William Clarence Matthews
William Clarence Matthews, was hired to play second base for the Burlington Baseball Team of the Northern League in 1905. This is the first time there was a Black baseball player playing professional baseball. And there wouldn’t be another one until Jackie Robinson. He only played one season, however, before going to law school and eventually rising to become an Assistant Attorney General for the United States.
This Place in History is produced in partnership by Local 22 & Local 44 (www.mychamplainvalley.com) and the Vermont Historical Society.
