The Newark Eagles were a professional Negro league baseball team which played in the Negro National League from

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

to 1948. They were owned by

Abe Abe or ABE may refer to: People and fictional characters * Shinzo Abe (1954–2022), former Prime Minister of Japan * Abe (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or nickname * Abe (surname), a list of people a ...

and Effa Manley.

History

Formation

The Newark Eagles were formed in 1936 when the Newark Dodgers, established in 1933, merged with the Brooklyn Eagles, established in 1935. Abe Manley and his wife Effa Manley, owners and founders of the Brooklyn Eagles, purchased the Newark Dodgers franchise and combined the teams' assets and player rosters. Charles Tyler, the previous owner of the Dodgers, signed the team over in exchange for cancellation of an approximately $500 debt that Tyler owed Abe Manley. Team management was left to Effa, making the Eagles the second professional baseball team owned and operated by a woman. The first such team was the

Indianapolis ABCs The Indianapolis ABCs were a Negro league baseball team that played both as an independent club and as a charter member of the first Negro National League (NNL). They claimed the western championship of black baseball in 1915 and 1916, and fini ...

who were owned by Olivia Taylor from 1922 to 1926. The Eagles shared Ruppert Stadium with the minor league

Newark Bears The Newark Bears were an American minor league professional baseball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They were a member of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball and, later, the Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball. T ...

Decline and demise

After the close of the 1948 season, in the aftermath of Jackie Robinson's successful integration of

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

a year earlier, the Negro National League contracted and merged into the Negro American League. The Eagles were sold and moved to Houston, Texas for the 1949 season, where they became known as the Houston Eagles, part of the NAL's western division. Two years later they again relocated, this time to New Orleans. The New Orleans Eagles lasted one year before folding after the 1951 season.

Negro World Series champions

Under Effa Manley's guidance, the 1946 team won the

Negro World Series The Negro World Series was a post-season baseball tournament that was held from 1924 to 1927 and from 1942 to 1948 between the champions of the Negro leagues, matching the mid-western winners against their east-coast counterparts. The series was ...

, upsetting the Kansas City Monarchs in a 7-game series.

Hall of Fame players/Notable alumni

Baseball Hall of Famers

Notable alumni

Don Newcombe Donald Newcombe (June 14, 1926 – February 19, 2019), nicknamed "Newk", was an American professional baseball pitcher in Negro league and Major League Baseball who played for the Newark Eagles (1944–45), Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers (1949–1 ...

(1944–1945) 4 x MLB All Star; 1949 Rookie of the year; 1956 Cy Young Award; 1956 NL Most Valuable Player

References

{{Authority control African-American history in Newark, New Jersey Negro league baseball teams Sports in Newark, New Jersey Defunct baseball teams in New Jersey Baseball teams established in 1933 Baseball teams disestablished in 1951 1933 establishments in New Jersey 1951 disestablishments in Louisiana Baseball teams established in 1951