After the 1911 regular baseball season ended, an all-star game of sorts was announced to be played by a Shreveport team vs. one from the oilfield town of Vivian, 30 miles to the north. The Port City group was comprised of a mix of professionals, living there during the off-season, and local semipro players.
Shreveport Times 07-Oct-1911, Page 9
The Buildup
The site was League Park, later renamed Gasser Park, Texas League Park, and given several other monikers over the years before eventually losing its role as local professional baseball venue to Fairgrounds Field in the 1980s. Manager Frank Busbey coordinated activities and a large crowd was expected. The "benefit" was to provide a payday for the pros, who in that day made little playing ball and naturally had to find off-season jobs.
Shreveport players identified to be participating included:
(Prince) Gaskill (pitcher) - recently of Scranton in the New York State League
Harry Scott (catcher) - played for Bonham (TX) in the Texas-Oklahoma League
Bud Prudhomme (second base) - identified as a "Times City Leaguer"
Bill Yohe (third base) - started 1911 with Denver, but finished the season at Oklahoma City
Chick Gandil (shortstop) - played for Montreal of the Eastern League; normally a first baseman
Barker, Gardner, Grant (outfield) - no first names or associated teams mentioned
No specifics were disclosed about the Vivian team, other than that it was one of the strongest in the area
Shreveport Times 04-Oct-1911, Page 7
Shreveport Times 06-Oct-1911, Page 7
A follow-up article stated the Vivian team was said to have several "big league" players of its own, including unnamed Texas League players living in nearby Texarkana during the offseason. However nowhere in any of the write-ups abouts the game is a Vivian player specifically identified.
The Game
The action is hard to follow in the article below, as the writer frequently assumes a pre-existing knowledge of story elements on the part of his audience. He described the people and activities using intentionally clever descriptions and "inside jokes" that leave a current-day reader often confused.
The Shreveport players were decked out in various uniforms, some described as colorful; possibly to add flair to the game since whites and grays were often the standard. Yohe's outfit was mauve and blue, while Pete Gardner and Scott apparently were dressed in bright yellow duds said to be "of the latest aviation cut". Gandil was in his Montreal road uniform, and Gaskill's contained two large gothic "Cs," the meaning of which was unknown. The Vivian uniforms were described as black with an inscription across the chest that "dimly reminded one of a famous brand of footwear.".Perhaps some variation of "Sox" (White, Red, etc.,???).
Pitching five innings, Gaskill struck out 14 batters, and gave up a lone single.
Unfortunately the game was not a great money-maker, as gate receipts were exactly nine dollars (approximately $180 today). Manager Busbey settled with Vivian to ensure they had meal money, as well as streetcar and train fare for the trip home. They additionally received among other things two baseballs and "five cents worth of lime" to mark their home field. The Shreveport all-stars apparently ended up playing simply for the love of the game. Scoring was kept on an old shingle, and tallied using a horseshoe nail. Almost incidentally reported was the score, 4-2 in favor of the home team.
Shreveport Times 09-Oct-1911, Page 6
The Manager/Players
Below, named members of the Shreveport contingent are profiled. As previously stated, no Vivian players were ever identified.
Preston "Press" Barker (18??-19??) is one of the City League players mentioned. Little about his personal life could be found, other than that the 1910 city directory listed him as "keeper, Ball Park." Earlier in 1911 he participated on a team, identified as "Shreveport" that lost a game 2-1 at Oil City. Also in the lineup were Grant, Gardner, Scott; all players in this game. In 1912 Barker and Bud Prudhomme were reported to be playing left field and shortstop respectively for Texarkana of the South Central League.
Frank Billiu Busbey (1885-1914), identified as the organizer and Shreveport manager, was a local business man. Manager is a loose term for this game that reads like it had all of the seriousness of a Sunday afternoon softball game among friends. However, being competitors, both sides surely must have played to win, even if the game was still largely for fun.
Facts found about Frank include:
- He was once a traveling salesman for Hamiter-Busbey Mill & Elevator Company, a firm in which his father J. J. Busbey held an interest. The elder Busby was a prominent local businessman and builder, having constructed several downtown buildings including the Methodist Church at the end of Texas Street (predecessor to the one standing now).
- He was affiliated with Avenue Bottling Works, a soda pop bottler on Texas Avenue; and jointly named with same in a 1913 sheriff's notice for auction of related assets to settle a claim by a syrup supplier.
- He had served as an election commissioner for Shreveport Ward Four, Precinct Three, based at the Ferris Hotel
- He and wife Willie once lived at 725 Cotton Street, current site of the Scottish Rite Temple.
Frank died at the young age of 29 and is buried in Greenwood Cemetery.
Arnold "Chick" Gandil (1888-1970) is both the most famous and infamous of the lot, as he was one of the eight players implicated in the notorious 1919 "Black Sox" scandal and later banned from baseball by commissioner Kenesaw Landis. He played for Shreveport in 1908 (as Chick Arnold) and spent the off-season there in 1910-1911, working as a policeman, and played the 1911 season at Montreal.
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1912 C46 Imperial Tobacco Chick Gandil #65
Read Chick's Wikipedia article here and see his career statistics here.
Luther Curtis "Rube" Gardner (1883-1953) Also known as "Panama Pete" or simply "Pete." From Huntington, Tennessee, Rube played with several southern baseball clubs over his career, including the Texas League Shreveport Pirates in 1909. Below he's shown with Topeka, KS in 1912.
Topeka (KS) Daily Capital 01-Oct-1912, Page 2
Shortly after the 1912 season , he was drafted by the Oakland Oaks of the Pacific Coast League. The following is an excerpt from his obituary:
Fresno (CA) Bee 09-Mar-1953, Page 7-B
Read Rube Gardner's full stats on Baseball-Reference.com
Jack Gardner (18??-19??) was listed with the occupation of "ball player" in the 1910 city directory. While it can't be confirmed, he may have been Arvil P. "Jack" Gardner (1893-1949), a one-time city fireman who later operated the Gardner Hotel in downtown Shreveport with wife Marie.
Prince Douglas Gaskell (1885-1966) - Note his name is more often misspelled as Gaskill. Originally from Texas, Prince Gaskell began his professional career playing for Houston in the South Texas League before joining the Shreveport Pirates in 1907.
Shreveport Times 05-Apr-1959, Page 5-D
He later pitched for the Chattanooga Lookouts where he once gave up a home runt "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, who was playing for rival Savannah in the South Atlantic League. He additionally played for several teams in the northeast and midwest, as well as
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| Prince Gaskell is shown middle row, second from left |
He later pitched for the Chattanooga Lookouts where he once gave up a home runt "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, who was playing for rival Savannah in the South Atlantic League. He additionally played for several teams in the northeast and midwest, as well as
Below Prince is shown in 1909 while at Chattanooga....
Macon (GA) Telegraph 22-Dec-1909, Page 6
....and with the Denver Bears in 1914.
Denver Post 02-Oct-1914, Page 15
Rocky Mountain news 17-Dec-1914, Page 11
He finished his career in 1917, playing briefly for San Antonio before wrapping up in his longtime off-season home, Shreveport.
Read Prince Gaskell's full stats on Baseball-Reference.com
After baseball, Prince worked as a warehouseman for Gulf Oil Company in Mooringsport, Louisiana where he and wife Eula lived for approximately five years. They later returned to Shreveport in 1924 where he became a car salesman, eventually retiring from Roundtree Oldsmobile-Cadillac auto dealership as sales manager and vice-president.
Abe Martin Grant (18??-19??) was named on a City League "all-star" team, published in August 1911, at first base. It also listed Barker (right field), Gardner (utility), Prudhomme (center field), and Scott (catcher). The article referenced earlier about Barker and Prudhomme being with Texarkana also disclosed Grant, a first baseman, trying out with the Vicksburg, MS club. He was also a member of the Bottling Works team that Frank Busby took to Vivian in 1912. He and Bud Prudhomme (see following) were members of a Kansas City Southern Railways shop team that traveled to Pittsburg, KS to play a KCS counterpart in 1913. He later became a Shreveport policeman.
Joseph Fielding "Bud" Prudhomme (1888 -1984) was another member of the Times's club. He's identified as a gasfitter in the 1910 city directory, and per his obituary became an electrician.
Harry Mason Scott (1888-1961) played catcher in this game and was mentioned is several recaps of City League contests. Earlier he had reported to have been signed by Harrisburg, PA, but that did not apparently pan out.Abe Martin Grant (18??-19??) was named on a City League "all-star" team, published in August 1911, at first base. It also listed Barker (right field), Gardner (utility), Prudhomme (center field), and Scott (catcher). The article referenced earlier about Barker and Prudhomme being with Texarkana also disclosed Grant, a first baseman, trying out with the Vicksburg, MS club. He was also a member of the Bottling Works team that Frank Busby took to Vivian in 1912. He and Bud Prudhomme (see following) were members of a Kansas City Southern Railways shop team that traveled to Pittsburg, KS to play a KCS counterpart in 1913. He later became a Shreveport policeman.
Joseph Fielding "Bud" Prudhomme (1888 -1984) was another member of the Times's club. He's identified as a gasfitter in the 1910 city directory, and per his obituary became an electrician.
After this game, he went on to play for numerous Texas teams, including Austin of the Texas League (1914), through 1922. Harry passed away in 1961 of a heart attack and is buried in Forest Park Cemetery in Houston, TX.
William Clyde "Bill" Yohe (1878-1938) was the only player who at the time who had major league experience, having played 21 games with the Washington Senators in 1909. A former Pirate, like Gandil, Gardner, and Gaskill he wintered in Shreveport; or more specifically in his case, a few miles north on Caddo Lake. He is shown below as a Pirate.
1909 Shreveport Pirates Team Photo
The following year (1912) Bill passed through several teams before eventually playing third base for Tacoma (WA) of the Northwestern League.
Seattle (WA) Star 04-May-1912, Page 2
Read his wikipedia article here, and his career stats here.
Bill Yohe died in 1938 and is buried in the Ivy Green Cemetery in Bremerton, WA.
