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During the first half of this century, a parallel world existed in our National Pastime. This world was born out of necessity, due to the bias and ignorance of the times. It was brought into being because thousands of African American men and boys were denied the dream that was open to their white counterparts - the dream of playing Major League baseball. The world they created was replete with their own struggles, triumphs, starts, and legendary teams. It came to be know as the Negro Leagues.
When we began Ebbets Field Flannels in 1987, we were determined to make some of that world come alive for others - through our uniform reproduction and our catalogs. Today, there is finally a much greater general awareness and appreciation of this important part of American history. We believe that in a modest way we have contributed to that awareness, and we are more proud of that than of anything we have achieved. |
Arguably the Negro Leagues' all time greatest
team, the Monarchs won five consecutive Negro National League
championships during the 1920s. They went on to win six more
titles between 1937 and 1950, as members of the Negro American
League. Monarch greats included Satchel Paige (#25), Buck O'Neil
(#22), and pitcher Hilton Smith. Jackie Robinson (#23) was on
the 1945 squad when he was first scouted by Branch Rickey of the
Brooklyn Dodgers. Jersey prices include numerals, except where
noted most teams did not wear numbers prior to 1930. Sleeve
patches were another important component of vintage jerseys.
They often celebrated local events like World's Fairs, or
anniversaries like baseballs official centennial in 1939. During
wartime, ballclubs would display patriotic shields, like the
Stars & Stripes or Health patch. |
