William Sousa "Soo" or "Sou" Bridgeforth Jr. (March 23, 1907 – July 26, 2004), was the owner of several Negro leagues baseball teams as well as the New Era Club in Nashville.

Early life

William Bridgeforth Jr. was born in Tanner, Alabama in 1907, the grandson of former slaves. He went to high school at Trinity High School in Athens where he played baseball. After his parents deaths when he was 18, he moved to Nashville working as a bricklayer with his uncle Nick Stuart.

Career

In 1932, Bridgeforth used the proceeds of the sale of his parents' farm to purchase a pool hall in downtown Nashville. He went on to open two more pool halls before opening the New Era Club in downtown Nashville in 1939. In the 1940s, Bridgeforth raised enough money to purchase the Baltimore Elite Giants, a Negro league baseball team. As time went on, he would also own for some time the Negro league teams the

Nashville Stars The Nashville Stars were a professional basketball team that played in the World Basketball League (WBL) in 1991. They were located in Nashville, Tennessee, and played their home games at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium. Prior to arriving in Na ...

and the Birmingham Black Barons.

References

Negro league baseball executives 1907 births 2004 deaths {{US-baseball-bio-stub