The Red Sox were a Negro League ball club in Charlotte. They were around from 1918 on to the 1960s. They played in Wearn Field, and later Griffith Park. In the newspapers the ball club would sometimes go by names like the "Red Sox", "Red Socks", "Sox", or "Reds". The Charlotte ball club traveled in a black and red bus, which they stayed on, as they were not allowed to stay in the local hotels.

 

They would play other ball clubs like the Goshen Red Wings in the 1940's, the Greensboro Redbirds in the 1950's, and the Statesville Eagles in the 1960's. Even the well known Negro ball clubs like the Atlanta Black Crackers and the Indianapolis Clowns played against the Red Sox. The Black Crackers played against the Reds on July 12, 1946. That game was sponsored by the Negro recreation department. The Clowns came to Charlotte on Tuesday April 27, 1954 in an exhibition game vs the Red Sox. Some of the Reds games admission profits would be donated to local charities, like funding to pay for instruments for a local military band in 1918.

 

Over the years, the Red Sox were managed by names like John Bumbray (1918), Alf Boss (1918 assistant manager & 1920 manager),  "Pop" Watkins (1920-21), and Fred Worthy (1955). 

Alf Boss once was a promoter for Red Sox games in the local newspapers.  Samuel Douglas (owner), and Rivera Jones, were representatives of the Charlotte Red Sox in 1954.

 

Images from left to right:

 

 

1920 - 1921 manager 

John McCreary "Pop" Watkins

- 1907 Cuban Giants photo

 

 

1945 player 

E.L. Dunn

- 1968 Highland Junior High coach photo

 

 

1947 player 

Melvin "Slick" Coleman

- 1940 Miami Ethiopian Clowns photo

 

 

1954 player

Spencer Alexander

- 1946 Asheville Blues photo

 

 

1954 player and 1955 manager 

Fred Worthy

- 1946 Asheville Blues photo

 

 

1954 Red Sox representative and owner 

Samuel Douglas

- Charlotte Observer photo

 

Confirmed league(s) that the Red Sox played in:

 

Blue Ridge Colored League

1921

 

National Negro Association League

1954 - 1964?

 

 

Found Red Sox player names:

 

______ Scott -- 1918

 

 

______ Broady -- 1920

 

 

______ Brown -- 1922    

______ Byers -- 1922    

______ Curtis -- 1922   

______ Dwiggins -- 1922   

______ Forest -- 1922

______ Grier -- 1922    

______ McIver -- 1922   

______ Sanders -- 1922  

______ Springs -- 1922

 

 

David Sims -- 1940

 

 

David Sims -- 1941

 

 

E.L. Dunn -- 1945

______ Hopkins -- 1945    

______ Houston -- 1945

Edward "Pete" Sims -- 1945

 

 

______ Nelson -- 1946

Edward "Pete" Sims -- 1946

______ Watts -- 1946

 

 

Melvin "Slick" Coleman -- 1947

 

 

Spencer Alexander -- 1954

John Cathcart -- 1954

Fred Worthy -- 1954