The Bessemer Stars was the initial nickname of

Negro leagues The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans and, to a lesser extent, Latin Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be ...

baseball team based in

Bessemer, Alabama Bessemer is a southwestern suburb of Birmingham in Jefferson County, Alabama, United States. The population was 26,019 at the 2020 census. It is within the Birmingham- Hoover, AL Metropolitan Statistical Area, of which Jefferson County is the ...

in the 1921 and 1927 seasons. The Bessemer Stars played as members of the 1921 Negro Southern League, while the Bessemer Grey Sox joined the league in 1927.

History

The 1921 Bessemer Stars began the season as charter members of the 1921 Negro Southern League, in its first season of play. The Bessemer Stars, along with the Gadsen Giants and Mobile Braves played briefly as members of the 1921 Negro Southern League, before folding. As all three teams failed to complete the season schedule, their final records were not counted in the final standings and are unknown. The Nashville Elite Giants won the 1921 Negro Southern League championship. In 1927, the Bessemer Grey Sox rejoined in the Negro Southern League. Other league members were the

Atlanta Black Crackers The Atlanta Black Crackers (originally known as the Atlanta Cubs and later briefly the Indianapolis ABCs) were a professional Negro league baseball team which played during the early to mid-20th century. They were primarily a minor Negro league ...

Chattanooga Black Lookouts The Chattanooga Black Lookouts were a minor league Negro league baseball team based in Chattanooga, Tennessee. They were established in 1920, only to play for one season. They were reestablished in 1926 to play for two seasons, serving as a far ...

, Evansville Louis Reichert Giants, Hopkinsville Athletics and Nashville Elite Giants. As per the final reported standings published in the Chicago Defender on June 25, 1927, the Grey Sox had a record of 4–5, playing behind the 1st place Chattanooga Black Lookouts who were 22–8. It is possible the Negro Southern League played a fragmented schedule in the second half of the 1927 season. The league did not play in the 1928 season, before resuming without a Bessemer team in 1929.

The ballpark

The 1921 Bessemer Stars played home games at Garfield Park.

Notable alumni

*Roster information for the Bessemer Stars and Bessemer Grey Sox teams is unknown. *Bessemer, Alabama native George Harney was a star player in the Negro Leagues for the

Chicago American Giants The Chicago American Giants were a Chicago-based Negro league baseball team. From 1910 until the mid-1930s, the American Giants were the most dominant team in black baseball. Owned and managed from 1911 to 1926 by player-manager Andrew "Rube" Fo ...

References

External links

Negro Southern League History
Negro league baseball teams Baseball teams disestablished in 1921 Baseball teams established in 1921 Defunct baseball teams in Alabama Professional baseball teams in Alabama Bessemer, Alabama Jefferson County, Alabama {{Negro-league-baseball-team-stub