Montgomery Parks is inviting residents to help preserve and share the history of Black baseball and softball in Montgomery County through a new online survey open through June 30.
The survey is part of an ongoing effort to document the role Black baseball and softball played in local communities and asks residents how familiar they are with this history and how they would like to see it recognized and interpreted throughout the parks system.
“Montgomery Parks recognizes the importance of Black baseball and softball in the history of our community,” said Elena Guarinello, a cultural resources planner for Montgomery Parks. “We are working with descendants to preserve these stories for future generations, and the survey will help us understand how park patrons want to learn about them.”
According to Montgomery Parks, many Black residents in Montgomery County lived in kinship communities established after the Civil War by formerly enslaved people. Those communities created their own baseball fields and organized teams for both men and women.
Because Major League Baseball excluded Black players until 1947, many talented athletes instead competed on local Black teams that often attracted large crowds. Games frequently served as major social gatherings and were paired with picnics, dances, and other community events that helped strengthen local ties.
The initiative is part of Montgomery Parks’ “Untold Stories” program, which focuses on preserving and highlighting diverse and often overlooked histories connected to parkland across the county.
