The Central Nebraska League was an

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

level minor league baseball league that played in the 1903 season. The five–team Central Nebraska League consisted of franchises based exclusively in

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

. The Central Nebraska League played just one season and permanently folded after the 1903 season.

History

The Central Nebraska League began play as an

level minor league in 1903, The five members were the teams based in

Giltner, Nebraska Giltner is a village in Hamilton County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 352 at the 2010 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land. Naming history In 1886, the Lincol ...

Holdrege, Nebraska Holdrege is a city in Phelps County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 5,495 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Phelps County. The Nebraska Prairie Museum is located in Holdrege. History Holdrege was established in 1883 wh ...

McCook, Nebraska McCook is a city in and the county seat of Red Willow County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 7,446 at the 2020 census. History McCook was platted in 1882 when the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad was extended to that point. I ...

Minden, Nebraska Minden is a city in, and the county seat of, Kearney County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 2,923 at the 2010 census. It is home of the Pioneer Village museum complex. History Minden was established in 1876. The city was named a ...

and

Red Cloud, Nebraska Red Cloud is a city in and the county seat of Webster County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 962 at the 2020 census. History The region of present-day Red Cloud was intermittently occupied and used as hunting grounds by the Pawnee ...

. The league began the season calling itself the Southwestern Nebraska Baseball League. The first published standings of the league had the Holdrege and McCook teams tied for first place with 4–0 records on June 19, 1903. Giltner was next with a 3–3 record, followed by

Red Cloud Red Cloud ( lkt, Maȟpíya Lúta, italic=no) (born 1822 – December 10, 1909) was a leader of the Oglala Lakota from 1868 to 1909. He was one of the most capable Native American opponents whom the United States Army faced in the western ...

1–5 and

Minden Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the greatest town between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district (''Kreis'') of Minden-Lübbecke, which is part of the region of Detm ...

0–4. On June 19, the "S.W. Nebraska League" published standings showed Holdrege in first place with an 8–1 record. McCook was in second place at 7–3, followed by Minden 3–4, Giltner 3–6 and Red Cloud 1–7. In standings published on July 3, 1903, the league is called the "Central Nebraska League" for the first time. On that date, Holdrege was in first place with a 10–2 record, followed by McCook at 7–3. Giltner was in third place with a record of 5–8, followed by Minden at 3–7 and Red Cloud 1–11. Newspaper records indicate that through July 24, 1903, Holdrege and McCook were tied for first place with 19–7 records. The standings were published shortly before the Minden and Giltner teams both disbanded. When Red Cloud and McCook disbanded shortly after, this left only Holdrege remaining. Holdrege then finished the season as a traveling team. The Central Nebraska League permanently folded after the 1903 season.

1903 Central Nebraska League teams

Central Nebraska League standings

1903

The exact team records and standings of the 1903 Central Nebraska League are unknown, as the league folded on July 28, 1903. The last known standings were published on July 24, 1903, shortly before Minden and Giltner disbanded. Red Cloud and McCook disbanded shortly thereafter, disbanding the league and leaving Holdrege to continue play as a semi-pro traveling team. ''as of July 24, 1903''

References

External links

Central Nebraska League - Baseball Reference
{{Professional Baseball Defunct minor baseball leagues in the United States Baseball leagues in Nebraska Defunct professional sports leagues in the United States Sports leagues established in 1903 Sports leagues disestablished in 1903 Baseball in Nebraska