The Black History of Charlotte Baseball

Published on February 18, 2026

The 1912 Biddle University baseball players (Johnson C. Smith).

By Morgan Newell

“Baseball was a very important event.”

Baseball is often referred to as America’s favorite pastime. For centuries, fans have gathered in stands—sometimes even makeshift ones—to watch people play this beloved game. Charlotteans were no different. A deep dive into the past reveals that baseball is woven into the very fabric of this city.

Brandon Lunsford, former library archivist for Johnson C. Smith University (JCSU) and current Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation historian, spends his time diving into the Charlotte baseball archives with his friend Michael Webb. According to Lunsford, baseball got started in the Queen City over 150 years ago in 1875. At least, this was the first mention of any baseball team he could find, and that team had a simple name: Charlotte.

Before long, more teams—with more unique names—began to form. By 1883, newspapers were referring to a “colored baseball team” called the Neptunes. Then, in 1886, another two teams sprung up called the Fearless and the Quicksteps. These three teams were the first Black baseball teams in the city, but they wouldn’t be the last. Soon, the Charlotte Grays, Jim Blues and a Biddle University (now known as JCSU) team came onto the scene. While members formed these teams out of love for the sport, they were also formed out of necessity.

A Charlotte Observer article discussing the game between two Negro League teams in the early 1900s (Charlotte Observer).

Major League Baseball (MLB), America’s professional baseball league, was founded in the late 1870s. The MLB started with eight teams, but not a single Black player was allowed to play on any of them. The segregated pastime forced talented players to create their own teams and even their own leagues.

Finding a Way Out of No Way

As Black baseball players, finding somewhere to play wasn’t always easy. Up until 1904, Lunsford says the Charlotte park system was segregated. However, after the Civil War, Charlotte entered a period of integration like many other Southern cities. Charlotte’s parks soon became a place where Black players could play the game they loved. Lunsford says Latta Park, the first park in Charlotte, became one of the primary places the Quicksteps, Jim Blues and Biddle played.

According to Lunsford, there was supposed to be a baseball stadium specifically built for the Black teams in Charlotte. Around 1888, the project was slated for the Myers Street School. Located on 5th Street in Brooklyn Village at the time, this school was one of the only Black schools in Charlotte. Unfortunately, Lunsford said he can’t find information on whether this stadium was ever built. If it was, it has since been torn down, likely during urban renewal.

Playing with Community in Mind

“Back then, everybody played baseball,” Lunsford said.

Baseball wasn’t just a sport during the late 1800s. For many, it was a community event. Back then, two holidays were extremely important to the Black community: Easter and Fourth of July. Known as Freedmen’s Day, an 1894 Charlotte Observer article states the Fourth was an “observance…confined almost exclusively to the negros” where Black communities would have enjoyed parades and festivals to celebrate. However, a game of baseball was always expected. “They were very proud of their own teams and neighborhoods,” said Lunsford.

During Easter, Biddle would often play Livingstone, their rivals. Centering baseball during these important holidays shows just how special the game was to Charlotte’s Black community.

The Biddle University (then Johnson C. Smith) baseball players (Johnson C. Smith Archives).

Integration to Segregation

A major event caused Black baseball clubs to stop for some time. In 1870, the 15^th Amendment was ratified and added to the United States Constitution. It gave Black men the right to vote. Before this amendment, some of the South was starting to integrate. Integration was the process of ending racial separation throughout society in places like housing, public spaces, and education. Black and white people lived, worked, and shopped around each other during this time.

However, with the right to vote came fear from the white community. After Reconstruction, the period following the Civil War when Black people gained citizenship, the right to vote and the beginnings of economic and political power, many white Southerners called for “Redemption.” These “Redeemers” supported the return of white supremacy and the removal of rights recently granted to Black people. Segregation, the act of keeping Black and white people separate, officially began with Jim Crow laws, racial separation in schools, and the hallmark Supreme Court case Plessy v. Ferguson, which ruled it was legal to keep people separate as long as it was equal.

“It was often dangerous to be Black in Charlotte and in the South,” Lunsford said.

Black neighborhoods were terrorized and torn down. The community’s lifeline to baseball was engulfed in flames and turned to ash. Sometimes, a neighborhood would be destroyed in an act of violence; other times, it was an act of urban renewal. Regardless of how it happened, these stark changes led the sport, once used to mark celebrations and community, to become an afterthought.

The Rise of the Charlotte Black Hornets

In 1892, the Charlotte Hornets baseball team first appeared in the Minor League Baseball (MiLB) records. Yes, you’re reading that right. Before becoming a basketball team, the name was reserved for a team playing one of America’s oldest sports. The Hornets were a minor league franchise, occasionally hailed as one of the greatest MiLB teams of all time. Then, out of the Charlotte Hornets moniker came a new team with a similar name: the Charlotte Black Hornets.

 

“When you think about the history of the Negro Leagues and the Charlotte Black Hornets, there was no drop-off,” Doug Maurer, Director of Communications for the Charlotte Knights, said. “There wasn’t MLB and then a lesser league. The players were just as good.”

The Black Hornets were one of the top teams in Charlotte, alongside the Charlotte Red Sox. The high-caliber talent attracted many other teams across the South to, quite literally, step up to the plate and try to beat them. Lunsford said the Black Hornets would go on excursions across the South, where they would play baseball against other clubs, oftentimes with a competitive edge. Those same clubs would then come to the Queen City to play against the Black Hornets and others.

While it's true that many players suited up for the love of the sport, playing for the Black Hornets was fruitful as well. The team would charge 10 to 50 cents for admission to the games. Black communities came out in droves to see the games and support their teams, and by the 1930s, white neighbors showed up to the games too. As everyone enjoyed the game, a collection hat would be passed around so fans could donate money. These funds helped players get paid, get food after the games and pay for travel.

 

The Dissolution of Black Baseball Clubs

Black baseball clubs were huge successes in the 1920s to 40s. However, a couple reasons created difficulties maintaining these teams.

First, World War II. Black men were drafted to help in the war. The military remained segregated, and many Black Americans only worked in engineering, supply and transportation. Regardless, many Black people wanted to serve, including many of the players who made up the clubs.

The second reason was Jackie Robinson. While that may sound strange, his influence tore down the thin veil of segregation that kept Black players out of the major leagues. In 1947, Jackie Robinson, with the help of president and general manager Branch Rickey, broke the color barrier by debuting as a Brooklyn Dodger. He was the first Black man to play for a major league team but certainly wouldn’t be the last. After Robinson’s debut, and proof that Black players could play in the big leagues, club players saw an opportunity in Major League Baseball for the first time. While the process to recruit more Black players was slow, many club members signed professional contracts.

“It is important to understand all the teams in the Negro League had players that were just as capable, but didn’t have an opportunity to showcase their skills,” Maurer said. “After Robinson [broke the color barrier], now they did.”

Now, the baseball clubs communities came to love didn’t just disappear overnight. In fact, in 1946, the Charlotte Black Hornets had just entered the Negro Southern League. A year later, they were thriving in the Negro Carolina League. There were still several other Black club teams in Charlotte at the time, like the Charlotte Blue Birds, Charlotte Eagles, Cherry Giants and more. They were still mostly playing each other.

It wasn’t until the 1960s that Lunsford said most of the teams dismantled and disappeared. The Black Hornets, at that point called the Charlotte Mohawk Giants, were no longer a team.

However, Lunsford said there are articles from the 1990s showing how some club teams still played each other.

Cementing a Legacy with a Tribute

In 2026, the legacy of these players lives on. Nationally, the Negro Leagues are now recognized by the MLB. The professional baseball organization added the Negro Leagues’ statistics to its historical records in 2024, enshrining their talent where many would say it belonged. With the addition, several players, including Hall of Famer Josh Gibson, broke several MLB records.

The Charlotte Knights help carry the torch of recognizing the achievements of Black baseball teams, specifically the Charlotte Black Hornets, locally. Remember the Charlotte Hornets, the white minor league team we mentioned? In 1988, they became the Charlotte Knights, after a short 12-year stint as the Charlotte O’s. Therefore, the history of the Charlotte Black Hornets is deeply rooted in their own.

“As people who love baseball,” said Charlotte Knights Director of Community Relations and Promotions Chris Dillon, “it’s not just baseball history; it’s also American history.”

It was Eddie G.G. Burton, former Harrisburg (Pa.) Giants player, who opened the organization’s eyes to the history of the Negro Leagues. Burton’s influence helped the Knights recognize Charlotte’s deep ties to Black baseball clubs and later created the Negro League Tribute Night.

“Charlotte is a historical city and with baseball being so old, it is nice to pay homage to the people who paved the way, including black athletes who were just as good in the leagues they created,” Dillon said.

On this special night, the Triple-A team dedicates itself to educating the public. Players trade the Knights uniform for the close-to-historically accurate Charlotte Black Hornets one, designed by Bill Walker. The large-scale celebration features traveling Negro Leagues museums from Maryland and Delaware, historians and former Negro Leagues players. Stories of famed players like Leroy “Satchel” Paige and Josh Gibson are openly shared with attendees. Honored guests have included former players, like Bill Cathcart and Sam Allen, who share firsthand accounts of what it meant to play in the Negro Leagues.

 Two Charlotte Knights players in Black Hornets uniforms for Negro Leagues Tribute night.

“It is a celebration of history,” Dillon said. “Knowledge is wealth and anytime people can understand that there is something bigger than themselves is huge. When people come in, and we can share stories of how these players paved the way for so many people in today’s society, we are educating the masses and we use our platform for the greater good.”

It doesn’t just mean something to the people who come to watch. The players, coaches and staff are immersed in the weight of the moment as well. Dillon says players have walked up to the former Negro Leagues athletes and have the opportunity to thank them. Bench Coach Pat Listach’s grandfather played for a Negro League team called the Birmingham Black Barrons, creating a direct connection to the history and sacrifices made for the sport.

“If the Negro League wasn’t a thing, many players might not have even have the opportunity they have now,” Maurer said.

“I’m getting chills talking about this and I am not even playing baseball,” said Dillon.

12^th Annual Negro League Tribute

Friday, April 10 is the date for the 2026 tribute night. The Knights will don their “old-timey” uniforms and once again transform into the Charlotte Black Hornets. Back in 2023, the Knights created the Eddie G. G. Burton Scholarship in honor of the late player who helped bring the tribute night to life. Once again, the team will give two scholarships to two students enrolling at a Historically Black College and University (HBCU). Guests will be treated to pre-and-post game performances from the JCSU bands. Dillon is promising this year, just like every year, the Knights are preparing to make it their best year yet.

“Whoever comes, anyone in the Charlotte and the greater metropolitan area, they should know who the Black Hornets were and what they meant to the community and what they meant to baseball,” Dillon said.

Tickets are available to the Charlotte Knights HBCU & Negro League Tribute game. Find tickets on the team’s page.