An Afternoon of Vintage Baseball
Vintage Baseball comes to La Crosse
Saturday, October 12, 2024
1:00 pm
Rush County Fairgrounds Field (La Crosse)
Note Time and Location Change
Loretto Blue Jays Baseball Team - circa 1950
Join us as we turn back the clock for an old-fashioned game of baseball on the Rush County Fairgrounds Field as the Loretto Bluejays take on the Historic Fort Hays Post 9 team following 1869 rules. The game begins at 1 o'clock in the afternoon and teams will play for the traditional nine innings.
We are naming our local team in honor of the Loretto Bluejays. For many years, they dominated the fields in the semi-pro league defeating competitors such as the Wichita Boeing Bombers and Fort Hays Normal School (Fort Hays State University). Loretto, with a population of 30, was the smallest community in Kansas to have a lighted field and because of its large following, was awarded a district tournament franchise.
The game is free and open to the public. This is a family event, so bring your lawn chairs and enjoy a 19th-century baseball game in La Crosse. Visit the refreshment stand for vintage refreshments including peanuts, popcorn, lemonade, and more.
Note that the location of the game has been moved to the Rush County Fairgrounds Baseball Fields. The original location, the site of the former La Crosse High School, was determined to be too small for vintage regulation play. The Fairgrounds Field is located 1/2 mile east of La Crosse on Highway K-4. Please use the east gate to enter the fairgrounds.
See the complete rules at Vintage Baseball Association (vbba.org)
The Loretto Bluejays Baseball Team
Roster for circa 1940 Loretto Bluejays team pictured at the top of the page.
(1920) The “Urban Team” baseball team. From left: John G. Urban, Joe Stegman, Edward Urban, John A. Urban, Frank Urban, Joe Urban, Alois Urban, Jerome Urban, Bill Basgall.
(1923) The “Urban Team” baseball team. Standing from left: John G. Urban, Joe Stegman, Edward Urban. Sitting: Bill Basgall, Alois Urban, Frank Urban, Joe Urban, Jerome Urban.
Baseball Under the Lights
In the 1950s, Loretto field was one of the first small town fields to be lighted to allow nighttime games. It was also known as likely the smallest community in Kansas (and likely one of the smallest in the United States) to have a lighted baseball field. The massive lights sat atop 80 foot tall poles.
In the early 1970s, under the leadership of William Schoendaller, Richard Herrman, and others, the lights were removed from the abandoned field in Loretto and reinstalled at the ball diamond at the La Crosse High School. The massive poles were cut down to allow service trucks from the City of La Crosse to reach the lights. The lights were rewired and brought back to life for use by the youth of Rush County for over three decades. The field is no longer in use for baseball and has been converted for use in track and field. Pictured above is the field in 2024.
An afternoon of Vintage Baseball is being sponsored by
the Rush County Sesquicentennial Committee:
The Rush County Historical Society and Rush County Economic Development.