Johnny Dobbs
As news spread across the South that Chattanooga’s Andrews Field would be open for the 1910 season, team owners and enthusiastic fans made the trek to the home of the Champs of Dixie. And, few were disappointed.
Nashville’s baseball club president, Ferd Kuhn, was one of the first to schedule a visit, bringing with him a party of “athletic moguls.” After making a thorough inspection of the field, Kuhn admitted that it was “the finest in the South” and that he “would remodel the shack at Sulphur Dell” along the same lines. He explained that he would immediately begin to improve the Nashville structure by tearing down the entire front and refashion it using Chattanooga’s grandstand as his guide. Considering that the Nashville grandstand was only two years old, Andrews and Dobbs knew they had made a mark.
Within days, Birmingham had scheduled their own visit.
But, the fascination with Chattanooga’s addition to the Atlantic Southern League was not limited to the field. The team drew interest, too. Not only were other League members worried about the prowess of ‘big Charles Keith’ on the mound, there were other Champs that garnered attention including Bill Hart, a favorite across the South. Hart was always the “stellar attraction;” he could commander a crowd just by “tossing ‘em up on the screens and catching ‘em when they fell.” Hart was always the life of the crowd and, on the first day of Spring practice, 1910, he did not disappoint. He had begun his career in Chattanooga almost twenty-five years earlier and, as his fame and talent grew, had made the rounds of the leagues. At forty-three, he wanted to end his career – – some day in the future – – with the home crowds. But, as the reporters noted, he was still the liveliest member of the squad and was constantly challenging the younger members. The fans believed Hart to be one of the strongest members and want his name on the permanent roster. With Meek, Buchanan, Miller, Baumgarter and Helm – – and Johnny Dobbs – – the Champs of Dixie posed a threat to all the league teams.
And, that raises the question: who was Johnny Dobbs? And, why did O. B. Andrews insist that Dobbs was the only man to be considered as the manager of Chattanooga’s team? Perhaps Abe Yeager, veteran Brooklyn sports writer, was the perfect person to answer that question. Yeager came to Chattanooga in early April 1910 to reconnect with the player he had spotlighted for years during Dobbs’ time with the Brooklyn team. “There are few players to perform in a Brooklyn uniform who were more popular than John Dobbs.” Yeager paused and then added, “Johnny seldom missed a fly all, and, in fact, I don’t ever remember his dropping one. He was some hitter, too, and the fans seldom failed to give him a hand when he came to bat. He could be relied upon to deliver when a hit was needed and many a time his drive sent other Brooklyn players across the home plate for the victory.”
Dobbs and the team were touted by Chattanooga prior to the first game of the season and the first game to be played on Andrews field. In fact, Chattanooga was so excited that the city issued a challenge for 10,000 fans to attend the April 18, 1910 game against Charley Babb’s Memphis team. The city wanted to break the opening day record for the Southern League and, since the grandstand and bleachers at Andrews field would hold 10,000 screaming, cheering fans, 10,000 became the call, with hopes that a overflow would take seats or standing position near right field.
How serious was the challenge? The Ross-Meehan Foundry set the pace and announced that all shops would close at 3 pm and all employees were “to attend the game.” The Brock Candy company and Southern Express Company responded to the challenge by announcing both companies would also close at 3 pm and “gift” every employee with a ticket to the game. Not be left behind the manufacturers, the Chattanooga Merchants’ Association voted unanimously to close all retail store that afternoon so that employees and shoppers could “reach the field to see the Turtles line up against our own Lookouts.” Other factories were asked to “fall in line” with the plan that “all of Chattanooga” would be there to see Mayor T. C. Thompson throw out the first ball at Andrews Field. The Chattanooga Street Railway announced that five additional “large, open cars” would arrive in time to help meet the challenge. Each railway car contained twelve seats and eight passengers could ride on each seat – – the cars would remain in Chattanooga for the summer. Not only would Chattanooga beat the 10,000 challenge but it would break all summer Southern League records.
Did the challenge work? That’s one more story that needs to be told.
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Linda Moss Mines, the official Chattanooga and Hamilton County Historian, reminds readers to support your local baseball and softball teams.
This article was originally published by a www.chattanoogan.com . Read the Original article here. .