Ladies' Day (baseball)
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Ladies' Day, also referred to as Ladies' Night, was a baseball promotional event in Major League Baseball aimed at women baseball fans during the 20th century.[1]
History
Ladies Day had existed in baseball since the 19th century, allowing women to come into the park if they were chaperoned by a man. The first Ladies Day in modern baseball was initiated by Helene Hathaway Britton, the owner of the St. Louis Cardinals from 1911 through 1916 and the first woman to own a baseball team.[2] The Cardinals Ladies' Day promotion allowed women free entry to the park if accompanied by a man.[3]
The promotion gained popularity after World War I.[4][5]
Ladies Day promotions began to decline after the case of Abosh v. New York Yankees, Inc. in 1972, where the New York State Human Rights Appeal Board ruled that Ladies' Day was discriminatory "in a modern technological society where women and men are to be on equal footing as a matter of public policy."[6][7]
See also
References
- ^ Getzenberg, Alaina (August 14, 2017). "'Ladies Day' connected women to baseball". MLB.com.
- ^ Russell, Stefene (March 14, 2019). "Did you know the concept of Ladies' Day baseball games originated in St. Louis?". St. Louis Magazine.
- ^ "Robison Field Free To Women Monday". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. April 11, 1912. p. 17. Retrieved February 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Hollister, Jessica. "#Shortstops: Ladies Day promotions gave women the chance to cheer". National Baseball Hall of Fame.
- ^ Grossman, Ron (September 10, 2023). "Ladies Day was once a regular promotion at Chicago's ballparks". Chicago Tribune.
- ^ Abosh v. New York Yankees, Inc. (1972) No. CPS-25284, Appeal No. 1194.
- ^ de la Cretaz, Britni (June 27, 2017). "Is There Still a Place for Ladies Night in Baseball?". Vice.