Mike Richard
Special for The Gardner News
It was a scene conjuring memories of a long-ago era when Gardner playgrounds were the place to be throughout the long hot summers.
However, with boys sporting knickers and suit jackets and girls in bloomers and sun hats, the picture seemed almost as far-fetched as the prospect that these playgrounds would one day be deserted in summers of the future.
Sadly, children don’t flock to the playgrounds like they did some 30, 40 or 50 years ago – or for that matter 100 years ago when the photo accompanying this column was taken.
Even with the current renovations, the state-of-the-art playground equipment and the improvements made at Greenwood, the West End playground doesn’t have the same sun-up to sun-down draw it once did.
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The Gardner Scene: Willie ‘Cannonball’ Jackman and his appearances in Gardner
Famed Negro League pitcher with a blazing fastball was a popular player whenever his team barnstormed into town
Mike Richard
Special for The Gardner News
In commemoration of Black History Month, it may be an appropriate time to remember one of the most celebrated barnstorming baseball players to appear in the area.
During the 1920s and 1930s, sandlot baseball was highly popular in Gardner, with summer games topping the bill at Wilder Field and some 2,000 fans cramming into the friendly confines of the grandstand on weekends.
There were some big names and talented teams of renown who visited Gardner during that era, including a team known by the politically incorrect name by today’s standards – the Philadelphia Colored Giants.