Talking baseball! Derby Gisclair conversation on NOLA History Guy Podcast 1-June-2019

NOLA History Guy Podcast 1-June-2019

We have a LONG “long-form” podcast today! It’s our second conversation with S. Derby Gisclair, author and historian, about his book, Baseball in New Orleans. I had a great chat with Derby, up at the French Truck Coffee Shop on Magazine Street in the Garden District.

New Orleans Pelicans Baseball

Most of Baseball in New Orleans focuses on the old New Orleans Pelicans. The club was around, in one form or another, from 1887 to 1977. The New Orleans Zephyrs arrived in 1993. So, the AAA-level club in Denver had to leave that city when they got a team in The Show, the Colorado Rockies. These professional teams anchored baseball interest in New Orleans for over 150 years.

Early ballparks

New Orleanians played baseball at several locations in the 1800s. The early Pelicans teams played at Sportsman’s Park. So, this ballpark sat just behind what became the “Halfway House,” later the Orkin Pest Control Building, on City Park Avenue. The ballpark operated from 1886 to 1900. The Pelicans moved to Athletic Park on Tulane Avenue in 1901.

Pelican Stadium

In the early years of the Pelicans,Alexander Julius (A.J.) Heinemann, sold soft drinks at Pelicans games. Heinemann eventually joined the board of the club. He acquired the land at the corner of Tulane and S. Carrollton Avenues. So, Heinemann displaced a small amusement park called “White City.” Therefore, the Pelicans had a “serious” home. While the Pels were in the off-season, they moved the bleachers up Tulane Avenue to the new ground. The Pelicans played at Heinemann Park, later named Pelican Stadium, until its demolition in 1957. Derby has lots of stories about the ballpark in NOLA History Guy Podcast 1-June-2019.

Other Baseball Leagues

Numerous leagues played in New Orleans. While the Pels played, amateur leagues also organized. They included workers at stores and businesses. So, these leagues played at local parks. High School and college teams also played. Derby’s books chronicle those teams. Special shout-outs to the “Brothers Boys! So, several BOSH young men appear in the book. So, one of them was St. Aloysius and Loyola Grad Tom Schwaner. Schwaner also coached Brother Martin and UNO. So, Gisclair also mentions the strong teams at Brother Martin High School in the early 1980s.

The Books of NOLA History Guy Podcast 1-June-2019

Baseball in New Orleans (Images of Baseball) (Paperback)

ISBN: 9780738516141

ISBN-10: 0738516147

Publisher: Arcadia Publishing (SC)

Publication Date: March 24th, 2004

Pages: 128

Language: English

Series: Images of Baseball

Baseball at Tulane University (Images of Baseball) (Paperback)

ISBN: 9780738542089

ISBN-10: 0738542083

Publisher: Arcadia Publishing (SC)

Publication Date: January 2007

Pages: 128

Language: English

Series: Images of Baseball

Early Baseball in New Orleans: A History of 19th Century Play (Paperback)

ISBN: 9781476677811

ISBN-10: 1476677816

Publisher: McFarland & Company

Publication Date: March 15th, 2019

Pages: 271

Language: English

Last Week’s Podcast, where we talk with Derby about Early Baseball.