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Sioux City Ghosts' history highlighted during Black History Month presentation at Iowa House
Summary
A representative from Woodbury delivered a Black History Month presentation on the Sioux City Ghosts, the all-Black fast-pitch softball team that toured nationally from the 1930s through the 1950s, describing their playing style, popularity and struggles under segregation.
DES MOINES, Iowa ' A representative from Woodbury presented a Black History Month remembrance on Feb. 19 about the Sioux City Ghosts, an all-Black fast-pitch softball team that toured the United States and parts of North America from the 1930s through the 1950s.
The presenter recounted the Ghosts'history and on-field style, comparing them at times to the Harlem Globetrotters for their showmanship. The team reportedly performed theatrical stunts such as pitching fruit instead of a softball, riding bicycles on the outfield and playing a routine called "Shadow Ball," in which players mimed pitching and catching an invisible ball. Despite those theatrics, the presentation noted, the Ghosts won more than 2,000 games and lost fewer than 100 in more than two decades of organized play.
The team began as a boys club around 1925 and played at Hopkins School. They won the Sioux City Junior League and later competed in the Sioux City Senior League, capturing a championship there as well. The presenter said the team later took a sponsorship from a local businessman, Jack Page, and performed as "Jack the Cleaners" on shirts during early tours. The Ghosts'reach grew after a 1934 California tour and eventually included international exhibitions, the presenter said, citing a 26,000-person crowd in Vancouver, Canada.
The speaker also emphasized the discrimination the players faced, including exclusion from many local businesses and restaurants and barriers to playing in other professional leagues. The team suspended play during World War II, when many players served in the military, and ultimately disbanded in 1956.
"Please join me in recognizing the amazing contributions of the Sioux City Ghosts to the history of our state," the presenter said in closing.
Ending: The House recognized the history during Black History Month; the presentation was billed as part of the day's ceremonial acknowledgments and did not carry a policy action or vote.
