“These Legs Were Not Made to Kick a Football”

In preparation for Super Bowl XLV, earlier this week we featured a post about the Brown Bombers, a professional all-black football team based in Harlem in the 1930s. Fritz Pollard, the team’s founder, used creative methods to promote the team, including publishing The Brown Bomber Journal. Several issues of the journal are in our rare periodicals collection.

The Brown Bomber Journal was a news magazine with a bit of something for everyone. Pollard recognized that the black elite frequently came from the fields of sports and entertainment, and thus had much in common. Both top athletes and entertainers received wide acclaim for their accomplishments, were highly paid, and often had to develop signature styles to stand out and achieve success in the white-dominated establishment. Therefore, it made sense to cover topics of interest to the elite (and to the aspiring elite) in one publication.

Unsurprisingly, the Brown Bombers are highlighted throughout the magazine. The sports section introduces the players, noting their stats, honors, and playing history. The accompanying photographs, pictured above to the left, capture the Brown Bombers in poses that highlight their athleticism.

The magazine’s society pages include photographs and announcements about travel plans and social events. A photograph of a Bombers fan is also featured prominently. The fashion section, above to the right, illustrates popular designs of the Fall 1936 season, whose rich colors were influenced by the impending coronation of Edward VIII of England.

Advertisements fill the journal’s back pages, providing a glimpse into the types of services and products that were used by and marketed to African Americans. Even among the ads, there is an announcement to promote the Brown Bombers through a popularity contest for young ladies, pictured above. Women who sold the most tickets were eligible for prizes, including a raccoon fur coat, diamond ring, and clothing.

As a source of popular culture, The Brown Bomber Journal is fun to look at. At the same time, the magazine also provides a wealth of historical information about the educational levels, professions, family connections, and social activities of black New Yorkers in the 1930s.

References:

John Carroll, Fritz Pollard: A Pioneer in Racial Advancement (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1992)

Posted by Krystal Appiah, Brown University, former AARL Archives Intern

Treasures from the Vertical Files: Fritz Pollard’s Brown Bombers

Just in time for Super Bowl XLV, today’s treasure is a collection of football programs for the Brown Bombers, an all-black professional football team based in Harlem in the 1930s. Although many people are familiar with the Negro Baseball League, less well-known is the brief period of segregation in professional football (1933-1946), which led to the creation of all-black teams such as the Brown Bombers and Chicago Comets.

Professional football began in the 1890s in local athletic clubs. While these local teams had a small base of fans, football remained relatively obscure compared to nationally prominent pro sports, such as baseball or boxing. In an effort to popularize football, teams encouraged all talented athletes, regardless of color, to join them. Star African American players, such as Charles Follis, Paul Robeson, and Fritz Pollard, pictured below, were sought after to win games and draw spectators. Nevertheless, black players faced verbal and physical abuse from white fans and opponents. Hotels and restaurants that excluded black players caused indignities and logistical problems when teams travelled.

By the late 1920s, as football became more accepted nationally and white players vied to join teams, team owners began releasing black players. The high unemployment rates of the Great Depression put additional pressure on teams to hire white players. In addition, owners wanted to avoid the controversy of integrated teams in order to retain their new-found audiences. As a result, in 1933, white team owners in the National Football League (NFL) formed an unwritten, “gentleman’s agreement” to bar black players from the league. Although a few regional leagues continued to hire a handful of black players, the NFL dominated the sport.

In response, Fritz Pollard, a former pro football player and coach, assembled and coached the all-black Brown Bombers in 1935. Based at Dyckman Oval in Harlem, the Bombers provided a showcase where talented black players could compete professionally. Pollard hoped to counter the obviously false claims by white team owners that they could not find capable black players. Pollard also attempted to schedule exhibition games against local white teams to show that black and white football players could compete without incident. Pollard recruited former top African American players from white and black colleges, as well as some non-college players. At one point, Howard “Dixie” Matthews, pictured below, a former end for the Providence Steam Roller, anchored the Bombers.

Despite the talented roster, the Brown Bombers struggled to overcome low attendance. In order to draw audiences, Pollard instituted stunts and unusual plays. The Bombers’ truckin’ and singing as they proceeded to the scrimmage line became a trademark of the team. The Bombers also developed unorthodox formations, such as the “aeroplane shift” to mystify their opponents and entertain crowds. Although the Bombers’ showmanship was popular with Harlem fans and increased game attendance, the team still did not make enough money to generate a profit.

In 1938, a competing team gained exclusive use of Dyckman Oval, leaving the Bombers without a suitable stadium in which to play their home games. Discouraged by the loss of their home and white team owners’ continued failure to sign his players, Pollard resigned as coach of the team. The Bombers continued as a road team until the early 1940s.

Efforts by civil rights organizations eventually led to the desegregation of professional sports, including the reintegration of the NFL in 1946. Unfortunately, by that time, most of the great black players of the 1930s were too old or too injured to play in NFL. However, by creating opportunities for African Americans to play pro football and by battling segregation, Fritz Pollard and the Brown Bombers formed an underappreciated front in the Civil Rights Movement.


References:

John Carrol, Fritz Pollard: A Pioneer in Racial Advancement (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1992)

Charles K. Ross, Outside the Lines: African Americans and the Integration of the National Football League (New York: New York University Press, 1999)

Posted by Krystal Appiah, Brown University, former AARL Archives Intern