SILL: Baseball: The Early Days

Fridays, 10/7, 14, 21, & 28/2022, 2-3pm, Stockton at Manahawkin | This course will look at three periods in early Major League Baseball history. 1) Its beginnings in the mid-19th century: from the 1840s in New York City to its proliferation during the Civil War and beyond, to the start of major league play. Students will learn about the first black man to play in organized baseball, and the first black man to play in the majors (well before Jackie Robinson). 2) The “dead ball” era from 1900 to 1920: from the early competition between the National and American leagues to baseball’s first superstars, to the scandal of the 1919 World Series. Students will learn about this period when there was no television or even radio, and fans who couldn’t get to the ballpark would get their baseball news from late afternoon and evening newspapers. 3) The second World War period: from the depletion of the major leagues of its stars enlisting to the development of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Students will learn about President Roosevelt’s statement on the importance of baseball to the country.

Free to residents of Ocean and Atlantic counties aged over 60 years, all others $45

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