Kewanee Boilermakers

Kewanee Boilermakers 1908–1949 (1908–1913, 1948–1949) Kewanee, Illinois
Minor league affiliations
Class	Class D (1908–1913) Class C (1948–1949)
League	Central Association (1908–1913, 1948–1949)
Major league affiliations
Team	Philadelphia Athletics (1948–1949)
Minor league titles
League titles (1)	1949
Wild card berths (1)	1949
Team data
Name	Kewanee Boilermakers (1908–1913) Kewanee A's (1948–1949)
Ballpark	Terminal Park (1908–1913) Northeast Park (1948–1949)

The Kewanee Boilermakers was the initial moniker of the minor league baseball teams based in Kewanee, Illinois between 1908 and 1949. Kewanee teams played as exclusively as members of the Central Association from 1908 to 1913 and again in 1948 and 1949.

Kewanee was a minor league affiliate of the Philadelphia Athletics in 1948 and 1949.

The Boilermakers moniker was adopted and still in use by Kewanee High School.

History[]

Minor league baseball began in Kewanee, Illinois in 1908. The Kewanee Boilermakers became charter members of the Class D level Central Association, fielding a minor league baseball team for the first time in Kewanee, Illinois. Kewanee was joined by the Burlington Pathfinders, Keokuk Indians, Jacksonville Lunatics, Oskaloosa Quakers, Ottumwa Packers, Quincy Gems and the Waterloo Lulus as charter members in the eight–team league.^[1][2]

The Kewanee use of the "Boilermakers" moniker corresponds to local industry. The local Kewanee Boiler Company, was a large manufacturing factory in Kewanee.^[3]

Playing in the 1908 Central Association, Kewanee ended the season with a record of 48–79, placing 7th in the Central Association standings. The 1909 Boilermakers finished with a 73–61 record, placing 4th in the final standings. The 1910 Kewanee team finished 8th and last with a 43–91 record. The 1911 Boilermakers finished in 5th place with a record of 59–67. The Central Association did not have playoffs during those seasons.^{[4][1][5][6][7][8][9]}

On May 20, 1911, Kewanee's John Beltz pitched a no–hitter vs. the Muscatine Camels. Kewanee won the game 6–0. Kewanee had a second no–hitter on August 29, 1912 when Tom Drohan threw a no–hitter against the Hannibal Cannibals in a 4–0 Kewanee victory.^[10]

The 1912 Kewanee Boilermakers finished 2nd in the eight–team Central Association with a 74–51 record, 3.5 games behind the 1st place Streator Speedboys. Kewanee had 1912 season attendance of 19,000.^[11][9][8]

In 1913, Kewanee finished 7th in the Central Association standings, 6.5 games behind the 1st place Ottumwa Packers with a 59–65 record. The Kewanee Boilermakers folded following the 1913 season, along with the Monmouth Browns. The two new teams to replace them in the 1914 Central Association were the Clinton Pilots and Marshalltown Ansons. The Central Association eventually folded after the 1917 season, before being reformed in 1947.^{[1][12][13][14][15]}

Kewanee High School first started using the Boilermakers moniker in 1927 and continue as the Kewanee Boilermakers today.^[3][16]

After folding in 1913, Kewanee was without minor league baseball for 35 years. On June 18, 1948, the Moline A's of the Central Association moved from Moline, Illinois to Kewanee and became the Kewanee A's. The team was an affiliate of the Philadelphia Athletics. Moline/Kewanee finished 53–74 (36–49 in Kewanee) for 6th place in the 1948 Central Association standings. Moline had been a founding member when the Central Association reformed as a six–team league in 1947, along with the Burlington Indians, Clinton Cubs, Hannibal Pilots, Keokuk Pirates and Rockford Rox.^[17][1]

In their final season, Kewanee captured the 1949 Central Association championship. The 1949 Kewanee A's finished with a regular season record of 68–60, placing 3rd in the Central Association standings, 12.5 games behind the 1st place Burlington Indians, to qualify for the playoffs. Kewanee had season attendance of 29,482, playing home games at Northeast Park. In the 1949 playoffs, Kewanee defeated the Keokuk Pirates 3 games to 0 to advance. In the Central Association Finals, Kewanee defeated the Cedar Rapids Rockets 4 games to 2 and captured the 1949 Central Association Championship. It was the last game played in the league.^{[1][17][18][19][20][21][22]}

The Central League folded permanently after the 1949 season. Of the six Central League teams, only Cedar Rapids fielded a team in 1950. Kewanee has not fielded another minor league team.^[1][23]

Ballparks[]

From 1908 to 1913, the Kewanee Boilermakers played minor league home games at Terminal Park. Terminal Park was also home to the Kewanee Regulars football club. Terminal Park was located on Lake Street, Kewanee, Illinois.^{[24][25][26][27]}

In 1948 and 1949, the Kewanee A's played home games at Northeast Park. The ballpark had a capacity of 2,500 in 1948 and 4,000 in 1949. Today, Northeast Park is still in use as a public park. The location is 1200 North Main Street, Kewanee, Illinois.^[28][29][30]

Timeline[]

Year(s)	# Yrs.	Team	Level	League	Affiliate
1908–1913	6	Kewanee Boilermakers	Class D	Central Association	None
1948–1949	2	Kewanee A's	Class C		Philadelphia Athletics

Year-by-year record[]

(from BR Bullpen)

1908 || 48–79 || 7th ||Harry Busse
Andy Steveson / William Connors|| None held

Year	Record	Finish	Manager	Playoffs
1909	73–61	4th	William Connors	None held
1910	49–91	8th	William Connors / Ted Price	None held
1911	59–67	5th	Jay Andrews	None held
1912	74-51	2nd	George Pennington / Art Queisser	None held
1948	36–49	6th	Joe Glenn	Moline moved to Kewanee June 18
1949	68–60	3rd	Harold Hoffman	League Champs

Notable alumni[]

See also[]

Kewanee A's players
Kewanee Boilermakers players

References[]

External links[]

• Baseball Reference