Frank Wickware in 1913, An Interesting Season

Palm Beach

In pursuit of warmer weather to continue his baseball paycheck, Righthanded fireballer Frank Wickware traveled south with his Brooklyn Royal Giants’ teammates after the 1912 season, playing contests where feasible. After the turn of the calendar year, they landed in Palm Beach, Florida. Two local hotels there, the Royal Poinciana and the Breakers, had been hosting black clubs since the mid-1890s.

The men, pulled from several established black teams, worked for the establishments at various duties, drawing a salary and tips. To entertain the guests, the ballplayers were divvied up between the hotels and contests were arranged. They competed in a so-called Hotel League, typically from January into March. In early 1913, Wickware performed for the Breakers squad. (The previous year he had also hopped to Havana for some contests.)

Heading north for the approaching regular season, Wickware rejoined Nat Strong’s formal Royal Giants nine.

Mohawk Giants

In mid-May, Wickware, age 25, jumped the Royal Giants and headed to Schenectady, New York. Arriving there on May 20 on the 10:30 pm-train, he immediately signed with Bill Wernecke who backed the local Mohawk Giants, a black club. Wernecke also controlled the bookings at the city’s main ball field, Island Park. The park was physically located on the Mohawk River, requiring a visitor to traverse a small, dilapidated bride to gain access. (Island Park hosted one of the sport’s early night games, under portable lights on June 25, 1903)

The Mohawks had recently lost one of the dominant pitchers of the era, Smoky Joe Williams, who had rejoined the New York (Harlem) Lincoln Giants, a club he would pitch on and off for over a decade. The Mohawk rotation now included Wickware, Walter Ball and Ad Langford, making it one of the best in all black baseball. (Wickware, Williams and Ball were considered by many to be the top pitchers of the era.)

Wick pitched exceedingly well for the Mohawks, racking up the strikeouts, and wasn’t knocked out of the box for the first time until August 12.

Schenectady Gazette 7/14/1913

Colored Championship

Still a member of the Mohawks, Wickware accepted $100 cash from Lincoln Giants (eastern club) owner Jess McMahon to pitch in the upcoming “colored championship” against the Chicago American Giants (western club). The 5-game series was to commence on July 17. (McMahon had made a special trip to Schenectady during the week of July 6 to hand Wickware the money and gain his commitment.)

On the 17th however, Wickware appeared in an American Giants’ uniform. Naturally, a dispute erupted between McMahon, Wickware and Chicago captain Rube Foster. After arguing for an hour before a large crowd, no agreement was arrived at and the contest was cancelled. In the end Wickware played for neither club. Only three of the intended 5 games were actually played, as the final contest was also cancelled due to another dispute when Foster refused to allow the Lincoln Giants to sub for a sick player.

Wickware then rejoined the Mohawks:

Schenectady Gazette 7/19/1913

Arrested for Larceny

Only a few days later, a warrant was obtained for Wickware’s arrest on another matter. A free-spender and heavy-drinker, Wick had questionable ethics as exposed in the McMahon affair. He racked up more expenses than he could afford and was apparently often in debt to his teammates, club, friends and various creditors. (He also burned the wick at both ends with women as will soon be touched on.)

At 1:00 am on July 21, Wick was arrested at Union Station in Albany on a warrant sworn out by the proprietor of a Schenectady hotel. The pitcher owed the establishment $10, and had skipped out on the bill. He had also allegedly stolen a diamond ring from a teammate.

The arresting detective hauled Wickware back to Schenectady where he spent the morning in jail before William T. “Big Bill” Smith, the Mohawks’ booking agent, paid his $25 fine in the hotel bill matter. The disposition of the diamond ring theft was kept a private matter. (Smith was acting as an agent for Wernecke and had actually traveled with the detective in search of the pitcher. The chase included a stop in New York City as well (unknown to the police Wickware had returned to Schenectady and was pitching for the Mohawks again). Smith minced few words during the excursion, informing the police of Wickware’s many debts and questionable conduct.)

Both Smith and Wickware had the law on their tails in October:

Schenectady Gazette 10/8/1913

Banished by the Cubs

In mid-August, Bill Wernecke remitted $500 to Dave Driscoll, a booking agent of sorts for some major league clubs. The funds were guarantee money to lure the Chicago Cubs to Island Park in Schenectady. The engagement was set to take place on Sunday August 24.

The Cubs lost to the New York Giants on the 23^rd at the Polo Grounds. Due to the existing Blue Laws in New York City, Chicago’s 3-game series with Brooklyn could not begin until Monday. Like many clubs during the era, the Cubs made extra cash on their off-days playing in venues that permitted sports on Sunday. Cubs manager Johnny Evers even agreed to play his regular squad, thrilling Wernecke. The upcoming contest promised to be one of the biggest events in Schenectady baseball in years. It should be noted however that the Mohawks were not the intended opponent. The Rutland, Vermont club of the Tri-State League, a white team, was. However, Wernecke and Rutland intended to put the star black pitcher Wickware on the mound versus the major leaguers.

Schenectady Gazette 8/23/1913

 

The crowd topped 8000, ringing the outfield 10 deep. The Schenectady Gazette believed it to be the largest crowd in the

 city in a decade. The Cubs shut out the minor leaguers but that was a mere sideshow. Manager Johnny Evers and Heinie Zimmerman didn’t make the trip, but the lineup included many regulars:

• Frank Schulte
• Vic Saier
• Al Bridwell
• Roger Bresnahan
• Earl Moore, pitcher
• Ward Miller
• Art Phelan
• Red Corriden
• Tuffy Stewart
• Eddie Stack, pitcher

Schulte, the acting manager, and Bresnahan refused to allow Wickware to play. A black player was not suitable competition for a major league club.

Schenectady Journal 8/25/1913

Many major newspapers mentioned the incident, except notably the Chicago Tribune.

A Stabbing

On August 22, two nights before the Cubs game, Dottie Wickware, a woman identified as Frank’s wife, stabbed May Bradley, the wife of Mohawk teammate Phil Bradley. Bradley was the team captain and organizer.

The two ladies had a dispute “regarding the merits of some of the members of a colored baseball team,” during which Dottie stabbed May in the right arm with a penknife. (Schenectady Gazette 8/25/1913) Dottie was arrested the next morning and sent to trial on the 26^th. She pled guilty and was fined $50 or 30 days in jail. “In default of the fine she was committed to jail.” (Schenectady Gazette 8/27/1913)

Whether Frank and Dottie were actually married is questionable. If so, this leads to numerous questions because on May 18, 1915, Frank married Elizabeth McCann in Chicago. (Frank and Elizabeth retired to Schenectady where they divorced in 1964)

Since Dottie is not a nickname for Elizabeth, it’s assumed they were different women.

Dottie, a 25-year-old from Philadelphia, reappears in 1916 with Frank in Havana. She was with him on the island while Wick played ball there. She departed by herself, headed for New Orleans, on March 25. Frank played his final game in Cuba two days later and then headed for St. Louis.

The questions arise:

• Was Dottie a girlfriend or wife? She did use the Wickware name on official documents
• Was Frank married to both women at the same time?

Banished Again

Two days after the Cubs’ incident, Wickware was hired by the Bellow Falls (Vermont) club of the Twin States League to pitch against defending champs and rival Northampton (Massachusetts) on August 26. Northampton was managed by Jimmy Burns, a middle infielder with the club since 1909, who took over the managerial reigns early in 1913.

Burns, following the Cub’s lead, refused to play against a black player and pulled his men off the field, forfeiting. Burns’ stance stemmed from the fact that his club signed the National Agreement linking it with the majors and the majors obviously held a firm color line.

Springfield Union, Massachusetts, 8/27/1913

Frank Wickware over Walter Johnson

For the final game of the season in Schenectady on Sunday, October 5, Bill Wernecke landed a coup – bringing in a nine led by the great Walter Johnson. After Wickware was shunned twice by clubs in Organized Baseball, Johnson followed through, heading a cast of mainly minor leaguers to face the Mohawk Giants. Wickware took the mound for the home club.

As the Washington Senators’ season ended the day before, Johnson had just finished another outstanding season. (Johnson hadn’t started since September 29) He posted a stellar 36-7 record and his lowest-career ERA, 1.14, for the second-place club, a 90-game winner. Johnson won the American League Most Valuable Player Award that season and the accompanying automobile by the Chalmers Motor Car Company.

Before heading to the World Series to watch the Philadelphia Athletics and New York Giants, Johnson went to Schenectady for a $500 payday. (Johnson would rejoin the Senators on the 6^th in Hartford for another exhibition game.)

Johnson’s team that day in Schenectady was boasted to include American Leaguers, according to Gary Ashwill, but that may simply have come from Wernecke’s imagination to drum up interest. It was probably a hodgepodge group quickly assembled for the occasion. The All-American’s lineup included

• Former major leaguer Fred Jacklitsch, recently with Rochester
• Eibel, perhaps former major leaguer and New Yorker Hack Eibel
• Paul Dietz of Harrisburg

It was filled out with several unidentifiable names: Eshen; Hart’n; Harter; Bruggs; Craig. Presumably they were minor leaguers or perhaps semi-pro players. It can’t be totally ruled out that one or two were major leaguers playing under an assumed name, given the recent stigma of playing against a black player. (It’s even possible, perhaps, that “Bruggs” was the Mohawks’ Jesse Bragg, as he was not in the Mohawk’s lineup, which would be interesting indeed.)

The game was to commence at 3:30 pm but the Mohawks refused to take the field. They were owed six weeks of back pay, over $900, by Wernecke. This was their final opportunity to collect before the winter and they decided to use their power to force payment, holding up the contest against the great Senators’ pitcher.

Over 5000 fans put in an appearance. When the delay was announced a near-riot commenced with many storming the field. Given that Island Park was indeed on an island, a dangerous bottleneck occurred on the one shabby bridge as some fans headed for the box office to gain a refund. Fearful of a bridge collapse, the police finally restored order and demanded that the game commence. It did at 4:42. However, the volatile Wick was unhappy about the circumstances.

Wickware, in an ugly mood, used his tongue too freely as he strode about the crowd, swinging a bat dangerously near to the spectators and muttering threats against Wernecke

- Schenectady Union-Star 6 October 1913 -

He appears that he had just cause, as Wernecke snuck away during the contest with his pockets full. (Though a settlement must have eventually taken place as Wickware and others returned to the Mohawks in 1914)

The contest only lasted a short 45 minutes – six and a half innings, due to darkness. In stunning headlines, Wickware topped his major league counterpart 1-0.

Schenectady Gazette 10/6/1913

Johnson only ceded 2 hits (both ground-rule doubles into the overflow outfield crowd), while striking out 11. The winning run came off a sacrifice fly in the 4^th. Wick was shaky but effective under pressure. In six innings he allowed 5 hits (2 doubles to Johnson), 3 walks, a wild pitch and hit a batter. Still, no one scored.

(Elsewhere on October 5, Smoky Joe Williams topped Pete Alexander of the Phillies.)

Wickware and the Mohawk Giants continued to play on the road through at least mid-October. (They were in Brooklyn on the 12^th)

SOURCE LIST

• Agate Type website by Gary Ashwill
• Ancestry.com
• Baseball-reference.com
• Chicago Tribune, 25 August 1913
• Dallas Morning News, 25 August 1913
• Familysearch.com
• Fitchburg Daily Sentinel, Massachusetts, 6 October 1913
• Hudson Register, New York, 6 October 1913
• Keetz, Frank, “Baseball in Schenectady,” Schenectady County Historical Society Newsletter, September-October 2009
• Negro Leagues Database at Seamheads.com
• New York Age, 30 January 1913, 24 July 1913
• Newyorkgravestone.org
• New York Herald, 6 October 1913
• New York Times, 6 October 1913
• Northhampton.org
• Retrosheet.org
• Schenectady Gazette, New York, 1913, 4 March 1964
• Springfield Union, Massachusetts, 27 August 1913, 31 August 1913
• Springfield Daily Republican, Massachusetts, 29 September 1913
• Suburbanite Economist, Chicago, 25 July 1913
• Thomas, Henry W. Walter Johnson: Baseball’s Big Train. Washington D.C.: Phenom Press, 1995.
• Washington Post, 25 August 1913