All images and research on this site are the property and copyright of Adam Chu / nationalgirlsbaseballleague.com. Do not claim any content as your own, alter image files in any way, or remove/attempt to remove any copyright notices or watermarks. Permission for use may be granted on a case-by-case basis upon request. By using any image or research from this site, you agree to provide proper credit and a link back to Adam Chu / nationalgirlsbaseballleague.com.
NATIONAL GIRLS BASEBALL LEAGUE (NGBL)
1944-1954
In its 11 seasons, the National Girls Baseball League (NGBL) fielded teams from Chicago and the surrounding areas of Forest Park and Des Plaines. Clubs adopted names like the Chicago Bluebirds, Kandy Kids/Queens, Music Maids, and the Bloomer Girls. Competing with the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, the NGBL worked hard to attract top-tier athletes by offering higher salaries and easier travel schedules for road games. These perks caught the attention of some of the sport’s greatest talents, including shortstop Jaime Deckard and sluggers Freda Savona and Pat Carson.
To further expand its popularity, the NGBL brought in big names from men’s professional sports to manage the league and its teams. Football legend Harold “Red” Grange served as league commissioner, while baseball greats like Buck Weaver and Woody English were recruited as team managers. During the late 1940s, the NGBL drew an average of 500,000 spectators each year. By 1954, however, the league had all but disappeared, as waning interest in women’s softball led to the dissolution of many of its teams.
BOOKS
CHAMPIONS
(1) The Rock-Ola Music Maids were declared champions as a result of finishing first during the regular season. The playoffs to determine a league champion were never completed due to weather.
(2) Three teams were left in the league, a fourth (the Chicago All-Stars, later renamed the Jewels) was added mid-season.
SPONSORS
Admiral Corporation sponsored the Music Maids from 1949-1952.
Alemite Corporation sponsored the Queens in 1952.
The American Phenolic Corporation (also known as Amphenol) briefly sponsored the Belles in 1952.
E. J. Brach & Sons sponsored the Kandy Kids in 1944.
Match Corporation of America sponsored the Queens from 1949-1950.
Charles Dean, president of the Dean Electric Company of Oak Park, IL, purchased the Rock-Olas and renamed the team the Belles in 1952. He later added his company to the name after Amphenol dropped out as a sponsor.
Nectar Beer sponored televised NGBL games on WENR-TV in 1949.
Emery Parichy owned the Bloomer Girls team from 1942-1955. His company, Parichy Roofing & Shingle, sponsored the team from 1938-1951 & again in 1955.
Rauland Corporation sponsored the Queens in 1945.
Rock-Ola Manufacturing Corp. sponsored the Music Maids from 1942-1948. They then sponsored the former Chicago Chicks ballclub from 1949-1951,
Mel Thillens Sr. purchased the former Cardinals ballclub & renamed them after his company Thillens Inc. Check Cashing Service in 1951. The team merged with the Music Maids following the 1952 season.
Tony Piet Motor Sales Inc. sponsored the Queens ballclub in 1951.
Tungsten Manufacturing Company sponsored the Tungsten Sparks from 1944-1946.
Wilson-Jones Company sponsored the Bloomer Girls team from 1952-1954.
All images and research on this site are the property and copyright of Adam Chu / nationalgirlsbaseballleague.com. Do not claim any content as your own, alter image files in any way, or remove/attempt to remove any copyright notices or watermarks. Permission for use may be granted on a case-by-case basis upon request. By using any image or research from this site, you agree to provide proper credit and a link back to Adam Chu / nationalgirlsbaseballleague.com.
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