Jack Levy and John Keenan

 tried to revive my notes on this after all these years, using an AI assist, so it has these hash things: 

### Narrative Biography of John C. Keenan and Jack Levy


**John C. Keenan and Jack Levy: Pioneers of Baseball in the Pacific Northwest**


The Pacific Northwest in the 19th century was a region of vast wilderness, rapid settlement, and significant cultural shifts. Among those who contributed to the development of this region were John C. Keenan and Jack Levy, whose lives intersected with the spread of baseball, a sport that became a national pastime in the United States. This biography delves into their journeys, highlighting the influence of the Gold Rush, the spread of baseball, and their lasting impact on the region.


#### Early Life and Migration


**John C. Keenan** was born around 1830 and emigrated to the United States by 1848. His early years in America saw him fighting under Jack Hays in the Texas Rangers. Following his military service, Keenan moved to the Bay Area and Sacramento between 1850 and 1858, engaging in various business ventures.

In 1850, Keenan was involved in the burgeoning business environment of Sacramento, opening the Fashion Saloon by 1852. His ventures included not only saloons but also horse racing and other forms of entertainment. By 1858, Keenan expanded his operations to Victoria, British Columbia, capitalizing on the gold rush that had brought significant population growth to the area.

**Jacob "Jack" Levy** was born in Sydney, New South Wales, in 1848. His family, originally from London, migrated to New Zealand in January 1840 as part of the New Zealand Company's first settlers. They later moved to New South Wales before seeking fortune in San Francisco during the Gold Rush of 1849. After various relocations and the death of his father in 1853, Levy settled in Victoria, British Columbia, with his family in the 1860s.


#### Influence of the Gold Rush

The Gold Rush played a crucial role in shaping the lives and characters of both Keenan and Levy. The discovery of gold in California, British Columbia, and other regions of the Pacific Northwest led to significant migration and settlement. The Gold Rushes in the 19th century included several key events:

1. **California Gold Rush (1848-1855)**: Starting with the discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill in 1848, this event attracted over 300,000 people to California from the United States and abroad. The rapid influx of fortune seekers transformed San Francisco from a small settlement to a booming city.

2. **Fraser River Gold Rush (1858)**: Following the California Gold Rush, many miners moved north to British Columbia after gold was discovered along the Fraser River. This rush brought tens of thousands of miners to the region, significantly increasing the population of Victoria.

3. **Cariboo Gold Rush (1861-1867)**: Further gold discoveries in British Columbia's Cariboo region continued to draw miners and settlers, contributing to the economic development of the area.

4. **Klondike Gold Rush (1896-1899)**: Although later in the century, this gold rush had a profound impact on Seattle, as the city became a major supply center for those heading to the Yukon.

For Keenan, the Gold Rush provided opportunities to establish businesses that catered to the influx of miners and settlers. Similarly, Levy's family moved to regions experiencing gold rushes, eventually settling in Victoria, a hub of economic activity during the gold rush era.

#### Population Migration and Living Conditions

The massive migration brought about by these gold rushes led to significant population increases in key cities:

- **San Francisco**: Grew from about 1,000 residents in 1848 to over 25,000 by 1850. The city's infrastructure struggled to keep up with the rapid growth, leading to issues such as overcrowding, poor sanitation, and frequent fires.

- **Victoria**: Saw its population swell from a few hundred to thousands almost overnight during the Fraser River Gold Rush. As the main port of entry, Victoria's economy boomed, but it also faced challenges with housing, health, and maintaining order.

- **Sacramento**: Experienced similar rapid growth, with its population increasing from around 1,000 in 1848 to over 10,000 by 1852. The city faced issues such as flooding, which compounded the challenges of providing adequate sanitation and services.

Political and social factors also influenced migration patterns. For Jewish families like the Levys, the mid-19th century was a time of significant upheaval. In London, economic opportunities were limited, and social mobility was constrained by widespread anti-Semitism. The promise of fortune and a new start in the gold rush regions of the Pacific Rim was a powerful motivator for families seeking better lives.

#### The Spread of Baseball

Baseball, or "base ball" as it was then known, was spreading across the United States during the mid-19th century. The sport's growth coincided with technological advancements such as the telegraph and the Transcontinental Railroad, which facilitated the rapid dissemination of news and sports reporting.


In 1858 and 1859, John C. Keenan was in Sacramento, where he likely encountered the New York game of baseball. The Sacramento Base Ball Club, formed in 1859, played under the New York rules. Keenan's exposure to this organized form of the game likely influenced his later efforts to promote baseball in Victoria. By 1863, he was organizing baseball games in Victoria, following his earlier attempts to promote cricket in 1862. Keenan's involvement in baseball was closely tied to his business interests, as he used the sport to attract patrons to his establishments.

Levy, on the other hand, became a prominent figure in Seattle's baseball scene. After the death of John C. Keenan in 1869, Levy reappeared in Seattle's business directories, running the Seattle Soda Works and a cigar stand. In 1872, the first notice of a baseball club in Seattle appeared, announcing the formation of the Dolly Varden Base Ball Club. Levy's involvement in baseball continued with the formation of the Seattle Alki Base Ball Club in 1876. The Alkis played their first match against Newcastle, winning 51-0, and established annual challenge matches with teams from Victoria.

## Legacy and Later Life

John C. Keenan's influence on baseball in the Pacific Northwest was profound. Known as the "Father of Base Ball in Victoria," Keenan's efforts to promote the sport laid the groundwork for its growth in the region. Unfortunately, Keenan's life was cut short in 1869, likely around the age of 39. Despite his early death, his legacy in promoting baseball and other recreational activities lived on.

Jack Levy continued to be an active figure in Seattle's baseball and business communities. Following his involvement with the Alkis, Levy settled into a job as the steward for the Arlington Hotel in Seattle. In 1897, he joined the last great Gold Rush of the 19th century, heading to the Klondike. However, he never fully recovered from injuries sustained in a boating accident during his return. Levy passed away in April 1913, leaving behind a legacy of pioneering efforts in both business and baseball.

#### Conclusion

The lives of John C. Keenan and Jack Levy exemplify the spirit of the 19th-century pioneers who shaped the Pacific Northwest. Through their contributions to the spread of baseball and their entrepreneurial ventures, they left an indelible mark on the region's history. Their stories are a testament to the transformative power of migration, innovation, and the enduring appeal of America's pastime.

Outbidding the Majors

 It was known that the baseball players in the Pacific Coast League could often pay stars, especially midlevel players, more than those players could earn in the Majors. Here's an example. 

"Seattle Outbid Majors for Bowman"

Like Cliff Brady, Elmer Bowman only saw time in the major leagues in the 1920.

For Bowman, however it started August 3 that year, and ended August 9. 

Here's his SABR Bio: Elmer Bowman – Society for American Baseball Research (sabr.org)









1924 Newcomers stats for 1923

 
Seattle's new pitchers for the 1924 Season and the others across the league.





January Player Stories and Roster Signings As Seattle Gets Ready For the 1924 Season

 Jimmy Welsh would spend 6 seasons in the majors, his career bookended by time in Seattle Jimmy Welsh Minor Leagues Statistics | Baseball-Reference.com

Cliff Brady spent part of 1920, 53 games at 2nd base, with the Boston Americans. He survived a car accident before that Cliff Brady – Society for American Baseball Research (sabr.org).



Lockard Here With Plans For Winning Team

January 17, 1924

LOCKHARD HERE

WITH PLANS FOR

WINNING TEAM

Expects Word on Purchase of New Players Shortly Has Invitation Out to Williams to Attend Opening.

CHARLES LOCKHARD, the president of the Seattle Baseball Club, arrived home today from the schedule meeting of the Pacific Coast League held at Oakland Monday and Tuesday, firm in the belief that with harmony completely restored in the Pacific Coast League, he and Wade Killefer could proceed with their plans for building a winning team.

Numerous contracts have been sent out to the men expected to make up Seattle's 1924 team, Vean Gregg, Jim Bagby and. Billy Lane are already signed to contracts and the balance of the documents are going out today, Lockhard declared this morning.

Wade Killefer, manager of the team is still in San Bernardino, preparing the training camp at which the Indians are to report about March 1, and will reach Seattle within a week. Then things will hum for fair, declares Lockhard.

"The schedule meeting was so different from all our other recent battles that it seemed tame," declared Lockhard. "Everyone is convinced that the political battles are over and that the league will go ahead now.

"We have extended an invitation to Harry Williams, the new president of the Pacific Coast League, to attend our opening here and he has promised to try and arrange his affairs to be here. He will go to Salt Lake for their opening, then come over to ours, which is a week later. He is a fine fellow and is going to make a success of his new job. He plans at least two trips a year all around the circuit, something that we never could get McCarthy to do."

Lockhard expects to hear from the various clubs with which he is negotiating for players shortly now and to have some interesting announcements to make for the Seattle fans. One or two of the deals are so involved that they have taken more time than was expected. Player trades are involved, and the other clubs have had to be satisfied as to the men they are to receive.

The player limit was not cut by the league, according to Lockhard. May 15 being the cutting down date, and twenty experienced and five inexperienced men being allowed until September 1, when the lid is again raised.

The league also adopted a new rule regarding waivers which will permit of trades between the Coast League and the other two Class AA leagues, the International and the American Association, without the formality of securing waivers. It is hoped that the other two leagues will adopt similar rulings.

* *    * *    * *

Seals Take Fifty to Camp.

The San Francisco Seals are planning on taking fifty ball players to Boyes Springs for the annual spring training jaunt.

And out of those half hundred real and would-be ball players, no less than twenty-six are rookies of the rawest kind, youngsters who have never played a game of professional baseball. Four men are young men who were farmed out last year by the Seals, and who have been recalled or another looking over.

Pity poor Bert Ellison, manager of the Seals, when he starts trying to keep that outfit busy at practice.

The rookies, pitchers and catchers report a week ahead of the regulars and some of the youngsters will probably be on their way by the time the veterans come in. That will help some, but Ellison, without an assistant as he is this year, will probably have his hands full.

* *    * *    * *

Love Bothered Riley Most.

Slim Love, the lengthy southpaw who performed in Pacific Coast League circles before being sent to Dallas in the Texas League last season, was the pitcher who bothered Jim Riley, Seattle's baseball playing hockey star most last year."

"Love had that cross-fire for which he is famous working like clock-work," said Riley today. "He kept shooting it in from way over around first base with a deceptive curve on screw ball mixed up and I had an awful time hitting him. He had a good season, especially against the left-handed hitters."

* *    * *    * *

Portland Discards Blue

The Portland Beavers have discarded the navy blue road uniforms in which the players of the Rose City have been clad for more than twenty years.

In place of the somber-colored "unies" will be a neat gray with a fine purple stripe running through it.

"Just needed a change," declared Fred Rivers, business manager of the club, in discussing the new suits. One of the best bits of figuring that the blue suits brought out was a statement from the Portland pitchers of two years ago that they couldn't hide the ball against them and that that accounted for the fact that they were being hit so hard. 

All of which causes one sport writer to remark that Gregg, Steen, Seaton and Krapp would have been "some pitching staff had they been able to hide the ball, too." (Seattle Daily Times)



Coast Decides on 20 Players

January 16, 1924


COAST DECIDES

ON 20 PLAYERS

IN MIDSEASON

Constitution Cleared to Avoid Repetition of Row Caused by McCarthy-Two Spitball Pitchers Added.

Special to The Times.

OAKLAND, Wednesday, Jan. 16. -The Pacific Coast League continued its meeting yesterday at the Hotel Oakland, with several changes accepted in its constitution, the insurance question closed and the agreement on the part of the owners to give its moral support to the organization of the Southern California League.

William Lane of Salt Lake, Oscar Reichow of Los Angeles, and Fred Rivers of Portland were called upon to suggest changes in the constitution. Their final decisions were as follows:

That a majority of the league voters can elect a man to office instead of the old rule of requiring five members to name an officer. 

That the president of the league has no power to vote on any issue. 

That in the event of an appointment of a new director to a club, the league can refuse to recognize him, but has to recognize the club.

That the annual meeting of the league will be held in November instead of October.

President Harry Williams, Alfred Putnam of-San Francisco, Oscor Reichow of Los Angeles and Herbert McFarline of Oakland were appointed to revise the by-laws of the league and to put them in simpler language.

The representatives of the clubs agreed to the insurance question, The league will carry its own insurance with an aggregate sum of $88,400 for the first four weeks, the first four Sundays, the first four Saturdays, and the last two weeks of the season. Each club will be assessed an equal amount of the total premium.

The league also pledged its moral support to the organization of the Southern California League, a Class C circuit, Santa Ana, Glendale, San Diego, and Longbeach will compose the league. It was also announced by William Lane of Salt Lake that he was leaving immediately after the meeting for Fresno, where he will formulate plans for a San Joaquin Valley League, to consist of four clubs. The winners of the Southern California and Valley League pennants will meet in a post-season series for the championship. The player limit was set at twenty from June 3 to September 1 with twenty-five allowed at other times.

A resolution fostered by President Williams calling for payment of part of the expenses of league umpires was passed. Each umpire will be allowed $3 a day for the fourteen weeks of the season.

An invitation to Mike Sexton, president of the Minor League Association, to visit the Pacific Coast League as guest of the organization, was extended in a resolution.

To the league's list of certified spitball pitchers was added the names of Elmer Reiger and Boston Bill James. Under this arrangement only listed spitball pitchers may dampen the ball before a delivery is made.

Passing of the so-called "booze cage" in parks under the control of the league was indicated by a vote... (Seattle Daily Times)

Rohwer Stays With Seattle; 1924 Coast League Schedule Set

 


ROHWER STAYS WITH SEATTLE; CASH REFUSED

Indians Willing to Trade Outfielder for Players-Season

Will Open and Close One Week Later Than 1923.

Special to The Times.

OAKLAND, Tuesday, Jan. 15 .- Charley Lockard, president of the Seattle Baseball Club, made efforts to interest his fellow directors, at the Pacific Coast League meeting yesterday, in a deal for Ray Rohwer, hard-hitting outfielder.

Lockard was unable to make a deal and decided to retain the former California player. The St. Louis Cardidinals offered cash and Bill Pertica, former Los Angeles pitcher, but their offer was turned down.

"We want players and not cash," said Lockard.

The Seattle chief is still angling to dispose of "Doc" Johnston, veteran first baseman, as It has been decided to open the season with Jimmy Welsh at first.'

Lockard is anxious to obtain another pitcher and an outfielder. The Indians still have a catcher coming from the Cubs. "Kettle" Wirts was offered Seattle, but his services were refused. Very" little - was accomplished at yesterday's meeting, other than the adoption of the 1924 schedule. The meeting will be continued today, at which time the player limit will be considered.

The season will open and close week later this year than in the past. the opening week being April 8. This was adopted against the advice of Williams, who claimed that it would interfere with the football season.

The schedule was submitted by Herbert McFarline, secretary of the Oakland Club. The opening, closing and holiday dates were announced as follows:

OPENING WEEK

Vernon at Sacramento

Oakland at Salt Lake

Portland at San Francisco

Seattle at Los Angeles

Decoration Day.

Sacramento at San Francisco.

Salt Lake at Los Angeles.

Oakland at Seattle.

Vernon at Portland.

Independence Day.

Salt Lake at Oakland.

Sacramento at Vernon.

Lon Angeles at Seattle.

San Francisco at Portland.

Labor Day.

Salt Lake at San Francisco.

Sacramento at Los Angeles.

Vernon at Seattle.

Oakland at Portland.

Closing Week.

Oakland at San Francisco.

Vernon at Los Angeles

Seattle at Portland,

Salt Lake at: Sacramento.



Seattle Metropolitans, January 14, 1924

Game 38, in which Seattle moves to .500 on the season, 19-19

 "Oakland, Saturday, May 17, 1924-

Elmer Bowman came through with a home run over the left field wall here this afternoon, winning for Seattle, 12 to 11, the wildest baseball game of the year here. The victory put Seattle in fourth place, with nineteen  games won and as many lost."



Right Short

On page 27, a meaningful number for sure, of his Base Ball Manual, Henry Chadwick writes:

"In the present position of the game there is but one "short-stop," and he stands to the left of the infield between the second and third base positions. Ultimately, however, a "right-short" will be introduced, which will make the field one of ten men instead of nine, as now. In America the professional clubs this season play what they call exhibition games -vis., not regular matches-under the rule of ten men and ten innings, but all championship contests are played with nine men, there being no "right-short" fielder.

Chadwick's Base Ball Manual was published in London in 1874. The front page contains that title, as well as a nice illustration of a batsman, and the following, "Containing the New Rules of Base Ball as revised at the Base Ball Convention held at Boston, U.S., March 2, 1874, together with special instructions in all the scientific points of pitching, batting, and fielding, with instructions for scoring the game and rules for umpiring, by Henry Chadwick."

So...this is the latest thing I'm looking for, these ten men, ten inning or ten position game box scores. I have one, but its kind of an anomaly for these because its from 1863, and in Victoria, on Vancouver Island in what would eventually become the colony of British Columbia and part of Canada.
Here is a copy of that, its from March 31, 1863, reported in the British Colonist, a newspaper in Victoria. John Calhoun Keenan was the pitcher, and owner of the Fashion Hotel. He was from Sacramento [originally from Ireland], and played both cricket and baseball in both Sacramento and Victoria. He was also noted as a fireman.





































In addition, further research...
So, using that, I found some articles in "Forest and Stream", a sporting magazine, initial find is for October 29, 1874.

The article reviews the championship matches for the 1874 season then states:
"-The professional championship season closes on Oct. 31st, after which date exhibition games, under the ten men and ten innings rule, will be in order. From the appended record of games won and lost up to October 25th, inclusive, it will be seen that the Bostons stand first-winning the pennant-the Mutuals second and the Athletics third. The table is as follows (gives rankings, you can go to bbref and look up the 1874 standings)..
-An exhibition match, under the ten men and ten innings rule was played on the Union Grounds, Brooklyn, October 24th, between the Mutuals and Atlantics, which resulted in the success of the Mutuals in a ten innings games, played in an hour and three-quarters, with a score of 7 to 1. West, of the Chelseas, played right short for the Atlantics and made a splendid double play. Geer, of the Fly Aways, assisting with the Mutuals. The Atlantics earned the only run earned in the game.

In August, the Forest and Stream reported on a game between the Atlantics and Chicago:

"-The finest display of ball playing ever seen in Chicago was on the occasion of the benefit match given Jimmy Wood on July 29th, the match being an exhibition game between the Atlantics and White Stockings, played under the ten men and ten innings rule, Ferguson playing at right short for the Atlantics and Collins for the Whites. At the end of the tenth inning the score stood at 4 to 4 only, and in the eleventh inning the Whites won by one run. The score was as follows:
Atlantics......0  0  0  2  0  0  2  0  0  0  0  -  4
Chicago.......1  0  1  0  0  2  0  0  0  0  1  -  5
The new game is highly spoken of in the Chicago papers."


Here is another report from Forest and Stream, earlier in 1874, from March 19:

"-By the report of the proceedings of the Professional Association Convention held in Boston, it will be seen that the ten men rule though excluded from championship contests is to be the rule for all exhibition games played by professional clubs. In fact they are debarred playing any 'exhibition' game under the regular rule of play until they have played their championship series to a close. The first series of these games therefore under the ten men rule will be played the same week, in April, when the Boston Club will make an exhibition tour prior to their commencing the championship series. As at the Amateur Convention in New York last December, some of the delegates declared that the basis of their opposition to the ten men rule was the fact that the Professional Convention would adopt it, and that they wanted something different to the game that class played, by the same course of reasoning the Amateurs should adopt the new game themselves. Under their proposed rule of allowing but a square pitch in delivery, they well want ten men in the field to keep down the large scores that will be made against a simple pitch of the ball to the bat."

I've found William J. Ryczek gives the March convention good coverage in his book on the National Association, Blackguards and Red Stockings. Peter Morris also gave the attempt a page in his book A Game of Inches.

Here is a box score, finally, of a professional match. December 25, 1873. This is from "Record of the Boston Base Ball Club, Since Its Organization: With A Sketch of All Its Players for 1871, 72, 73, and 74, and Other Items of Interest. By Rockwell & Churchill, Printers, 1874." It is preceded on page 45 with the following:


Base Ball In Winter.

     "Among the sports of Christmas day was a game of base ball upon the Boston grounds between the nines or 'tens' selected for the occasion. Harry Wright and Spalding chose sides from the various players, amateurs and juniors, who happened to be present, and the game proved very interesting to four or five hundred spectators.
     The score was a tie at the end of the third, eighth, and ninth innings, Harry's side getting the winning runs in the tenth. Following is the score:-"

































Peculiar, is that Wilson is Short Left Field and Mathews is Right Short.  Al Spalding would pitch 617.1 innings in 1874, so hopefully this game didn't take too much out of him.

A retired blog on St. Louis baseball, This Game of Games, has the following article, which talks of a game played in the ten men ten inning format, also a winter exhibition. I find it interesting that Sweasy is also in this game: http://thisgameofgames.blogspot.com/2007/10/game-played-under-ten-men-ten-inning.html

In The Pride of Havana: A History of Cuban Baseball by Roberto Gonzalez Echevarria, he states
"a curious feature of nineteenth-century Cuban baseball is that it was played with ten men to a side, a fact that left its mark in Cuban baseball jargon. As kids we referred to sandlot games where sides were chose on the spot as a pit en, as in echar un piten, to play a casual, pickup game. The expression I know now comes from a "picked ten," a selected team of ten players."

In March 1874, the University of Virginia magazine, in Google Books as The Virginia Spectator, had this observation:

"-The Yale Courant is always quite interesting. It is generally full of news about boating, base ball, & c. We copy from a late number the following:
    The prospects that the coming base-ball season will be a successful one with amateur and professional ball-players seem very encouraging. Up to the present time seven first-class professional teams have entered the lists to compete for the whip pennant. The much talked of Connecticut "ten" will probably do so at the next meeting of the Professional Association. The new rule, which constitutes ten men and ten innings the legal game, is received with little favor by unprofessional players in this vicinity, and there exist serious doubts of its adoption by the Amateur Association, notwithstanding the efforts which will be made in its behalf by all the prominent sporting papers in this city. It is now settled beyond dispute that the Athletics, of Philadelphia, and the Red Stockings, of Boston, will play a series of championship games in England, Mr. Alexander Spaulding [sic] having already been sent over to make all the preparations necessary to a successful debut of our national game in that country. The struggle for the professional championship promises to be a very lively one. At present the prospects of the whip pennant ever being held in New York or Brooklyn are very slim, neither city being able to raise a stock organization, though New York will be represented by a team, which will be partially run on the stock principle. The following is a list of the salaried paid by some of the more prominent stock organizations this season: (the article lists players for several teams, with salary. I will note one of interest, Fergy Malone, of the Chicago team, was highest paid at $2,200. He died in Seattle, a Special Customs inspector around age 70, in January 1905. He'd been out drinking all night, and died around 4 a.m. in a cab while the driver and a fellow inspector were in bar. His body was shipped back to Philadelphia where it was given a burial.)

Continuing, in Peter Morris' Baseball Fever: Early Baseball in Michigan, he states the Jackson Mutuals voted down implementing ten men, ten innings.

The most extensive coverage, at least of Chadwick's arguments, which have been well known and the purpose of my exercise here is to find scores, accounts of the games more particularly, lineups to see who played, etc, is in Andrew J. Schiff's The Father of Baseball: A Biography of Henry Chadwick. He elaborates the winter of Chadwick's discontent and the eventual defeat of the concept and how it was representative of the game moving away from Chadwick's influence.

Okay, now, have come across another one...

September 22, 1863, New York Clipper, Excelsiors v Knickerbockers (like baseball royalty you know?). Chadwick was the scorer for this game, so another clue. However, like the other early versions, this is 10 men, 9 innings. Which I now have two box scores of.





Game 37, Seattle Returns to the Winning Column with the arm of Wheezer Dell

Game played May 16, 1924, reported May 17. Wheezer Dell vs Walter Mails. Wheezer Dell would throw over 1,400 innings for Vernon over 4 PCL seasons later in the decade. His minor league career lasted from 1909 to 1926, with a brief respite for the Brooklyn team of the National League in the mid-Teens.
Walter Mails was also on those teams, along with George Cutshaw (their star 2nd baseman) who was on the Seattle bench for this contest. Duster Mails and Wheezer Dell.


Babs B. B. Ladies Orchestra


Game 36, In Which The Indians are Best'd by Peaches Kunz

Earl Dewey Kunz, born Christmas Day in 1898, played for Sacramento, Oakland, San Francisco, and Seattle in a PCL career that spanned 1920-1930. His time with Seattle was still a couple years away when he beat them on a May day in 1924. Wikipedia identifies his nickname as Pinches, so maybe the columnist is yanking his chain in calling him Peaches. But, Peaches is a more familiar nickname of the time, so maybe Peaches is correct. In this game, Peaches beat Suds Sutherland.


Charles Hollocher, The Saga of

May 15, 1924 Seattle Daily Times

The Tragedy


Game 35, reported May 15, 1924, Seattle moves into tie for 4th place

"FOURTH STRAIGHT WIN FOR INDIANS MOVES THEM HIGHER
Seattle Makes Everything Count, Killefer Takes No Chances, and Acorns Are Beaten 4 to 3."

Seattle's hot hitting continued...


Game 34, Reported May 14, 1924

"FIRST VICTORY OVER OAKLAND CLUB GIVE FANS RIGHT TO HOPE
Earl Baldwin Features Win With Homer Over Left Field Wall With Bases Full-
Hard Hitting Keeps On."

The Seattle club was moving closer to .500 with a victory over Oakland. the march to the Pennant one day closer. Catcher Earl Baldwin brought the power, and Vean Gregg brought the arm.


May 14, 1924 ad for upcoming visit of the ZR-1 Shenandoah, memorialized in The Wreck of the Shenandoah


Chesterfield Ad, Seattle Times, May 14, 1924


Well

The Mariner's won yesterday. Felix and Kuma are coming back, 2 weeks out. Okay, so awhile since I've posted, I was going to migrate this to a website, but I've realized I will never gain that level of technical competence and just prefer writing.

First, I'll get my post up about my presentation at the 2016 Fred conference at the BBHOF. Other than that, well, that's that.

Jacob "Jack" Levy

Jack Levy was an early baseball manager and probably player in Victoria, British Columbia and Seattle, Washington. He came from a family that were Jewish pioneers in New Zealand, Australia, San Francisco, Victoria and Seattle. Below is a modified version of a chapter written by Protoball Digger Mark Brunke that appeared in Distant Replay! Washington's Jewish Sports Heroes, published in 2014 by the Washington State Jewish Historical Society.

Jack Levy has the distinction of being the earliest noted Jewish athlete in Washington that the Washington State Jewish Historical Society has discovered. Levy was an important early organizer and promoter of sports in Seattle. In addition to being president of Seattle's first organized Base Ball Club to play challenge matches, Levy would organize and promote the Seattle Rifle Team in international matches. The team Levy organized for a series of matches with the baseballers of Victoria developed over the following decade into an active semi-professional team. That team, the Seattle Reds, was the nucleus of baseball activity in Puget Sound prior to the advent of professional ball in 1890. Levy's efforts to promote dozens of games throughout the Northwest played a significant role in establishing organized baseball in Seattle.

Benjamin and Esther Levy were among the first Jews to emigrate from London to New Zealand in 1841. By 1848, they had settled in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and had given birth to their son, Jacob. By the early 1870s Jack was living in Seattle doing business at teh Grotto Cigar Stand on Mill Street. [This corrects for the previous version of this information, which was published with an error attributing Jack to Seattle Soda Works, which was run by two of his brothers : In his 20s, Jacob, now known as Jack, and his brother Henry Emanuel were living in the Northwest and had established Levy Brothers' Seattle Soda Works, manufacturing ginger beer, sarsaparilla, and other beverages. Jack Levy also ran the Grotto Cigar Stand on Mill Street and was the correspondent for The British Colonist newspaper in Victoria.]

In 1872, the game of "base ball" is mentioned for the first time in Seattle periodical. The establishment of the Dolly Varden Base Ball Club was announced in the July 11 edition of the Puget Sound Dispatch. Four years later, the newspaper described a challenge issued by a team from Newcastle, seeking to play any other team in the county. Levy is listed on the roster of the Seattle Base Ball Club, which accepted the challenge and beat the Newcastle Miners 51-0.
On May 18, 1877, The British Colonist published Victoria's challenge to the Seattle Base Ball Club to play a game for Queen Victoria's birthday on May 24. The Seattle nine accepted and beat the Victoria Club by a score of 15-7. Joshua P. Davis umpired the game, and like Jack's brother's Aunt Elizabeth, he was a well known leader of Victoria's Jewish community. Davis was also a founding director of the Olympic Base Ball Club of Victoria when it was formed in 1866. Along with the Pioneer Base Ball Club of Portland, these were the first two clubs in the Pacific Northwest to be formed under what were called New York Rules and more properly the rules of the National Association of Base Ball Players.

On June 1, 1877, the Seattle Base Ball Club voted to change its name to the Alki Base Ball Club and elected Jack Levy as its president. At this time, the club consisted of nine players, a president, and a secretary, William Jamieson. Jamieson was a jeweler who, like Levy, had moved to Seattle from Victoria. Jamieson had managed and played baseball in Victoria, and was the organizer of the Dolly Varden club in 1872, though there is no record of them ever playing club or match games.
The members of the Alkis also voted to invite the Victoria Club to a game in Seattle on July 4th, which would also include a rifle match. Seattle beat Victoria by a score of 21-9, but Victoria redeemed itself with a victory in the rifle match. With Levy managing the ball club, the Alkis turned in their best season that year, going undefeated in front of crowds that reached several hundred. Their home games were played in Georgetown, on the field of the Seattle Jockey Club's racecourse.
By 1879, Levy and nearly all his other original Alkis had left the game in Seattle, moving on to businesses in Seattle and Victoria, and one player, Curry Chase, playing at Cornell before becoming a reporter and eventually playing in Wisconsin. The Alkis team lasted only three years, but its players from its final year became the nucleus of a team that played as the Seattle Base Ball Club, continuing the May 24/July 4 home and away rivalry with Victoria through the 1880s. That team became known as the Reds by the mid-1880s, and the Seattle Browns by the late 1880s. Through the last part of the 1880s they were a semi-professional club, but had recruited at least 3 players from California and the Midwest who in addition to baseball worked in local banks and other businesses, some of which were operated by alumni of the Alkis. Finally in 1890, Seattle and clubs from Portland, Tacoma, and Spokane organized the first fully professional league in the Northwest. Victoria had initially been invited to this aggregation, but declined (though Victoria would partake in a league within a few years).

In 1897, Levy's business interests took him north to the Yukon with the Klondike gold rush. He prospected in Dawson and operated businesses there for the next 12 years. His brother and other family members operated a restaurant in Victoria. Levy returned there following injuries in a boating accident, dying a few years later on April 29, 1913.

Game 31, reported Sunday, May 11, 1924

After 31 games, and heading into a usual Sunday double-header that would end the current series with Portland, the Seattle Indians were 13-18. Here's the story and box score of the Saturday affair: