Fort Smith Baseball History: Never Forget

Fort Smith had a team known as the Scouts as early as 1903.  I don't know if they were in an officially organized league or how many years they played.  In 1911, a team named the Fort Smith Scouts joined the already established Kansas-Oklahoma League; I am unsure if this is the same team or a new team bearing the same name as the previous team.  Their only season in the league, they went 29-14 and won the 1st half title.  Things were going great; the only problem was the league folded on June 19th of that year.

In 1914, a new league was formed that had no official name, and it included a newly formed team from Fort Smith known as the Fort Smith Twins. In their first year of existence they finished in 4th place with 74 wins. They finished near the bottom of the league from 1915-1917. Then at the end of 1917, the league folded.  They played most of their games at Stadium Park, located in the approximate location of the police station today at the corner of 9th and Carnall.

In 1920, another league was formed in the area and included another new team from Fort Smith but with the same moniker, the Fort Smith Twins. This league was known as the American Association. The Fort Smith Twins finished with an 80-58 record, good for third place. In 1921, the Twins moved into the newly erected Andrews Field across the street from Stadium Park, which had been named after the man who lobbied for it.  They won the second half title, but lost the league championship series 4 games to 3 to Chickasaw. In 1922 and 1923, they finished just above last place. Then in 1924, they rebounded with a 97-63 record good for second place.

In 1925, they finished with the best record in the league but did not win either half's title and failed to win the league championship. In 1926, they finished 1 game back of the league champion to again finish 2nd. In 1927, Fort Smith finally broke through and won the league title with an 81-51 record. In 1928, in what was a mirror image of the 1925 season, they won the most games in the league but did not claim either half's title again and failed to win the league title. In 1929, Fort Smith won the second half title but there was no league championship series played. From 1930-1932 the Fort Smith Twins had losing seasons all three years and the team packed up and moved to Muskogee.

A photo from the raising of the 1929 pennant flag

In 1938, a new team was formed in Fort Smith that began a Major League affiliation. They were called the Fort Smith Giants and were affiliated with, of course, the New York Giants. In their first season, they made the league's post season but lost to Ponca City. In 1939, they won the league title with an 83-50 record. In 1940, they made the league championship series but lost to St. Joseph. In 1941, they failed to make the playoffs. In 1942, they won the second half title and the league title over Topeka 4 games to 3. From 1943-1945 the league play was suspended due to World War II.  During it's down time in 1943, a tornado destroyed most of the grandstand and tore the roof off in most places.  Andrews Field's damage was surveyed and the city decided to repair it.  This became known as Andrews Field II.

In 1946, the Fort Smith Giants made the league title but lost to Hutchinson 4 games to 2. In 1947 they finished 2nd from last, and in 1948 and 1949 they finished 2nd from the top. Also in 1949, the Leavenworth Braves had the worst winning percentage in the history of the league with a record of 25-112. In 1950, the team in Fort Smith moved to Enid, Oklahoma.

 Aerial View of Andrews Field hosting a rodeo in the 1940s

Fort Smith didn't wait long to start up a new team. In 1951 the Fort Smith Indians took the field and finished dead last as an affiliate for the Cleveland Indians. They finished last in 1952 also. In 1953, they changed their team name to the Fort Smith-Van Buren Twins and dropped their Cleveland Indians affiliation. The new name meant nothing in the standings, as for the third year in a row, they finished dead last. Apparently someone was tired of losing money on a last place team and Fort Smith folded after the 1953 season.

The Fort Smith Twins and Giants played all of their home games at Andrews Field just off Wheeler Avenue. Andrews Field was demolished around May 2010 so the National Cemetery can expand it's grounds. Between the two teams, they picked up 6 league championships and 10 total first or second half league pennants. At some point there was another minor league team in Fort Smith known as the Fort Smith Red Sox, although I was unable to locate any information about them on the internet.

 Carl Hubbell at his appearance at Andrews Field in 1940

Andrews Field has also hosted exhibition games between Major League Clubs during the "barnstorming" days. One such game was the New York Giants against the Cleveland Indians. In 1956, Andrews Field hosted a very special Negro League game. It included many players who had broken through to the Majors by then, some of whom were well on their way to all-time MLB greatness status. This game brought the likes of Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Frank Robinson, Joe Black, Monte Irvin, and Al Smith to Fort Smith. During Fort Smith's time as a New York Giants affiliate, they had many guests of the ball club including Baseball Hall Of Fame Pitcher Carl Hubbell, who threw out the first pitch at one of their home games in 1940.

In 1991, a young kid put on a glove for the first time and went out in a ball field.  He took right field, and spent more time playing in the dirt than paying attention.  He played for the Evans Boys Club Tigers.  He was probably not a lot of good then, but he had a lot of fun.  That kid played at the baseball complex directly adjacent from Andrews Field.  Literally just beyond the right field fence was the left field of Andrews Field.  It was not the best ball field complex, located next to a dog food factory.  The smell really permeated the area, and most of the surrounding neighborhood.  It was still a lot of fun to play there.  That kid had no idea he played so close to such a great baseball history of legends of the game.  That kid was me.  I played there for a few years until Goldtrap Boys Club was built with a baseball complex that got us brand new fields with excellent surfaces and much better bleachers for the parents.  Still, all of the new complexes with all their amenities could not compare to that old ball park with its rich history.

Fort Smith's baseball history is rich and strong.  I feel that it should be more celebrated in the city.  To date, there is minimal information on display at the Fort Smith Museum of History.  There is really no where for the public to learn about or experience what baseball meant to the city for over 50 years.  I called the FSMOH and asked them if they acquired anything having to do with Andrews Field after it was being demolished and they said no.  I am just flabbergasted at the fact that the city can just so easily let go of a past filled with our biggest link to a major city in our history.  The Fort Smith Giants and Twins were linked to major sports franchises for many years, and it should not be forgotten.