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Maud Nelson (born Clementina Brida, November 17, 1881 - February 15, 1944) was an early Italian-born American professional woman baseball pitcher, scout, manager, and team owner.
Nelson began pitching professionally at the age of 16, as a starting pitcher for the Boston Bloomer Girls. She played for several professional baseball teams, including the American Athletic Girls. She was a leading player of the Chicago Stars who were billed as "Champions of the World". She was their star pitcher during 1902 and 1903 when the team would tour by Pullman coach. In addition to her starting pitching duties, she often played third base in the later innings of a game. Other skilful players in the Chicago team was Julie St Clair and Maggie Burke.
In 1905 John B (Joe) Olsen and Nelson moved to
Life
Nelson began pitching professionally at the age of 16, as a starting pitcher for the Boston Bloomer Girls. She played for several professional baseball teams, including the American Athletic Girls. She was a leading player of the Chicago Stars who were billed as "Champions of the World". She was their star pitcher during 1902 and 1903 when the team would tour by Pullman coach. In addition to her starting pitching duties, she often played third base in the later innings of a game. Other skilful players in the Chicago team was Julie St Clair and Maggie Burke.
In 1905 John B (Joe) Olsen and Nelson moved to Watervliet, Michigan
Watervliet is a city in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located in the northeastern part of the county, the population was 1,735 at the 2010 census, down from 1,843 at the 2000 census. Mostly a rural farming community, the name co ...
where they established a new women's baseball team. The "Cherokee Indian Base Ball Team" set out in their Pullman car in the same year complete with an electric light facility, a grand stand and a 12 foot by 1200 foot fence. Nelson despite being born in Italy was on the team. She was billed by her husband, Olsen, as the undisputed women's champion pitcher of the world.
In 1911, Maud Nelson became owner-manager of the Western Bloomer Girls
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
* Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that i ...
, along with her first husband, Olsen. The "Bloomer Girl" style was well known with an easier game and the bloomer style of dress was strongly associated with women's baseball. She also became a baseball scout in 1911, recruiting both male and female players for a number of professional teams. After John died in 1917, Maud again played for Boston, and managed a women's team for the Chicago Athletic Club.
In the early 1920s, Maud married Costante Dellacqua Costante is a male Italian given name. Notable people with the name include:
*Costante Adolfo Bossi (1876–1953), Italian organist, composer and teacher
* Costante Bonazza (1924–1980), Polish-Italian footballer
* Costante Degan (1930–1988), Ita ...
, with whom she later started the All Star Ranger Girls team
All or ALL may refer to:
Language
* All, an indefinite pronoun in English
* All, one of the English determiners
* Allar language (ISO 639-3 code)
* Allative case (abbreviated ALL)
Music
* All (band), an American punk rock band
* ''All'' (All al ...
. The team wore cowboys hats, skirts, shirts and cardigans with the initials A and R on the sleeve. In 1934 she signed future star Rose Gacioch
Rose M. Gacioch (; August 31, 1915 – September 9, 2004) was a right fielder and pitcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.Wrigley Field
Wrigley Field is a Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charles Weeghman's Chicago Wh ...
, living there until her death in 1944. In 2001, Nelson became part of the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame
The National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit institution honoring exceptional U.S. athletes of Italian descent. In 1977 George Randazzo created the Italian American Boxing Hall of Fame. This was as a means for rai ...
as a posthumous inductee.
See also
*Women in baseball
Women have a long history in American baseball and many women's teams have existed over the years. Baseball was played at women's colleges in New York and New England as early as the mid-nineteenth century; teams were formed at Vassar College, ...
Sources
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Maud American female baseball players 1881 births 1944 deaths 19th-century baseball players Italian emigrants to the United States