Tombstone
Formed: 1904
Re-Branded: 1964 (Southern League)
Level:
First Game:
Last Game:
Seasons:
States & Provinces: 7
(AL, FL, GA, NC, SC, TN and VA)
Leadership
Trophy Case
Background
For our purposes, the original South Atlantic League was a collection of Southern minor league baseball loops that played from 1904 to 1963 with several interruptions:
- The South Atlantic League was inactive in the summer of 1918
- League returned in 1919 as the “South Atlantic Association” playing under that name through the summer of 1930.
- The league went dark again at the height of the Great Depression, sitting out five summers from 1931 to 1935.
- Returned as the South Atlantic League from 1936 to 1942, before shutting down for three summers during WWII.
- Revived again in 1946 and played under the South Atlantic League banner until 1963.
During the league’s final season of play under the South Atlantic League name in 1963, baseball reorganized its minor league system. Officials implemented the AAA, AA, A and Rookie classifications familiar to modern fans. (Previously, leagues were ranked as Class A, B, C and D). The South Atlantic League was ranked as a “AA” league – two steps below the Major Leagues – in 1963.
Prior to the 1964 season, the South Atlantic League re-branded itself as the Southern League. In that sense, the league still exists, as the Southern League thrives to this day as a AA circuit. For information on Southern League franchises from 1964 onwards, visit our Southern League page here.
In 1980, the former Western Carolinas League changed its name to the South Atlantic League, reviving the old name which had been dormant for 16 years. The modern-day South Atlantic League is a single-A league which does not include old South Atlantic League of 1904-1963 in its official history. For the modern day South Atlantic League, click here.
South Atlantic League Franchise List
| Franchise | Years Active | South Atlantic League Champions |
|---|---|---|
| Albany Babies | 1911-1916 | None |
| Asheville Tourists | 1924-1930 | 1928 |
| Ashville Tourists | 1959-1963 | 1961 |
| Augusta Dollies | 1919 | None |
| Augusta Georgians | 1920-1921 | None |
| Augusta Orphans | 1911 | None |
| Augusta Rams | 1953-1954 | None |
| Augusta Tigers | 1936-1942 & 1946-1952 & 1955-1958 | 1939-1946-1955 |
| Augusta Tourists | 1904-1911 & 1914-1917 | 1916 |
| Augusta Tygers | 1922-1929 | 1924 |
| Augusta Wolves | 1930 | None |
| Augusta Yankees | 1962-1963 | 1963 |
| Charleston ChaSox | 1959 | None |
| Charleston Gulls | 1919 | None |
| Charleston Palmettos | 1920 | None |
| Charleston Pals | 1921-1923 | 1922 |
| Charleston Rebels | 1940-1942 & 1946-1953 | None |
| Charleston Seagulls | 1904-1909 & 1911 & 1913-1917 | 1907 |
| Charleston White Sox | 1960-1961 | None |
| Charlotte Hornets | 1919-1930 | 1923 |
| Charlotte Hornets | 1954-1963 | 1957 |
| Chattanooga Lookouts | 1909 | 1909 |
| Chattanooga Lookouts | 1963 | None |
| Columbia Comers | 1912 & 1914-1917 & 1919-1923 & 1925-1930 | 1915-1917-1919-1920-1921 |
| Columbia Commies | 1911 | None |
| Columbia Gamecocks | 1905-1910 | None |
| Columbia Gems | 1956-1957 | None |
| Columbia Reds | 1938-1942 & 1946-1955 | 1941-1953 |
| Columbia Reds | 1960-1961 | None |
| Columbia Senators | 1936-1937 | None |
| Columbia Skyscrapers | 1904 | None |
| Columbus Cardinals | 1946-1955 | None |
| Columbus Foxes | 1909-1917 | 1910-1911 |
| Columbus Foxes | 1956-1957 | None |
| Columbus Pirates | 1959 | None |
| Columbus Redbirds | 1936-1942 | 1936-1940 |
| Gastonia Comets | 1923 | None |
| Gastonia Pirates | 1959 | 1959 |
| Greenville Spinners | 1919-1930 | 1926-1927-1930 |
| Greenville Spinners | 1938-1942 & 1946-1950 | 1948 |
| Greenville Spinners | 1961-1962 | None |
| Jacksonville Braves | 1953-1960 | 1956 |
| Jacksonville Jays | 1904-1910 | 1908 |
| Jacksonville Jets | 1961 | None |
| Jacksonville Roses | 1917 | None |
| Jacksonville Tarpons | 1911-1916 | 1912 |
| Jacksonville Tars | 1936-1942 & 1946-1952 | None |
| Knoxville Appalachians | 1909 | None |
| Knoxville Smokies | 1925-1929 | 1929 |
| Knoxville Smokies | 1956-1963 | None |
| Lynchburg White Sox | 1962-1963 | None |
| Macon Brigands | 1905-1907 | 1905 |
| Macon Dodgers | 1956-1960 | 1958 |
| Macon Highlanders | 1904 | 1904 |
| Macon Peaches | 1908-1915 | None |
| Macon Peaches | 1923-1930 | None |
| Macon Peaches | 1936-1942 & 1946-1955 | 1938-1949-1950 |
| Macon Peaches | 1962-1963 | 1962 |
| Macon Tigers | 1915-1917 | None |
| Montgomery Grays | 1952-1953 | 1952 |
| Montgomery Rebels | 1916 | None |
| Montgomery Rebels | 1951 | 1951 |
| Montgomery Rebels | 1954-1956 | None |
| Nashville Volunteers | 1963 | None |
| Portsmouth-Norfolk Tides | 1961-1962 | None |
| Savannah A's | 1954-1955 | 1954 |
| Savannah Colts | 1913-1915 | 1913-1914 |
| Savannah Indians | 1906-1912 | 1906 |
| Savannah Indians | 1936-1942 & 1946-1953 | 1937-1947 |
| Savannah Pathfinders | 1904-1905 | None |
| Savannah Pirates | 1960 | 1960 |
| Savannah Redlegs | 1956-1958 | None |
| Savannah Reds | 1959 | None |
| Savannah White Sox | 1962 | None |
| Spartanburg Pioneers | 1919-1921 | None |
| Spartanburg-Charleston Rebels | 1940 | None |
| Spartanburg Spartans | 1922-1929 | 1925 |
| Spartanburg Spartans | 1938-1939 | None |
2 Responses
I would like to know the original source for the name Columbia Commies in 1911. I’ve seen other modern books, articles, and web sites that listed that team name but no references from the 1910s. The newspapers around South Carolina during that time referred to the 1911 Columbia SAL team as the “Comers” which was originally a shortened form of “Commissioners”. The “Columbia Comers” was the name of Columbia professional baseball teams from 1911 through the 1930 season.
Also,the Columbia team was called the Gamecocks for only three and one half years. The name “Skyscrapers” was changed to “Gamecocks” mid-season in June of 1904, and that was the team name through the 1907 season. The 1908 team was referred to as the “Chicks” and the 1909-1910 teams were called the “Palmettos”.
Hi Paul,
BaseballReference.com is the source for most of the league directory research. Based on what you’ve said here, it’s worth doing some extra digging on this one when time permits.
Drew