Williamsport is known as “The Birthplace of Little League Baseball.” It began in 1939 in Williamsport with the vision of founder Carl E. Stotz. The Historic Original League devotes itself to the preservation of Carl E. Stotz’s name and memory. This field, though not being where the first game was played, is where Little League started. In the fall of 1938 Carl gathered a group of neighborhood boys and brought them to this site. He used newspapers to represent bases and measured the distance a child from 10 to 12 years old could run. The distance was 60 feet, and this distance has never changed.
Carl Stotz’ dream of establishing a baseball league for boys to teach fair play and teamwork had come true. The first league in Williamsport had just three teams, each sponsored by a different business. The first teams, Jumbo Pretzel, Lycoming Dairy, and Lundy Lumber were managed by Carl Stotz and two of his friends, George and Bert Bebble. The men, joined by their wives and another couple, formed the first-ever Little League Board of Directors.
The first Little League game took place on June 6, 1939. Lundy Lumber defeated Lycoming Dairy, 23-8. Lycoming Dairy came back to claim the league championship. They, the first-half-season champions, defeated Lundy Lumber, the second-half champs, in a best-of-three season-ending series. The following year a second league was formed in Williamsport. The Original Field was home of the first 12 Little League Baseball World Series. From there Little League Baseball grew to become an international organization of nearly 200,000 teams in every U.S. state and over 80 countries around the world.
Every year during the Little League World Series, now held in South Williamsport in August, an Open House is held at the Historic Original Little League. The hours are from 9 AM to 3 PM. The field house provides a rare and touching glimpse into the past. Guests are encouraged to ask questions, tell their own stories and even explore the field where history was made. Why not have a picture taken from the original pitcher’s mound as a keepsake? Original League
encourages visitors to come year round to see “where it all began.”
The “Original” field of dreams is located at 1743 West Fourth Street in Williamsport, PA.
Contact: Jim McKinney, League President
Phone: (570)494-9911
Email: daddyj63@verizon.net
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