As February and Black History Month draw to a close, I investigated Jackie Robinson’s connection to Pensacola, Florida, my hometown. Here’s what I found.
Until Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947, African Americans were not permitted to play Major League Baseball. Instead, they played in what was called The Negro Leagues, and that’s where Robinson began his pro baseball career.
Jackie Robinson was a rock star of the Negro Leagues, playing for the Kansas City Monarchs in 1945, and hitting .387. He caught the attention of Branch Rickey, president and GM of the Brooklyn Dodgers (now the Los Angeles Dodgers). Rickey recognized Robinson’s talent and intellect (a four-sport star at UCLA), admired his character, and considered him an ideal person to handle the challenges associated with breaking the game’s color barrier.
To get Robinson prepared for major league play, Rickey signed him to a minor-league contract with the Montreal Royals, the Dodgers’ affiliate at the time. Robinson played for the Royals in 1946, appearing in 134 games and batting .349.
Then, on April 15, 1947, Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier by becoming the first African American to play Major League Baseball.
Just about every baseball fan knows that story, but few know about Robinson’s connection to Pensacola, FL.
It happened in 1945 while Robinson was playing in the Negro Leagues. The Pensacola Seagulls were the Negro League representative, and Robinson played for the Kansas City Monarchs. Of course, nobody knew back then that Robinson would go on to make history; it was just another home game for the Seagulls.
Decades later (in 2021, to be exact), the now-Pensacola Blue Wahoos, the city’s current minor league team, celebrated that historic game. They wore Seagulls uniforms, and the club featured a post-game screening of the film 42, which focuses on Robinson’s life and career.
But that game in 1945 wasn’t the only and last time Robinson would have a connection to the city.
In March of 1946, Jackie Robinson and wife, Rachel, were traveling to join the Montreal Royals and the Dodgers for Spring training in Daytona Beach, Florida. The Robinsons were flying in from Los Angeles, where they had spent the winter months, when the plane made a refueling stop in Pensacola. Once in Pensacola, the Robinsons were bumped from the flight to make room for white passengers. It was the last flight of the day, and the Robinsons spent the night with a local black family. The next day, they traveled to Daytona Beach by segregated bus.
We know that Jackie Robinson’s story is multifaceted, including unparalleled triumph and perseverance in the face of prejudice and hate. It would be comforting to say that the horrors of racism are no longer with us, but the reality is that it persists to this day.
To move past what I consider to be a disease of the human heart, we must remember and heed the words of Martin Luther King Jr: “The color of his skin should not judge a man, but by the content of his character.”
