In 1913, Island Park Stadium on Van Slyck Island in the Mohawk River was home to Schenectady's independent professional Negro League baseball team, the Mohawk Colored Giants. Fans reached games by crossing the Binne Kill river inlet on a pontoon bridge near Schenectady's Old Waterfront. In the fall of 1913, before a crowd of more than 7,000, star pitcher Frank Wickware outdueled Walter Johnson and his barnstorming All-American Team by a score of 1-0. Negro League stars including Oscar Charleston, George "Chappie" Johnson, Grant "Home Run" Johnson, William Monroe "Buck" Ewing, Harry Buckner, and Frank Wickware were part of Schenectady's Negro League baseball history.
