III 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 121 

Honoring the 100th anniversary of the birth of George Daniel Crowe. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 17 (legislative day, MARCH 16), 2021 

Mr. BRAUN (for himself, Mr. YOUNG, Mr. BROWN, Ms. WARREN, and Mr. 

MARKEY) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and 

agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Honoring the 100th anniversary of the birth of George 

Daniel Crowe. 

Whereas George Daniel Crowe (referred to in this preamble 

as ‘‘Mr. Crowe’’)— 

(1) was an extraordinary athlete; 

(2) excelled at both basketball and baseball; and 

(3) holds the rare status of having played both basketball and baseball at the professional level; 

Whereas Mr. Crowe was born in Whiteland, Indiana, on 

March 22, 1921; 

Whereas Mr. Crowe was raised in nearby Franklin, Indiana, 

where he was a standout on the football, baseball, and 

basketball teams; 


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Whereas Mr. Crowe led his basketball team to the 1939 Indiana State championship game, where, although his team 

lost to Frankfort High School, Mr. Crowe displayed his 

talents to a State-wide audience and became the first 

player to ever earn the prestigious distinction of Indiana 

Mr. Basketball; 

Whereas Mr. Crowe earned an athletic scholarship to attend 

Indiana Central College, known today as the University 

of Indianapolis, where he played basketball, baseball, and 

ran track; 

Whereas higher education was rare for an African American 

in the 1930s and 1940s, and Mr. Crowe took advantage 

of the opportunity to be a student athlete and graduated 

in 1943; 

Whereas, after graduation, Mr. Crowe entered the Army during World War II and served the United States admirably until 1946; 

Whereas, following his service to the United States in World 

War II, Mr. Crowe began playing professional basketball 

on a series of Negro League basketball teams between 

1946 and 1953, including the Los Angeles Red Devils 

and the New York Renaissance (commonly known as the 

‘‘Harlem Renaissance’’); 

Whereas, in 1947, Mr. Crowe joined the New York Black 

Yankees, which was a baseball team in the Negro 

Leagues; 

Whereas, after joining the New York Black Yankees, Mr. 

Crowe played 2 professional sports simultaneously; 

Whereas, in 1949, 2 years after Jackie Robinson integrated 

Major League baseball, Mr. Crowe was picked up by the 


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Minor League Hartford Chiefs, where he won the batting 

title with a .353 average; 

Whereas Mr. Crowe was called up by the Boston Braves in 

1952 and played in the Major Leagues for 9 years on 

that team, the Cincinnati Redlegs, and the St. Louis Cardinals; 

Whereas, during his Major League baseball career, Mr. 

Crowe played primarily as a first baseman and a pinch 

hitter; 

Whereas, upon his retirement from Major League baseball, 

Mr. Crowe held the Major League record of 14 career 

pinch hit home runs and had a .990 fielding percentage; 

Whereas the most successful period of Mr. Crowe’s career in 

the Major Leagues was in 1957, when he hit 31 home 

runs, and 1958, when he was selected as a National 

League All Star; 

Whereas Mr. Crowe also played winter baseball for the 

Santurce Crabbers in the Puerto Rico baseball league; 

Whereas Mr. Crowe and his teammates on the Santurce 

Crabbers, who included Willie Mays and Roberto 

Clemente, won the Caribbean World Series; 

Whereas Mr. Crowe was a pioneer in civil rights and quietly 

but firmly paved the way for wider opportunities in society in the United States by proving his ability as an athlete and student in college and as a professional athlete; 

Whereas, in 1946, soon after his discharge from the Army, 

Mr. Crowe forced the integration of the movie theater in 

Franklin, Indiana, when he refused to leave his seat on 

the main floor and move to the designated Negro section 

in the back of the theater; 


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Whereas the prominence of Mr. Crowe in the Franklin, Indiana, community and his service in World War II, which 

was a war against fascism, led the movie theater to be 

permanently integrated 1 week after Mr. Crowe refused 

to leave his seat; and 

Whereas, after his retirement from professional sports, Mr. 

Crowe began new careers as an insurance salesman and 

then a school teacher in New York: Now, therefore, be 

it 

1 Resolved, That— 

2 (1) George Daniel Crowe— 

3 (A) achieved a rarely matched record of 

4 athletic excellence at the high school, collegiate, 

5 and professional levels; and 

6 (B) set an example for all Hoosiers and 

7 people of the United States— 

8 (i) with his dogged determination and 

9 hard work; 

10 (ii) by taking advantage of opportuni11 ties as they arose; and 

12 (iii) by making the careers of count13 less people of the United States who fol14 lowed him possible; 

15 (2) the story of George Daniel Crowe is— 

16 (A) the story of the United States in the 

17 20th century; 

18 (B) a story of overcoming oppression; 


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1 (C) a story of demanding what President 

2 Lincoln called the ‘‘Right to Rise’’; 

3 (D) a story of developing talent and 

4 achieving greatness through hard work; and 

5 (E) a story of trying to leave the world a 

6 better place than he found it; and 

7 (3) on March 22, 2021, which is the 100th an8 niversary of his birth, the Senate recognizes George 

9 Daniel Crowe as— 

10 (A) a great Hoosier; 

11 (B) a man of respect and achievement; and 

12 (C) a man whose example can help guide 

13 the people of the United States. 

Æ 


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