Negro Leagues Centennial Commemoration

Feb. 13, 2020 marks exactly 100 years since the Negro National League – the first African American professional baseball league – was established at a YMCA in Kansas City, Mo.

The Negro League Centennial Commemoration at the History Center will examine the legacy and impact of the Negro Leagues here in Pittsburgh with an all-star panel featuring Al Oliver, Pittsburgh Pirates All-Star outfielder and member of the 1971 World Series Champion team; Sean Gibson, executive director, Josh Gibson Foundation; great-grandson of the legendary slugger; Rob Ruck, professor of history, University of Pittsburgh; author of “Raceball”; Samuel W Black, director of the African American Program at the Heinz History Center; and Charlene Foggie-Barnett, Teenie Harris Archive Specialist, Carnegie Museum of Art.

The panel will be moderated by Pittsburgh Pirates play-by-play announcer Joe Block.

The event will also showcase the world of Negro League baseball through the images of legendary Pittsburgh photographer Charles “Teenie” Harris, courtesy of the Teenie Harris Archive at the Carnegie Museum of Art.

The event includes access to the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum, where visitors can see that legacy on display, including a rare Homestead Grays uniform, a glove worn by legendary hurler Satchel Paige, and a lifelike figure of Josh Gibson.

Doors open at 6 p.m. and the program begins at 7 p.m. Admission to this event is FREE and includes access to all six floors of History Center exhibitions. Please register online at heinzhistorycenter.org.