Today in Baseball History – November 26

National League President Ford Frick, on this date in 1948, sent money to cover the funereal expenses for one of the baseball’s most under-appreciated players, Lewis Robert “Hack” Wilson.

Wilson died a day earlier, at age 48, apparently with no money despite making a good living playing professional baseball. He was paid $33,000 by the Chicago Cubs in 1931.

At one time, Wilson held a National League record of 56 homers in a season and collected 191 RBI in 1930, a record that has yet to be matched.

In addition to Frick’s monetary support – many accounts, including this New York Times article – say that patrons of a bar Wilson frequented passed around a hat to collect money for the funeral.

Below is a brief Associated Press article announcing Wilson’s funeral.

BALTIMORE – (AP) – A simple funeral service in a neighborhood undertaker’s parlor will be held today for one of baseball’s mightiest sluggers, Hack Wilson.
The funeral is being paid for by the National League. Wilson, who earned as much as $30,000 a season with the Chicago Cubs, died broke Tuesday.

For two days no one claimed the body and a pauper’s burial was awaiting Wilson when fans started pouring in offers to contribute toward a decent burial. Then Ford Frick, president of the National League, sent the money to cover expenses.

Thursday night, hack’s second wife who has been living with her parents in Martinsburg, W.Va., requested that burial be there where Wilson started his professional baseball career in the Class D Blue Ridge League.