Homestead Grays vs. Duquesne Zemps Barnstorming Tour (1949)

This ticket was from a game between the former Negro National League team the Homestead Grays and the Duquesne Zemps. The game was played at Polish Hill Community Field (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) on Friday, July 8, 1949.

Wilmer Fields - Homestead Grays

The Homestead Grays had been a powerhouse in the Negro National League from 1934 to 1948. When the Negro National League folded after the 1948 season, the Homestead Grays played an independent schedule and also played in the Negro American Association. The 1949 Negro American Association was a lower level league as compared to the Negro National League or the Negro American League. The Homestead Grays won the first half of the Negro American Association championship with a 24-2 record. Records for the second half of the season are incomplete. The team folded after the 1950 season, ending a dynasty in black baseball.

Standout players from the 1949 Homestead Grays team were Sam Bankhead, Lonnie Blair, Mahlon Duckett, Wilmer Fields, Cecil Kaiser, Buck Leonard, Roy Partlow and Bob Trice.   

Roy Partlow - Homestead Grays

The Duquesne Zemps were a semipro team from Duquesne, Pennsylvania. Duquesne, like Homestead, is a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 



For more information on baseball in the Pittsburgh area, refer to Rob Ruck’s book Sandlot Seasons – Sport in Black Pittsburgh.