York and played on a team there. Racial tensions arose and his teammates refused to continue playing with him.
In 1892 Fowler played in Kearney Nebraska for the Nebraska State League.
In 1895, he and Home Run Johnson formed the Page Fence Giants in Adrian, Michigan. From 1894-1904, Fowler played and/or managed the Page Fence Giants, Cuban Giants, the Smoky City Giants, the All-American Black Tourists, and the Kansas City Stars.
Death
Fowler died in Frankfort, New York, on February 26, 1913. In his last years, he suffered from illness and poverty which was covered by national media. His grave was unmarked.