Black History in the First State: Judy Johnson

Judy Johnson was born in Snow Hill, Maryland in 1899. His family relocated to Wilmington, Delaware in 1909. He is recognized as one of the best third basemen of the Negro Leagues, a competitor to the then-segregated Major League Baseball that was founded in 1920 and operated through the 1940s, featuring teams of all Black players. Johnson signed with the Hilldale Daises of Darby, Pennsylvania in 1919, and helped his team reach the Colored World Series, playing against the Kansas City Monarchs in 1924 and winning it against them the following year.⁠

Johnson joined the Pittsburg Crawfords in 1932, who were known as the best Black team in the country and included other Hall of Fame recognized players such as Josh Gibson, Satchel Paige, and Cool Papa Bell. Throughout his career, Johnson played for the Hilldale Daises, the Homestead Grays, the Pittsburg Crawfords and the New York Cubans. He retired in 1937 while with the Homestead Grays. Johnson was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1975. His home in Marshallton, Delaware is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.⁠