ST. LOUIS — A developer is hoping to highlight St. Louis connection to the Negro Leagues by bringing a Negro Leagues Museum to north St. Louis.
When most fans think about baseball in St. Louis their thoughts typically start with the Cardinals and end with the Browns, but baseball historian Ed Wheatley said they often forget about two teams that helped shape the game.
“The Negro Leagues were very special in St. Louis,” Wheatley said.
The St. Louis Giants, and later the St. Louis Stars, featured some of the top players in the Negro Leagues.
“They won three championships in the 1920s led by so many greats,” Wheatley said. “We think of Cool Papa Bell, Mule Sutter, and Willie Sutter.”
After Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier in 1947, Bill DeWitt Sr. signed two players of color to play for the St. Louis Browns.
“Willard Brown and Hank Thompson are the third and fourth man to cross the white line of major league baseball and people don’t remember it,” Wheatley said.
It’s a part of history that Guyton Harvey hopes to bring back to the JeffVanderLou neighborhood by developing a satellite Negro Leagues Museum in this abandoned building on Spring Street.
“The site is in proximity of Sportsman’s Park,” Guyton Harvey said.
However, the site will go beyond baseball adding as many as 40 senior housing units and possible retails spaces if the City of St. Louis passes a 15-year tax abatement that is part of Board Bill 211.
“It’s going to be transformative for a fantastic community,” Harvey said.
“The museum, if it comes to be, in that area not only does it put the mark on the spot,” Wheatley said. “The Negro League is serving the African American community of North St. Louis.”
“It contributes to what St. Louis is known for: Baseball and good people,” Harvey said.
Board Bill 211 would provide the tax abatement.
Developers say it is needed to move forward on the Negro Leagues Satellite campus passed out of committee in March.
However, it's unclear when and if the St. Louis Board of Aldermen plans to take up further discussions on the project.