When Baseball Was King--The Gem of Burke

Be still, be very still and listen to the cool summer breeze as it darts around the thick cluster of trees that sit on the green hillsides. Be still, for the breezes are trying to direct your attention to the swaying branches that are beckoning you to listen, listen, and be still, be very still.

There it is, faint and far away, but it is getting clearer and louder in the still silence of the forest. Yes, you can begin to make it out a little better now. It sounds like the chatter of some men. Yes, that is it. It is chatter, and as the sound gets louder and clearer, the dense forest of trees part aside, and there it is in its full beauty, The Gem of Burke, a perfectly cut, flawless, diamond. The men chattering are on the diamond, and there are multitudes of men, women, and children sitting in wooden bleachers yelling, clapping, shouting, and grumbling as a lone man stands in the batter's box. And then, the unmistakable sound of wood hitting ball. The fans in the stands are on their feet and in unison, as if it is a well-rehearsed choir, sing out a mighty cheer as the ball arks, and then sails higher and higher, orbiting into space, and over the outreaching hands of the men in the field. It plummets down on the hillside and the batter races around the diamond at full speed until he reaches safely home.

The game is over, and the fans begin to leave.it has been a splendid summer, and baseball was reigning supreme in Burke. The fans and players thought that it would never end.

Go up to Burke past the power station, and follow the path down to the old park. There is not much left now, but if you are still, very still, and will let them, the trees are just waiting to tell you a story of long ago when baseball was king, and when the Gem of Burke was the queen.

When Baseball Was King-The Idaho-Washington League

The day was probably blustery and cold as the meeting on January 27th, 1928 at the Dessert hotel in Spokane. The subject of the meeting was none other than the formation of the Idaho-Washington Baseball League. The franchises that would be the pioneer members of the new league were three from Spokane, one from the city of Coeur D'Alene, and two from the Coeur D Alene mining district, including one from Burke and one from Wallace.

The decision was based on the wide appeal of the nations' past time, and the passion for baseball was at a fevered pitch in the mining camps. One of the biggest factors for including Burke, well, here is a quote from Mr. Ferris, the coordinator of the meeting.

Burke has built an expensive ballpark, and the people are keen for the proposal.

Yes, baseball was a very big thing in the Valley, and the leagues were real and played at a pro-level. Several players from Burke and Wallace had cups of coffee in the Major Leagues including the legendary Gonzaga Univesity star  and Wallace High School coach,  Mel Ingram, who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates. I plan on posting more about him in a future blog.

The new league decided to follow the same format of the Pacific Coast League and split the season in half with the winner of the fist half playing the winner of the second half for the league championship. And so, on the cold January night in 1928, a great new league was born, and Wallace and Burke became baseball giants in those early mining days.

It's Baseball Time

Yes, fans, it is once again time for the great American pastime. I know, I know, most people consider football to be the leader in Amercian fan support, but well, I am, if nothing, a romanticist in the classical sense, and I am somewhat of a back to the future type guy, so to me, there is no comparison. Baseball is still king of the hill.

Every year when I was growing up Wallace, the beginning of the baseball season was a time of celebration. My late dad loved baseball, and he had grown up a St Louis Cardinals fan. As a young man, he used the old peephole at a stadium in his hometown of Joplin, MO, and watched the Cardinals play an exhibition game against the Joplin Miners, a minor league club in the Western Association. Dad instilled the love of the game in my brother and in me at a very, very, young age. The Game of the Week was a time of sharing" dad time", and we never missed it.

Each year when spring came, and baseball season started, my dad would remark that another winter was gone, and he had made it another year. Spring and baseball brought hope, new beginnings, and a pat on the back that indeed another harsh Wallace winter was over. As i get older, I, too, now look for the start of the baseball season and I, too, now, say. "Wow, I made it another year. I am still alive, and there are new beginnings and new hope.

So, Play Ball!