Fort Wayne Brakies

The Fort Wayne Brakies, based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, took their name from the city's railroad industry. A "brakie" was railroad slang for a brakeman, the crew member responsible for installing, inspecting, and operating a train's brakes. Fort Wayne wore the name for a single season, 1911, sandwiched between stretches as the Railroaders and the Billikens in the Class B Central League, a run that stretched back to 1903 with brief detours to the Class A Western Association in 1901 and the Class C Interstate Association in 1906.

The Brakies had their best season under either name: an 88-54 record that finished second in the eight-team league, three games behind the pennant-winning Dayton Veterans, under manager Doc Casey.

Fort Wayne reverted to the Railroaders nickname the following year and won the 1912 Central League championship outright, going 77-51 in a newly expanded 12-team league under manager Shag Shaughnessy.

The Central League itself was a Class B circuit that ran, often sporadically, from 1903 into the 1930s (with a later 1948-51 revival), fielding teams mostly from Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.