John D. Turner Had Local Ties

John D. "Jack" Turner was one of several Grand Forks Senators who spent at least a decade residing in the Red River Valley. The others were Sid Adams, Billy Hanrahan, Charlie Hutton, William McNeil, and William "Harry" Walker. All of these men played not only on the 1897 Grand Forks league team, but also on Grand Forks teams of other years. (Incidentally, Billy Hanrahan was the only player to play on the Grand Forks clubs of the Northern League, from 1902 to 1906.) John's brother James, though not on the 1897 league club, played alongside his brother on other Grand Forks teams. A longtime resident of Grand Forks, John Turner moved west after his retirement, passing away at the age of 92 in Billings, Montana.

Grand Forks Catcher William McNeil Dies at 66 - 4/5/1933

Though he played only briefly in the 1897 season after an injury to starting catcher Jake Bouchert, William McNeil was a well-known player and supporter of Grand Forks baseball in the 1890s.

Moorhead Daily News, April 5, 1933

Senator Gordon Dies at Age 92 - 11/26/1954

Though he had been away from North Dakota for over a half century, former state senator and Grand Forks baseball manager William A. Gordon was buried in Grand Forks. Gordon was the namesake of the 1897 Grand Forks Senators baseball team of the Red River Valley League.

Grand Forks Herald, November 26, 1954

Grand Forks Pitcher Charlie Hutton Meets Untimely Death

Grand Forks ace Charlie Hutton seemingly had a promising career ahead of him in baseball. After a strong showing for the 1897 Senators, Hutton appeared for Grand Rapids, MI of the Interstate League in 1898. If he couldn't make it in the minor leagues, Hutton surely could have entertained fans playing amateur baseball in the Red River Valley. The 1902 incarnation of the Northern League in the area may very well have featured a team with Hutton on its roster. But it wasn't to be, as a December 1898 railroad accident tragically took the life of the 24 year old.

"Hutton Dead," Grand Forks Herald, December 23, 1898

"Hutton Killed," Fargo Forum and Daily Republican, December 23, 1898

"In Memoriam," Grand Forks Herald, December 29, 1898

On This Date: Four Pitchers and No Luck

July 9, 1897 

True to form, the Divorcees returned to their familiar offensive funk in game three of their series against Grand Forks. The club managed just four singles against the Senators starter Hoar. With that performance, Gus Munch’s chances were doomed from the start, but the Fargo lefty was not sharp anyway and asked to be removed after surrendering four runs in the third inning. Fargo would use three more men to pitch before the game was done, including position players John Murphy and Bill Zink. The GFPD observed “Four of Fargo’s pitchers were killed and over the grisly corpses Grand Forks piled eleven runs and hits innumerable…” (July 10) The use of four pitchers in a nine inning game was exceptionally rare during this era of baseball and shows just how disastrous the outing was for the Divorcees. As a result of the ever-changing lineup, Deacon Phillippe found himself called upon to play left field later in the game. The Fargo defense did not help matters by committing seven errors, but homeruns from Joe Marshall and catcher Jake Bouchert were more than enough to lift Grand Forks to an 11-0 victory. All things considered, the final score could have been much worse.

Best of the Hobos

Just a quick, fun list of some of the best player names featured in 1897 games between the various RRVL teams and a few different groups of hobos:

Hobos vs. Breckenridge - Aug 1897
Water Tank Frank - Pitcher
Holey Peter - Center Field

Hobos vs. Grand Forks Senators (partial squad) - Aug 2, 1897
Rusty Raggles - Pitcher
Bowlegged Pete - Catcher
Pie-faced Charley - First Base
Shorty Swatts - Second Base
Peggy McNabb - Third Base
Bunty Spikes - Right Field

No photos? No problem.

I've commented regularly on the descriptiveness and creativity found in newspaper accounts of baseball games in the late 19th century. Today a game can be summarized by a few nice snapshots, or even video highlights. Writers in the Red River Valley certainly didn't have these luxuries, however, and actual photographs of any baseball games in the era are quite rare. In the summer of 1897, the Fargo Forum, Sunday Argus, Grand Forks Herald, and Moorhead Independent never featured a single photograph relating to baseball. Fortunately, written accounts of the games were usually quite good, being both descriptive, and at times, even entertaining. A few days ago, I posted a cartoon drawn in the Grand Forks Herald satirizing the 1897 league and the plight of the umpires. This is the only drawing that appeared in the Herald during the 1897 season concerning the Red River Valley League, but illustrations from the cartoonist Straub were fairly common in chronicling the 1896 season. The following is one of my favorites. It captures the spirit of a strong rivalry between Crookston and the Company F team of Grand Forks, with a good dose of humor injected as well. The Grand Forks squad won the game 15-9. Several members of the 1897 Grand Forks Senators appeared in the game, including Charles Hutton, Harry Walker, and Jack Turner.




Grand Forks Herald July 17, 1896 "Fixed 'Em Plenty"