The "A Hero To Many Who Died Long Before His Time!" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Reading about a young man who recently had a 12-foot bronze statue of himself placed just south of Philadelphia's City Hall.  It is the first of its kind in the city's history.  Throughout the city stands statue after statue that tells the story of one of our most famous cities in the history of our country.  As of 2017, one more statue now stands along the city streets in Philadelphia.  The statue was commissioned  a memorial to Octavius Valentine Catto, a civil rights activist, educator, abolitionist and baseball pioneer.  He was born a free man in February 1839 in Charleston, South Carolina and was raised in Phiiladelphia.  He graduated from the Institute for Colored Youth, which later became the country's first historically Black college, Cheyney University.  Though he traveled to Washington, D.C. for postgraduate studies, Catto returned to the institute a year later and was hired as a teacher.

Octavius Valentine Catto

Before Catto moved with his family to Pennsylvania, he lived in Baltimore where his father, William, was an ordained Presbyterian minister and had planned to leave for Liberia as a missionary.  But, it was discovered that William had written a letter that the Charleston Prebytery believed explained his intent to "excite discontent and insurrection among the slaves" and the family fled north to avoid William from being arrested.  William earned his freedom by becoming a minister and Octavius learned the foundation of his abolition activism from his father.  Catto served as a Major in the Pennsylvania National Guard during the Civil War and then joined Frederick Douglass and other Black leaders in the fight for emancipation and the abolition of slavery.

The most recent statue in Philadelphia
of Octavius Valentine Catto

But, one thing a bit different was that Catto helped Jacob C. White Jr. found the Pythian Baseball Club of Philadelphia in 1865.  The Pythians were primarily composed of middle-class professionals from the Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and New York areas.  Catto was the captain and star fielder for the Pythians who were an extremely talented and capable baseball team among Black ball clubs.  They attempted to gain equal consideration from the white clubs.  Catto believed that Black credibility and acceptance could be promoted by competing against white teams on a baseball diamond.  Baseball was growing in popularity and helped drive his civil rights efforts.  In 1869, the Pythians issued a challenge to every white team in Philadelphia which was finally accepted by the Olympics team from Philadelphia which was one of the oldest white baseball clubs in Philadelphia.  Well, it didn't go well for the Pythians and they lost 44-23, but did show that they were worthy competitors.  In October of 1867 the club applied for membership in the Pennsylvania State Association of Base Ball Players with a white team as their sponsor.  The team was told to rescind their application or risk being blackballed so the team decided to try to gain admission to the National Association at their annul meeting held in Philadelphia that December.   Catto and his team's efforts proved futile.

A street sign telling the story of Octavius Valentine Catto

James Brunson, a professor at Northern Illinois and the United States preeminent expert of 19th century Black baseball told Catto that he needed to use his political and social connections with white businessmen in order to get his club, as well as other Black ball clubs, to join white organizations.  Catto was a tireless champion of the 15th Amendment and found it was as much politics as it was baseball. He helped African American men get the right to vote, but Philadelphia was filled with violence and unrest as some tried to prevent them from being able to cast ballots on Election Day, Ocober, 1871.  Catto at the time was a member of the state National Guard and he believed he would need to be of service amid the unrest.  White intimidation of Black voters included riots and murders, and Catto saw it as his duty to keep peace and help Black Americans safely cast their votes.  After purchasing a firearm, he headed home to retrieve his uniform for a game.  As he neared his home, Catto was shot and killed in the street at close range.  

The murder of Octavius Valentine Catto

The bullet went through his heart.  The funeral was the size of which had never been seen for a Negro.  All city offices and most schools were closed.  Members of the city council, the state legislature, city employees and many others marched in sympathy at the passing of their fallen leader.  He was eulogized many times over.  It was spoken by Mr. Du Bois, local politician, "And so, closed the career of a man of splendid equipment, rare force of character, whose life was so interwoven with all that was good about us, as to make it stand out in bold relief, as a pattern for those who have followed after!"  After Catto's death, the Pythians Baseball Team disbanded.  But the team name continued to be associated with agitating for change and inclusion.  An iteration of the Pythians went on to become a charter member of the short-lived National Colored Base Ball League.  PS - Much of what you have just read was written by Shakeia Taylor who is a freelance baseball writer who has a special interest in the Negro League and women in baseball.  She was a 2020 SABR award nominee and has had her work appear in Fangraphs, SB Nation and Baseball Prospectus.  

The tombstone of Octavius Valentine Catto.

I believe it was a long time overdue to place the statue of Octvius Valentine Catto near Philadelphia's City Hall.  He was a hero to many, both politically and athletically.  May he "Rest In Peace" and thank goodness his sculpture now stands in Philadelphia for al to see.  Should have been placed there years ago!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.