From his days as an erratic shortstop and founding member of the Negro League Pittsburgh Crawfords, to his behind-the-scenes socializing with world-famous athletes, to his journalistic coverage of sports for the Pittsburgh Courier, Charles “Teenie” Harris amassed a rich archive of over 700 images tracing the history of baseball in Pittsburgh’s black communities.
Teenie Harris Photographs: Baseball in Pittsburgh delves into Carnegie Museum of Art’s Charles “Teenie” Harris Archive and highlights 25 of the most memorable photographs of the game and its players. Also on view is newly digitized, never-before-seen 16mm film footage shot by Harris, capturing Negro League games at Greenlee Field and Forbes Field.
Guest curated by Sean Gibson, executive director of the Josh Gibson Foundation, and aided by archivist Kerin Shellenbarger, the exhibition showcases the breadth of the archive with images of baseball icons Josh Gibson, Jackie Robinson, Roberto Clemente, and Willie Stargell, as well as significant local moments including the opening of the Uptown Little League with the city’s first racially integrated teams. Take a look back at the great history of baseball in Pittsburgh, while rooting for another trip to the playoffs—it’ll be a season to remember.