We know that baseball has been a popular sport since it was first played in the United States in the mid-19th century. There’s a reason it’s referred to as “America’s pastime.” So it goes without saying that men and boys have been playing sandlot baseball in New Port Richey ever since the founding of the town.
Then, as today, people — especially men — took their sports seriously. And when the “boys of summer” (the term used to describe baseball players) began a season, virtually everybody paid attention. The New Port Richey Press — like most newspapers of the time — posted the big-league scores on a regular basis. In fact, before there was television, the progress of the World Series of 1926 was displayed on an electric billboard erected on Main Street in New Port Richey next to the Swafford Building (now the Chasco Inn Building). And crowds of people sat or parked in front of the sign to keep abreast of the current score.
The first effort to start an organized baseball team in New Port Richey was probably spearheaded by William A. “Bill” Casey. In 1919, he operated a barber shop and billiard parlor — a popular hangout for most of the local men. On Monday, January 19th, 1919, a meeting of baseball enthusiasts was held in Mr. Casey’s store to consider plans for organizing a local baseball team.
The results of that meeting were not reported, but it must have met with support from the local community. Because by May 1922, a team had been formed and plans were in the works for a permanent baseball field location. According to a report in the New Port Richey Press, a benefit performance was held on May 18th at the Palms Theatre to defray the cost of putting the baseball field in condition and repairing the road around the Circle.
May 18th was also the date of the biannual political picnic held in New Port Richey in1922. A baseball game was played between the New Port Richey team and Oldsmar clubs — and the home team was beaten by a score of 14 to 1. It was announced that there would be a game every Thursday afternoon.
Baseball games were played regularly for the rest of the summer, with contests against Tarpon Springs, Brooksville, Dade City, Dunedin, and other nearby towns. By June, the lineup for the New Port Richey team was reported to be; Wright, center field; Colby, right field; Wanner, 1st base; Payson, short stop; Shendel, 2nd base; Dartnell, left field; Hill, pitcher; Carlton, 3rd base; and Johnson, catcher. Eventually, Payson became the regular pitcher for the team.
In July 1922, the Brooksville Star newspaper suggested the formation of a West Coast baseball league. And at the beginning of the 1923 season, the new league was organized. New Port Richey was offered a berth in the new league, which initially included teams from Dade City, Lutz and Lacoochee. In later years, the organization would eventually include teams from Brooksville, Bushnell, Clearwater, Dade City, Dunellon, Homosassa, Inverness, Lacoochee, Lutz, Plant City, Tarpon Springs, Tampa and Webster.
By the start of the 1924 season, the West Coast Baseball League, and New Port Richey’s team was a hot topic all over town. Another meeting was held at Casey’s to organize for the upcoming season. Frank Grey was chosen as the team manager, James W. Clark was the treasurer, and player Johnnie Johnson was selected as team captain.
In April 1924, the site just southwest of the Enchantment Inn (previously the Sass Hotel) had officially been donated to use as a ball diamond. On today’s map, that would be the area occupied by the Gloria Swanson parking lot, and the businesses fronting Main Street in that block — directly east of the Hacienda Hotel (which did not yet exist in 1924).
Construction of the field, directed by James W. Clark, was proceeding with haste so that it could be ready for the up-and-coming baseball season. Ralph Werner graded the field. The diamond was laid out by surveyor M.A. Fullington, and Richard Ravenhall was responsible for surfacing the field with a prime sand and clay mixture. Lumber for a grandstand was donated by Fred Shaw.
The 1925 baseball season saw the West Coast League add a new member — Plant City. An admission fee of 35 cents would now be charged for spectators attending the games, with season tickets going for $25. The New Port Richey team was now a powerhouse — winning the season with a record of 19 wins and 5 losses. None of the other teams were even close.
When the 1926 season got underway, the West Coast Baseball League had expanded to six teams. They were New Port Richey, Dade City, Clearwater, Plant City, Tarpon Springs and Dunedin. Games were now played on Saturday to attract larger crowds. And destiny was calling the New Port Richey team.
Several things happened during the 1926 season that impacted baseball in New Port Richey. In June, the New Port Richey Press began a campaign to raise finances for the team — which by now had paid players — encouraging the rich and famous people wintering in New Port Richey to donate money. “Come on with us! Tommy Meighan, Raymond Hitchcock, George Riddle, Dick Morgan, “Doc” Hunt, and all the rest of you. Send us a small check, anywhere from five to a hundred dollars and lets keep the ball team together.”.
New Port Richey was at the height of its push to become the “Hollywood of the East,” a new theatre had been built, and the Hacienda Hotel adjacent to the ballpark was beginning construction. The city promised a half-million dollars to be spent on improvements — including on the ballpark. And the home team was ranked first in the West Coast League.
In those days, as today, sports teams featured moniker names to help fans identify with them. In the West Coast League, there were the Tarpon Springs Spongers, Dade City Mountaineers, Plant City Strawberries, Clearwater Tourists — but our team was referred to as just the “New Port Richey baseball team.” That changed in mid-June 1926, when newspaper articles began referring to the New Port Richey team as the “Plutocrats.” The origin of this team nickname seems obscured by history, but it was probably due to the city’s image of being home to rich and famous people.
The 1926 baseball season came down to a playoff between the Plutocrats and the Dunedin team. The seven-game championship series was played in Tarpon Springs and in Clearwater — because the ball parks in Dunedin and New Port Richey were not large enough to accommodate the huge crowds expected at the games. The New Port Richey Plutocrats won the series and became the Florida West Coast Baseball League champions.
After their heyday in 1925 and 1926, the “Plutocrats” seemed to disappear from news coverage. They continued to field a team and won the championship again in 1930. The Florida West Coast Baseball League became disorganized, made a comeback in 1935 and 1936, and continued in existence until at least 1949 — even though there is scant evidence of it in the history books.
No discussion of baseball in New Port Richey would be complete without a tribute to the Negro League team that played here beginning about 1928. Named the “Red Birds,” they fielded a team from the Booker T. Washington and “Graveyard” neighborhoods north of the city.
Managed by Roosevelt Bryant, the team featured all-star pitchers “Shotgun Preacher Henry” and “Sad Sam” who led the team to numerous victories. And even though New Port Richey was what was termed a “sundown town” in the 1920s, the Red Birds were allowed to play their games at Hacienda Field — where the Plutocrats also played — and received support from James W. Clark Jr. and other local baseball fans.
The local Negro League included Clearwater, the Dade City Blackbirds, the Dunedin Braves, the Largo Bearcats (later the Largo Black Diamonds), the Safety Harbor Stars, San Antonio, St. Petersburg, the Tampa Wildcats, the Cuban All-Stars (based in Tampa), and the Tarpon Springs Hottentots (later the Tarpon Springs Red Sweaters).
The Red Birds existed until at least 1938 when they played an exhibition game on Oct. 20 to celebrate Emancipation Day.
Paul Herman is the Digital Media Archivist for the West Pasco Historical Society.