Northampton Baseball VI: 1920's- The Florence Braves

The Florence Braves were the town team for Northampton during the 1920s. The manager was Dave Shea of Florence, a veteran minor league catcher. After the Driving Park fell into disrepair, the Braves played on a field at Smith Vocational School. No admission was charged, and players passed the hat to collect donations.

In their earliest form, the Braves were an independent club. By 1926 the Braves had joined the Franklin-Hampshire League consisting of clubs from Shelburne Falls (managed by future Hall of Fame pitcher Jack Chesbro), Turners Falls, Millers Falls, Greenfield and South Deerfield. For eight full seasons from May to September, the Braves played two to three games a week, approximately 50 games a year, and almost always won more than they lost.

The Braves supplemented the league games with matches against barnstorming teams. The biggest and most lucrative crowds turned out to see Chappie Johnson's All Stars, a squad of African-American players. The Florence Braves proved to be worthy opponents, and the All Stars reciprocated by inviting the Braves to Saratoga, NY. The games in Saratoga attracted as many as 9,000 fans, according to one estimate, including many African-Americans who feted the Braves. As collegial as relations were between the clubs, however, local baseball followed the example of the major leagues and remained segregated.

For most of their existence the Braves fielded local players, but later resorted to hiring pitchers from Springfield or Holyoke, a strain on the club's finances. During the off-season, players staged dances to raise money. Most players worked full-time jobs in the local mills.

Among the best hitters on the Braves were Larry Coughlin, Austin King (later a city councilor), and Harry Purcell. Two mainstays were Matty and Jimmy Ryan, brothers from Florence. For many years Matty Ryan was the team's leading pitcher, and Jimmy Ryan played third. Jimmy Ryan is the sole survivor of the Braves today. At more than 100 years old, he has made many invaluable contributions to the compilation of Northampton's baseball history.

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