First African-American MLB player

Pre-pro Baseball
	Providence, RI Firsts, Games, Clubs, Fields, Predecessor Games Greater New York City Firsts, Games, Clubs, Fields, Predecessor Games RI Firsts, Games, Clubs, Fields, Predecessor Games United States Firsts, Games, Clubs, Fields, Predecessor Games
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Date	Saturday, June 21, 1879
Location	Providence, RI, United States
Modern Address
Description	The first African-American MLB player was not Jackie Robinson, or even Bud Fowler. The first was William E. White (1860-1937), who played one game for the Providence Grays in 1879. White was the first baseman of the Brown University baseball team, and was pressed into service when the Grays' regular first baseman was injured. The GA-born White was mixed-race. It is not clear that any of his classmates or Providence teammates knew he wasn't Caucasian.
Sources	Wikipedia, based on discoveries of Bruce Allardice. See also White's bio in SABR, also by BA.
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Has Source On Hand	No
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Submitted by	Bruce Allardice
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