The Council Bluffs Rails existed for two months in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and packed a full franchise saga into them. In May 1935 the owner of the Omaha Packers, a Western League fixture for 35 years, stopped making payroll. The league took over the club, and on June 25 the franchise moved across the Missouri River to Council Bluffs. The Council Bluffs Nonpareil ran a naming contest that drew 1,100 entries, including the Beat-em-Alls, the Mormons, and the Wild Roses, before a local man named J. Vincent Crowe won with the Rails, a nod to the city's identity as one of the great railroad junctions of the West.
The team itself was good. The Rails opened 9-3 and sat within half a game of second place, and business manager Ad Liska, a former pitcher for the Washington Senators and Philadelphia Phillies, put himself in uniform and won seven straight games on the mound. Liska even put up $1,000 of his own money to keep the club alive. But the 40-cent trolley toll across the river kept Omaha fans home, Depression-era finances kept collapsing around the league, and the Rails disbanded on August 27, 1935, ending Council Bluffs' professional baseball history.
Council Bluffs had hosted one previous professional club, the 1903 Bluffers of the Class D Iowa-South Dakota League.
The Western League was a Class A circuit for most of its life, operating from 1900 through 1937 and again from 1947 through 1958, fielding teams across the Great Plains and Rocky Mountain states, including Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, Colorado, Missouri, Oklahoma, and later Texas and New Mexico. For its first decade it stood just one step below the major leagues. An earlier league of the same name, which ran from 1885 to 1899, renamed itself the American League in 1900 and lives on today as one half of Major League Baseball.
Retro Baseball Revival celebrates historic baseball teams with unique apparel, honoring their legacy and bringing history to one-of-a-kind clothing with our old school retro baseball tees from defunct Minor League Baseball teams. All of our high quality apparel is designed, printed, and shipped within the USA. This collection features 100% original designs based on the history and nicknames of historic minor league teams.
Our crewneck sweatshirts are classics that anyone is sure to recognize. They are thick, durable Gildan brand crews. They are a cotton/poly blend that stands the test of time.
Size Guide: True to size
- Made with a medium-heavy fabric blend of 50% cotton and 50% polyester (8.0 oz/yd² (271.25 g/m²)), this sweatshirt feels cozy and is the perfect choice for those colder months.
- The classic fit along with the crew neckline deliver a comfy wearing experience with a clean-cut style. Meanwhile, the double-needle stitching at the shoulder, armhole, neck, waistband, and cuff seams add top-tier durability.
- Say goodbye to itchiness thanks to the gray, pearlized tear-away label.
- Made using 100% ethically grown US cotton. Gildan is also a proud member of the US Cotton Trust Protocol ensuring ethical and sustainable means of production. The blank shirt's dyes are OEKO-TEX-certified dyes with low environmental impact.
- Machine wash: cold (max 30C or 90F); Non-chlorine: bleach as needed; Tumble dry: low heat; Do not iron; Do not dryclean.
