The Providence Colored Giants Were Part of a Sports Empire That Lottery King, “daddy” Black, Created in Providence
The “Giants” nickname has been synonymous with sports teams for over 100 years. It was the most common nickname for all-black baseball teams before baseball was integrated. In our capital city of Providence, it was no exception. The Providence Colored Giants replaced the Providence Black Stockings by 1906 and experienced a nearly uninterrupted run into the 1930s. Over this span, several exciting athletes played under the Giants name and acted as pioneers in the struggle to desegregate the game.
The popularity of professional black baseball teams and leagues, including Andrew “Rube” Foster’s National Negro League during the 1920s, was part of the national “Golden Age” of baseball and the Jazz Age. The Great Depression nearly wiped out black professional baseball as cash became scarce.
A Ticket from a Providence Giants game. The Providence Colored Giants were part of a sports empire that Lottery King, “Daddy” Black, created in Providence.
Providence Giants played at Kinsley Park, located on the corner of Kinsley and Acorn. The park was on property owned by the Southern New England Railway to be developed by tycoon Charles Melville Hays, who died in the Titanic disaster in 1912.