Posts tagged Joe Kelley
John McGraw's and Wilbert Robinson's Former Baltimore Homes Damaged By Fire
By David Stinson on February 28, 2015
Chances are most people who live in the 2700 block of St. Paul Street in Baltimore, Maryland, have no idea that the two houses on their block that caught on fire on February 7th were once owned by two future baseball Hall of Famers, John McGraw and Wilbert Robinson.
2700 Block of St. Paul Street in Baltimore, Maryland. Where Wilbert Robinson and John McGraw Once Lived
McGraw and Robinson lived next door to each other at 2738 (McGraw) and 2740 (Robinson) St. Paul Street.
2738 and 2740 St. Paul Street, Baltimore, Maryland. Where John McGraw and Wilbert Robinson Once Lived
Both McGraw and Robinson played for the world champion Baltimore Orioles of the 1890s, when the team was a National League affiliate.Both players also were partners in the Diamond Cafe, located just two miles south of their homes, at 519 Howard Street in Baltimore. The Diamond is considered one of the first sports bar in the country.
Baltimore Orioles, 1897, John McGraw, at bottom left (laying down) and Wilbert Robinson, second row, third from right
Robertson bought his house at 2738 St. Paul Street in 1898. McGraw bought the adjoining house at 2740 that same year. Robinson lived in the house with his wife and children. McGraw lived next door with his first wife, the former Minnie Doyle, and McGraw's brother Mike. See The Real McGraw, by Mrs. John J. McGraw (p 112), The houses were located only two blocks north and four blocks east of the Orioles home ballpark, Union Park.
Rear of Row Houses at 2740 and 2738 St. Paul Street, Baltimore, Maryland. Former Homes of Wilbert Robinson and John McGraw.
On February 7, 2015, a fire broke out in one of the homes and quickly spread to the other. Five people, including two children were injured in the blaze, although none appeared to be life threatening. Robertson's home at 2740 St. Paul Street sustained the bulk of the damage. All of its front windows have been boarded up and the city has condemned the property because of the damage.
Fire Damaged House at 2740 St. Paul Street, Baltimore, Maryland, Former Home of Wilbert Robinson.
Before the FIre, 2740 St. Paul Street, Baltimore, Circa 2013
Hopefully both buildings can be saved and restored. Although neither house is listed on any historic register, they should be given their connection to two Baltimore's greatest baseball players.
Fire Damage To 2740 St. Paul Street, Baltimore, Maryland, Forrmer House of Wilbert Robinson
Several other homes of former National League Orioles Hall of Famers still stand in Baltimore City. These include Joe Kelley's former home at 530 East 22nd Street, which is located next to St. Ann's Catholic Church, where John McGraw married his second wife Blanche Sindall, on January 8, 1902.
530 E 22nd Street, Baltimore, Maryland (three story tan brick row house). Former Home of Hall of Famer Joe Kelley
A former boarding house where John McGraw and Hughie Jennings both lived also still stands, at 12 West 24th Street (just six blocks west of Union Park's former site).
Former Boarding House at 12 West 24th Street , Baltimore, Maryland, Where John McGraw and Hughie Jennings Once Roomed
Another house where Jennings once lived also still stands, but just barely, at 529 East 23rd Street.
529 East 23rd Street, Baltimore, Maryland, Former Home of Hughie Jennings
As Joni Mitchell once famously sang, "you don't know what you've got 'till it's gone."
Former Orioles and Baseball Hall of Famers Willie Keeler, John McGraw, Joe Kelley, and Hughie Jennings
The past, as seen through these buildings, is with us today. Like Al Kaline's boyhood home, these buildings are an important part of Baltimore's history. They should be preserved and their history celebrated. Unfortunately, the passage of time and a lack of vision have a way of allowing structures like these to slip away.
Thanks to local Baltimore baseball historian Ken Mars for contacting me about the fire.
This entry is filed under DBS Blog and tagged 12 West 24th Street, 2738 St. Paul Street, 2740 St. Paul Street, 529 East 23rd Street, 530 East 22nd Street, Baltimore Orioles, baseball, Blanche McGraw, Hughie Jennings, Joe Kelley, John McGraw, Ken Mars, Minnie McGraw, National League Baltimore Orioles, Union Park, Wilbert Robertson.
A Room With A View Overlooking Baltimore's Union Park
By David Stinson on April 4, 2014
It was March 31, 1894, and the National League Baltimore Orioles soon would begin their 1894 campaign, which ultimately brought Baltimore it's first baseball championship. The Orioles opened at home that year on April 19th with a game against the New York Giants.
A mere 120 years later, on March 31st – Baseball's Opening Day 2014 – that Championship Season was celebrated by St. Ambrose Housing Aid Center at the former site of Union Park, where the National League Orioles once played.
St. Ambrose's Green Room
St. Ambrose, whose offices are located at 321 East 25th Street, held an open house celebrating the reopening of its "Green Room." Named after one of its founders, the Green Room is located in the basement of the building and provides community space for the furthering of St. Ambrose's worthy mission.
The building at 321 East 25th Street has great historical significance to our National Pastime as it was once located adjacent to Union Park's grandstand and its parking lot was once part of the actual playing field.
The back of the building can be seen in the 1897 photograph below – it is the house with the distinctive pitched roof just to the right of Union Park's grandstand.
Union Park Grandstand (detail from The Winning Team, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division)
Here is that building today:
321 East 25th Street, Baltimore
I had the pleasure of attending St. Ambrose's open house as a guest speaker. After the event , I took a tour of the building, heading to the third floor for a panoramic view of Union Park's former playing field as seen through the two windows located just below the tip of the roof.
Interior of 321 East 25th Street, Baltimore, Third Floor
For nine seasons, from 1891 to 1899, the view through those windows was one of the finest in all of baseball, providing witness to the feats of some of the game's greatest ballplayers, including Orioles Hall of Famers Dan Brouthers, Hughie Jennings, Wilbert Robinson, Willie Keeler, John McGraw, Ned Hanlon and Joe Kelley. Indeed, on that spot, the Orioles won three consecutive National League pennants, from 1894 to 1896.
Site of Union Park's Former Playing Field, as seen from 321 East 25th Street, Baltimore
Today that field is a parking lot, surrounded by row houses and brick garages. But 120 years ago, it was the center of baseball in Baltimore. St. Ambrose Housing Aid Center is proud of its connection to Baltimore baseball history and there is talk of honoring Union Park and the old Baltimore Orioles with a wiffle ball game to be played in the parking lot where Union Park's infield once sat. Should those plans come to fruition, I will post information on this site.
This entry is filed under DBS Blog and tagged 1890s Orioles, 321 East 25th Street, Baltimore, Dan Brouthers, Hughie Jennings, Joe Kelley, John McGraw, National League Orioles, Ned Hanlon, Orioles, St. Ambrose Housing Aid Center, Union Park, Wilbert Robinson, Willie Keeler.
Touring the Lost Ballparks of Baltimore With Author Burt Solomon
By David Stinson on March 14, 2013
Burt Solomon and Terry Hartzell Touring the Former Site of Union Park
As a die-hard Baltimore Orioles fan and amateur historian, one of my all-time favorite books is Burt Solomon's Where They Ain't, The Fabled Life and Untimely Death of the Original Baltimore Orioles, the Team That Gave Birth to Modern Baseball, ranking right up there with James Bready's Baseball in Baltimore, The First Hundred Years. Thanks to Terry Hartzell, a fan of both Burt's book and my book Deadball, A Metaphysical Baseball Novel, I had the opportunity to take both Burt and Terry on one of my Lost Ballparks of Baltimore Tours. Our first stop was the former site of Union Park at the corner of East 25th Street and Guilford Avenue, followed by a walking tour up Barclay Street to East 29th Street and the former site of American League Park, which is now a McDonald's.
Burt Solomon and David Stinson Standing in Front of Memorial Stadium's Former Infield, Now a Youth Baseball Park Courtesy of the Ripken Foundation.
Next we walked across East 29th Street to the former site of Terrapin Park/old Oriole Park, where we confirmed that the 16 original row houses that sat behind what was once right-center field all remain at the site. After walking back to the car, we drove less than a mile from Union Park to the former site of Memorial Stadium, where pieces of brick and concrete from the stadium still can be found amongst the dirt, exposed by the weather.
After bidding adieu to Burt, Terry and I continued on to New Cathedral Cemetery, where four Hall of Fame Orioles are interred (John McGraw, Joe Kelley, Ned Hanlon, and Wilbert Robinson). Our final stop for the day was the former site of St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys, where a young Babe Ruth was raised as a ward of the Archdiocese of Baltimore. The historic baseball site includes the field where Babe Ruth learned to play the game, a building from St. Mary's dating back to Ruth's time at the school (the former Industrial Arts Building), and the former St. Mary's Chapel, which was converted into a school building prior to Cardinal Gibbons High School arriving there in 1962.
I hope to conduct another Lost Ballparks of Baltimore Tour some time this spring. If you are interested in coming along, just send me a comment to this post.
This entry is filed under DBS Blog and tagged Babe Ruth, Baseball In Baltimore The FIrst Hundred Years, Burt Solomon, Deadball, Deadball A Metaphysical Baseball Novel, James Bready, Joe Kelley, John McGraw, Memorial Stadium, Ned Hanlon, New Cathedral Cemetery, Oriole Park, St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys, Terrapin Park, Terry Hartzell, Union Park, Where They Ain't The Fabled Life and Untimely Death of the Original Baltimore Orioles the Team That Gave Birth to Modern Baseball, Wilbert Robinson. | 20 Comments
John McGraw and St. Ann's Catholic Church, Baltimore
By David Stinson on September 11, 2012
Three miles north of Oriole Park at Camden Yards, at the intersection of Greenmount Avenue and East 22nd Street, is St. Ann's Roman Catholic Church.
St. Ann's Catholic Church, Baltimore, Maryland
The church is forever tied to Baltimore baseball history as the place where former Oriole and baseball Hall of Famer John McGraw married his second wife, Blanche Sindall, on January 8, 1902.
Interior View of St. Ann's Church Where John McGraw Married Blanche Sindall
St. Ann's plays a prominent role in two of the latter chapters of my book Deadball, A Metaphysical Baseball Novel. However, in the interest of not spoiling the the story line, I will leave it at that. For those of you who already have read my book, here is a look at the church described in Deadball.
The Gothic-revival church is constructed of grey stone and white marble.
Side View of St. Ann's Church
The church has two steeples, one soaring high above the church to the right of the front entrance and a second, of lesser height, behind and to the left of the entrance.
The Two Steeples of St. Ann's Church
A pointed stone archway made of alternating blocks of marble and stone frames a set of red painted doors decorated with ornate iron hinges. A simple, yet elegant rose window, framed by a similar stone archway centered above the entrance adds an understated flourish to the front of the church.
Front Entrance to St. Ann's Church
The white plastic lettering of the church's marquee sign next to the sidewalk announces that the church is "Anchored In Faith."
Marquee Sign, St. Ann's Church
The reference to "anchored" is a pun, for resting alongside the cornerstone to the right of the entrance way is a large, gold-painted, allegorical anchor once belonging to Captain William Kennedy.
Captain William Kennedy's Anchor
Commander of the Baltimore clipper ship "The Wanderer," Kennedy prayed for safe return when caught in a storm off the coast of Vera Cruz. He promised to build a church should his prayers be answered. They were, and Kennedy kept his promise, providing the land and money to build St. Ann's. The good Captain is buried beneath the main floor of the church, along with his wife, both of whom died in 1873, the year the church was built.
Final Resting Place of Captain William Kennedy and his Wife
Behind the church on East 22nd Street is the rectory.
St. Ann's Rectory - The Anchorage
Next door to the rectory is a three story tan brick row house with a first floor stone. It is the former home of Oriole Hall of Famer Joe Kelley.
Former Home of Hall of Famer Joe Kelley
Joe Kelley and several of McGraw's teammates were in attendance at his wedding that day, including Wilbert Robinson, Willie Keeler, Steve Brodie, and Hughie Jennings.
Willie Keeler, John McGraw, Joe Kelley, and Hughie Jennings
In her memoir The Real McGraw, Blanche McGraw noted that St. Ann's was overflowing with people for the 6 pm wedding, which was conducted by St. Ann's Pastor, Father Cornelius Thomas, who himself was a big baseball fan.
A "church of baseball" or at least a "church with a baseball connection," St. Ann's can be visited on the web at anchoredinfaith.com.
This entry is filed under DBS Blog and tagged Baltimore, Baltimore Orioles, baseball, Blanche McGraw, Blanche Sindall, Captain William Kennedy, Clipper Ship, Deadball, Deadball A Metaphysical Baseball Novel, Father Cornelius Thomas, Hughie Jennings, Joe Kelley, John McGraw, St. Ann's Catholic Church, the Wanderer, Wilbert Robinson, Willie Keeler. | 5 Comments