100 years ago, this spring, if traveling through St. Louis or Chicago one might stop to watch the Giants play baseball. Forget the Cardinals or Cubs. Each of those cities had ball clubs named the Giants. In New York or Detroit, you could see games fielded by the Stars. Indianapolis, Dayton and Kansas City had their own teams named the ABCs, Marcos and Monarchs respectively.
If those monikers don’t ring a bell, you’re probably not Black. Even if you are, those clubs may still be an anomaly. Those were all teams in the storied Negro Baseball League that existed from 1920 to 1950. For those 30 years, Blacks lucky enough to be in a city with a Negro Baseball League team – particularly Kansas City – enjoyed embracing heroes on the field they could identify with. Kansas City is where the Negro National League started at the local YMCA....
Though just nine to 10 percent of the US population was Black in the 1940s, their participation in many mainstream aspects of everyday life was prominent. In sports, it became clear Blacks could physically compete on the same plane – just not the same field. Jesse Owens broke that barrier at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. It wouldn’t be until April 15, 1947 that a Black baseball player – Jackie Robinson – would compete directly with his white counterparts.
This year, in honor of the 100th anniversary of the creation of the Negro National League a new set of collectible coins is being released. The coins are required to reflect the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and the league’s mission of tolerance, diversity, and inclusion.
The coins being issued include a clad half dollar, a silver dollar and a five-dollar gold piece. Combined, they tell an abbreviated history of the league.
The clad half dollar coin shows a Negro League bus that not only took players to their games but also might be their overnight home on the road should they be refused entry to hotels and restaurants. In the background is an image of a player ready to bat.
The silver dollar showcases a Negro League pitcher in mid-throw with the baseball in the foreground. Around the border of the coin is the iconic stitching found on a baseball. On the reverse is a player’s-eye view of a pitch barreling toward home plate.
The coins are being sold separately as well as in a three-coin set. The half dollar is priced at $35; the silver dollar at $74 and the gold coin is $674. The three-coin set is $787.25.
The Mint has also offering one other incarnation of the silver dollar – this one combined with a previously created silver medal honoring luminary Jackie Robinson.
The Jackie Robinson silver medal features a portrait of the groundbreaking player, his name and the inscription “A LIFETIME OF ADVOCACY FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE & HUMAN DIGNITY,” “ACT OF CONGRESS 2003.” The reverse features laurel branches around a plaque with the words “A LIFE IS NOT IMPORTANT EXCEPT IN THE IMPACT IT HAS ON OTHER LIVES,” “JACKIE ROBINSON.” The silver dollar and silver medal set is $135.
An included surcharge built into the price of each coin and set is being donated to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City for educational and outreach programs and exhibits.
It all may seem like ancient history but the Negro Leagues were in full swing when color TV and aerosol cans came into being. There are still many alive today who can recall attending some of the games. For armchair fans, more information on the commemorative coins can be had at: www.USMint.gov. And, for those who would like to allegorically run those historic bases, the Negro Leagues Hall of Fame welcomes fans and visitors in Kansas City.
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