Bud Fowler in Santa Fe (1888)

Abstract

African American Bud Fowler's slow but steady climb up organized baseball ladder culminated in 1887 with his position on roster of International League's Binghamton (N.Y.) franchise. While batting .350 and running bases with abandon, Fowler abruptly resigned from Crickets, supposedly to sign a more lucrative contract with New York Cubans. However, truth was uglier. Fowler's Binghamton teammates refused to play with African American all-star because of his skin color (and perhaps to find a scapegoat for team's below-average play). When facts of matter were uncovered a month later by local newspapers, each Crickets player was fined $50.1 This incident-combined with Cap Anson's refusal to take field if Newark's George Stovey took mound in an exhibition game-made financially strapped and timid International League owners agree not to sign African American players in future. The unofficial and whispered Gentlemen's Agreement was now de facto policy in upper echelons of organized baseball.2 Opportunities for black ballplayers in integrated leagues were fast disappearing by 1888.Bud Fowler took his baseball skills back to (seemingly) more receptive Midwest in 1888, undoubtedly affected by segregationist direction sport was taking in East. His first attempt to return to Midwest ended abruptly in an offensive manner. Fowler signed with Lafayette (Ind.) club in offseason only to be released when club management discovered he was an African American:John W. Fowler of Utica, N.Y., arrived in Lafayette Saturday night, having been engaged to fill position of pitcher for baseball club of that place. It was thought that Fowler was a white man, and quite a surprise was in store of Lafayette players when they discovered that he was a genuine darkey. The manager of club concluded that he would only take strawberry blondes, and contract with Fowler was annulled.The newspaper followed up next day on Fowler's return to Midwest by naming names and uncovering his new league destination: didn't suit Will Simpson and one or two other blondes. Fowler will probably play with Crawfordsville club.3Fowler did surface with nearby Crawfordsville (Ind.) Hoosiers of Central Interstate League. He had a productive year at plate (.294) and 22 steals in a halfseason of play. However, his defense was uncharacteristically uneven as evidenced in an early two-game sweep of visiting Peoria. Batting sixth and playing second base, Bud went 3-for-9 but made three errors in second game: But for Fowler's wretched play at second base, this would have been a model contest. Yet despite such fulsome praise of team as having been composed of gentlemen who depend on playing ball to win, not on bluff and trickery,4 Crawfordsville was sold to Terre Haute investors who had moved to Indiana from Dubuque in early June.This patched-together organization disbanded when Central Interstate League reorganized in early July with Crawfordsville finishing with a record of 21-21. The main reasons for team's withdrawal from league were financial debt and conduct of its fans, bugbears of baseball management in 19th century: The club owed its players more than $500 in unpaid salaries, with contemporary sources noting that the character of hoodlum audiences of last year has not improved.51888 was a difficult year in organized baseball in Midwest for talented African American second baseman who remained in Crawfordsville and played for an all-black team through early July. It is little wonder that Fowler looked (and headed) farther west in July in search of a new club and further opportunities to play game he loved.When Fowler arrived in capital of New Mexico Territory in July 1888, Santa Fe was a relatively small (160,000 acres), sparsely populated (8,000 inhabitants) outpost on western frontier that carried a reputation of danger, corruption, and foreignness for rest of country. …