Frank "Blukoi" Blattner (April 8, 1890 – January 24, 1954) was an American

utility player In sports, a utility player is one who can play several positions competently. Sports in which the term is often used include association football, American football, baseball, rugby union, rugby league, softball, ice hockey, and water polo. The ...

almost exclusively working for

J. L. Wilkinson J Leslie Wilkinson (May 14, 1878 – August 21, 1964) was an American sports executive who founded the All Nations baseball club in 1912, and the Negro league baseball team Kansas City Monarchs in 1920. Early life Born in Algona, Iowa, Wilkinso ...

teams

All Nations All Nations was a Barnstorm (athletics), barnstorming professional baseball team that toured the Midwest from 1912 to 1918, and again in 1920 and 1921, and from 1923 to 1925. It derived its name from the fact that its team included players of seve ...

and the

Kansas City Monarchs The Kansas City Monarchs were the longest-running franchise in the history of baseball's Negro leagues. Operating in Kansas City, Missouri, and owned by J. L. Wilkinson, they were charter members of the Negro National League from 1920 to 193 ...

from 1912 until 1922. Blattner is a hard player to track, since he often played under a

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

of "Blukoi" or "Frank Blukoi" or "Bluekoi","All Nations Tackle the American Giants" Chicago Defender, Big Weekend Edition, Chicago, IL, October 7, 1916, Page 7
/ref> or even Frank "Blatnier""All Nations on Baseball Teams" Duluth News-Tribune, Duluth, MN, June 9, 1912, Page 13
/ref> in an effort to make the

baseball team appear more international.

Oskaloosa, Iowa Oskaloosa is a city in, and the county seat of, Mahaska County, Iowa, United States. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Oskaloosa was a national center of bituminous coal mining. The population was 11,558 in the 2020 U.S. Cens ...

, native Frank Blattner assumed the name "Blukoi" and was often called "the Hawaiian,"Devil's Lake, ND, July 24, 1916
/ref> which during the 19-teens was not yet part of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Early newspaper clippings suggest Frank Blattner was "full-blooded

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

"; however, more research will need to be done to discover his true heritage. Frank Blattner was also known to have pitched a few games, and racked up a few strikeouts."All Nations 5, Battle Creek 4" The Omaha World-Herald, Omaha, NE, Friday May 23, 1913, Page 11, Column 2
/ref> Blattner registered for the draft,"United States, World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/KZ2X-FTR : accessed 29 Jan 2013), Frank Blattner
/ref> and served in the armed forces during World War I, was married to Lena until his death in 1954, and according to the coroner's certificate, he worked in the post office as a clerk after his career in baseball. The official coroner's certificate shows he died of arteriosclerotic heart disease in his home in Chicago on January 24, 1954, and was buried in Cincinnati, Ohio.Coroner's Certificate of Death, State of Illinois, State File Number 2590, Dist. Number 3104, Department of Public Health, Division of Vital Statistics
/ref>

References

External links

an
Baseball-Reference Black Baseball stats
an
Seamheads
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blattner, Frank 1890 births 1954 deaths All Nations players Kansas City Monarchs players Baseball players from Iowa People from Oskaloosa, Iowa 20th-century African-American sportspeople