Mattoon-Charleston Canaries
The Mattoon-Charleston Canaries played the 1906 season as part of the Kitty League. The team was owned by the Mattoon City Railway Company that ran an inter-urban service between the two cities. They had also built an amusement park between the cities and it was at that site that the Canaries ballfield was located.
Though they only lasted one season (the original Kitty League folded at the end of 1906), they did produce one prominent major league ball player. Larry Doyle made it to the majors with John “Mugsy” McGraw’s New York Giants the very next year. He would go on to long and distinguished career for a Giants team that was a powerhouse in the early 20th century. In 1912 Doyle hit .330 and won the Chalmers Trophy as the National Leagues best player for the pennant winning Giants. In 1915 he won the National League batting championship with a .320 average. Across his 14 year major league career, Doyle batted .290 which placed him 4th all-time among 2nd Basemen with at least 1000 at bats (at the time of his retirement). He also won four National League pennants.
Mattoon-Charleston would continue to have a team during the 1907 and 1908 seasons, but they would not be called the “Canaries” and they did not play in the Kitty League. The Charleston Broom Corn Cutters played in the Eastern Illinois League in 1907, followed by the Charleston Evangelists (yes, really). After the Charleston team finished the 1908 season, minor league baseball left the Charleston-Mattoon area and to date has not returned.
