Description: This photograph shows the presentation of flowers by Findlay Market merchants to Cincinnati Reds manager Bill McKechnie during the opening game on April 15, 1941, at Crosley Field. It appears the players from both teams surround the presentation, as well as a marching band. McKechnie (1886 -1965) started his career as a player and was the first manager to win the World Series with two different teams, the Cincinnati Reds and the Pittsburgh Pirates. He also remains one of two managers to win pennants with three different teams. Because of his personal choices and religious nature, he became known as the "Deacon." A note on the photograph's reverse reads "Opening Game- Cin. Ball Park. Apr. 15-1941. Presentation of bouquet of flowers to Mgr. Bill McKechenie by Findlay Market merchants. This is a yearly custom." This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B13F01_006_001
Subjects: Baseball managers; Crosley Field (Cincinnati, Ohio)--History--Pictorial works; Cincinnati Reds (Baseball team); St. Louis Cardinals (Baseball team); Baseball
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)