The 1947 Little League World Series took place from August 21 through August 23, when the first Little League Baseball championship tournament was played at Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The Maynard Midgets of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, defeated the Lock Haven All Stars of Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, 16–7 to win the championship.[1] The event was called the National Little League Tournament,[2] as the "World Series" naming was not adopted until 1949.
 Original Little League Field in 2016 | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | August 21–August 23 |
| Teams | 12 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Maynard League |
| Runner-up | Lock Haven |
In 1947, the board of directors for the original Little League decided to organize a tournament for the 17 known Little League programs.[3] The fields on which the games were played are between the street and a levee built to protect the town from the West Branch Susquehanna River.[4] That levee provided most of the seating for the inaugural series' attendees.[5] Although the Little League World Series has now moved to a stadium in South Williamsport, it's still possible to play baseball on the original field.[6]
The inaugural series was important in history in that it was integrated at a time when professional baseball was still integrating.[7] More than 2,500 spectators enjoyed the final game, which helped to increase the League's overall publicity.[3]
Teams edit
|
Williamsport Teams
|
|
Results edit
| First Round August 21–22 | Second Round August 22 | Semifinals August 23 | Final August 23 | ||||||||||||||||
 Hammonton
| 6 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Milton
| 4 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hammonton
| 1 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Lock Haven
| 5 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Lock Haven
| 8 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Perry County
| 6 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Lock Haven
| 7 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Maynard League
| 16 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Original League
| ||||||||||||||||||
| 16 | Sunday School League
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Original League
| 4 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Newberry
| 7 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Newberry
| ||||||||||||||||||
| 9 | Montoursville
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Newberry
| 1 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Maynard League
| 2 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 5 | Brandon League
| ||||||||||||||||||
| 12 | Montgomery
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Brandon League
| 4 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Maynard League
| 10 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Maynard League
| ||||||||||||||||||
| 13 | Jersey Shore
| ||||||||||||||||||
Rain on August 21 caused two first round games to be played on August 22.
Source:[8][9][2][10][1]
Notable players edit
- Jack Losch of the Maynard League championship team went on to play college football with the Miami Hurricanes, and was a first-round selection in the 1956 NFL draft. That year, with the Green Bay Packers, he became the first LLWS participant to play a professional sport.[11] In 2004, the Team Sportsmanship Award at the LLWS was named in his honor.[11]
References edit
- ^ a b "Little Leaguers Do Well Finishing In Runner-Up Spot". The Express. Lock Haven, Pennsylvania. August 25, 1947. p. 9. Retrieved August 20, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Lock Haven In Little League Tourney Semi-Finals". The Express. Lock Haven, Pennsylvania. August 23, 1947. p. 7. Retrieved August 20, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Little League World Series History". Archived from the original on August 17, 2010. Retrieved August 28, 2010.
- ^ 41°14′25″N 77°02′41″W / 41.240394°N 77.044643°W
- ^ Caldwell, Dave (July 20, 2007). "Williamsport, Pa.: Home of True Small Ball". The New York Times. Retrieved February 2, 2008.
- ^ Lewerenz, Dave (August 10, 2003). "Small Museum Preserves Historic Birthplace of Little League". Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Retrieved February 2, 2008.
- ^ Simonich, Milan (August 13, 2006). "Stroll in Free to the 60th Summer Baseball Classic". Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Retrieved February 2, 2008.
- ^ "1947 Little League World Series". Archived from the original on January 20, 2013. Retrieved August 24, 2017.
- ^ "Stars Set For Tournament". The Express. Lock Haven, Pennsylvania. August 22, 1947. p. 7. Retrieved August 20, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tourney Slate". The Express. Lock Haven, Pennsylvania. August 23, 1947. p. 7. Retrieved August 20, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Little League World Series Team Sportsmanship Award to be Named for Jack Losch". littleleague.org. Archived from the original on January 18, 2012. Retrieved June 22, 2010.
External links edit
- 1947 Tournament Bracket via Wayback Machine
- 1947 Line Scores via Wayback Machine