Stumped – Negro Leagues Chicago Union Giants BBC

StumpedChicago-Union-Giants-1906.jpg

I have researched this photographic postcard of the Chicago Union Giants BBC up one side and down the other and I still cannot nail anything down.  First off, it is clear this photo of the Chicago Union Giants BBC, a team that played for many years in the Negro Leagues.  The logo on their uniform is obvious, and is matched in another team photo, where the logo appears on white uniforms.  But what year?  They played under Frank Leland, as distinctive face, as the Chi Union Giants from 1901 to 1903, after which they became the Chicago Leland Giants.The team wearing the white uniforms is listed online as a 1905 image, but that’s impossible – they did not exist after 1903.  And, do the dark uniforms come after the white ones, or before?  Others have done research on this photo, but so far none of it helps.  It is said that Will McMurray is in the photo, but the encyclopedia shows him not playing until 1909.  Likewise, Topeka Jack Johnson whose name did not show on a roster until 1909.  Then there is a pair who played with the CU Giants for extended periods, but not in the 20th C.  Will Horn pitched for the Chicago Unions, as they were called, from 1896 to 1900, but not after that.  George Hopkins had a longer career with Chicago than Horn, on the roster from 1890 to 1899.  That places none of these guys on a team that would appear between 1901 and 1903.Another problem is that there are few corroborating photos of these individuals or any players listed on the ‘00s rosters for this team.  So, going further with this topic is not going to work right now.  More information must surface before a determination about the picture can be made.  Sometimes the confusing stacks of information leave one nowhere, stumped. Can you provide more information on this picture?  Please add a comment below.

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