About the Mohawk Giants

The Schenectady Mohawk Giants' emergence as a professional Black baseball franchise in 1913 provides insight into the history of the city's Black community and its relationship with the population at large. Noted baseball historian Rob Peterson posited that the Lincoln Giants of New York, the Lincoln Stars, and the Mohawk Giants of Schenectady led the field. The Mohawk Giants played for two complete seasons before disbanding three games into the 1915 season.

When the Mohawk Giants came to town, local newspapers proclaimed, "The Giants are the finest uniformed colored club in the East." When Bill Wernecke, GE factory worker and former semi-pro player, decided to bring Black professional baseball to Schenectady, enthusiasm followed as long as the team lived up to the lofty expectations of fans in the Electric City. Under Wernecke, the Schenectady Mohawk Giants squared off against the best regional white semi-pro teams, other colored professional teams, and white minor league teams. With the likes of Frank Wickware and Big Bill Smith, the Mohawk Giants brought a crowd as they barnstormed along the East Coast. Although celebrated on the field, many papers labeled the team "the strongest semi-pro organization in the northern part of the state (NY)."

A ticket to Island Park to see the Mohawk Giants stood as one of the hottest tickets in town in 1913. By late September, their popularity had soared to the extent that white fans in Poughkeepsie took an excursion for $1.50 to Albany to catch the Sunday game in Schenectady against the Mohawk Giants. Fans in Schenectady thronged to Island Park, especially on weekend dates, drawing close to 5,000 fans per game.

The Mohawk Giants would return in 1927 under the leadership of one of the Negro leagues' prominent players, Buck Ewing. Professional and semi-professional baseball would remain in the city through the middle of World War II.