Plain Twp. Historical Society to explore women in baseball

Women have been playing baseball almost as long as men have, starting in the 1860s.

According to baseballhall.org/women-in-baseball, the first organized team of women players was formed in 1866 when Vassar College started its first baseball team. Vassar, then an all-women’s school, were The Resolutes and the uniform the women wore for games was an ankle-length wool dress and a baseball cap.

The first woman to play on the men’s league was Lizzie Arlington, playing for the Philadelphia Reserves in 1898.

The Plain Township Historical Society is hosting a presentation on the history of women in baseball open to the general public on Monday, Feb. 16, starting at 7 p.m. in the Plain Township Hall, located at 2600 Easton St. NE, Canton.

The speaker for the evening is Leslie Heaphy, an associate professor and associate chair at Kent State Stark. She teaches history survey classes and courses in Asian history, 20th-century US, and sports history, and co-directs the honors program on the Stark campus.

“I will be presenting the history of women in baseball all the way back to its earliest beginnings,” Heaphy said. “I’ve done versions of the presentation at other events, and there is a lot of interest in the topic. I think people are interested because they just weren’t aware that women played baseball so far back in history. People have mentioned that the only thing they knew about the topic was from ... 'A League of Their Own' which was pretty accurate."

"Plus, the women in baseball topic has a lot of history involved since it goes so far back, and more people can relate to baseball versus another sport, such as horse racing or boxing.”

Guest said the historical society selected the topic for a number of reasons, including the long history and the new women’s professional league starting up this year.

“We are always looking for different topics to present each month,” said Cindy Guest, the president and archivist for the historical society. “With the women’s professional league forming in 2026, plus the America 250 happening this year, we thought this would be interesting. The topic should hold some interest because we are a sports-oriented area for all sports, including baseball.”

The event will begin with a short historical society meeting, then a short break for snacks. The presentation will follow the break, and there will be time for questions and answers.

“We think we will have about 30 people attend. But we can accommodate up to 80 people. There are approximately 70 members in the historical society, and we have a speaker at every meeting, which is held once a month except for December and January,” Guest said.

The Plain Township Historical Society is a volunteer-based organization that relies on membership dues to support its efforts. Dues are for a calendar year (Jan. 1 to Dec. 31) unless you choose to become a lifetime member. Membership dues paid in October cover the following year. The Plain Township Historical Society is always open to new members and volunteers who would like to help with events. Find more information on their website at preservingplaintwp.org/.

The Women’s Pro Baseball League (WPBL) is set to launch in August of 2026. The inaugural season will run for seven weeks. There are four weeks of regular season scheduled for play, a week of all-star competition, and two weeks of playoffs. Teams in the league include New York, Boston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco and they will play all games at Robin Roberts Stadium in Springfield, Illinois, during the inaugural 2026 season. There will be approximately 15 players, with games scheduled Thursdays through Sundays.