Jackson Owens
Nickname: Jack
Career: 1950-1952, 1954-1955
Position: p
Teams: Chicago American Giants (1950-1952), Detroit Stars
(1954)
Born: February 4, 1929, Decatur, Illinois
His first year in the Negro Leagues was in 1950, when the league was struggling to survive the loss of players to organized baseball. He pitched with the Chicago American Giants for three seasons.
Baseball Career Highlights:
"In 1951, as a Chicago American Giant, I was the relief pitcher for Satchel Paige. I was assigned to travel with him, so we spent a lot of time together; I talked to him daily on an individual basis. I had a great deal of admiration for him."
Professional/Personal Accomplishments:
"My education was much more important than playing baseball. Knowing that baseball salaries were relatively small, I committed myself to going to college full time and getting a degree. After I graduated from James Millikin University, in Decatur, Illinois, I taught math in high school for nine years. In 1966, I was hired as a quality control engineer with PPG Industry. Three years later, I began working at General Electric. During my 21 year career with the company, I held various positions, which included international assignments. I retired in 1990."
Sources:
NLBM Legacy 2000 Players' Reunion Alumni Book, Kansas City Missouri: Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, Inc., 2000.
James A. Riley, The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues, New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers, Inc., 1994.
Jackson Owens