Last member of Sioux City Ghosts dies
Franklin Williams played many roles in community
By Thomas Ritchie, Journal Online director | Posted: Thursday, June 07, 2007
Franklin L. Williams, the last surviving member of the original Sioux City Ghosts black softball team, died Tuesday, leaving a void in a community that he called home for most of his 86 years.
Franklin L. Williams, the last surviving member of the original Sioux City Ghosts black softball team, died Tuesday, leaving a void in a community that he called home for most of his 86 years.
"The day is a little darker, the world is a little darker," said Johnny Tureaud, who studied judo under Williams for 10 years. "He was just an outstanding person. It's very sad."
While Williams was well-known for his role as pitcher for the barnstorming Ghosts team years before Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier, he was involved in many arenas of the community until his last days. Williams taught judo three times a week at Marshall's Tae Kwon Do in Sioux City. He was also involved in church activities for years and was a tenor who sang at weddings, funerals, benefit concerts and church services throughout his life.
And then there was his kind heart and his reputation as a gentleman.
"Truly, he was gifted in many ways, and there's a rarity there. Often times people don't use all the gifts that are given to them and I think Frankie did," said Steve Hansen, director of the Sioux City Public Museum. "With Frankie, Donald Doyle and Wiley Mayne, we lost a lot of history in one week."
Doyle was a state legislator for three decades, and Mayne was a Sioux City attorney who served as 6th District congressman for eight years. Both died in the past week and a half.
Hansen said his fondest memory of Williams was from 2004, when Williams threw out the first pitch at a ball game at Lewis and Clark Park for the city's 150th birthday. "It was something that ... in walking around the stadium with him, you just saw how many people he had impacted in one way or another."
Tureaud said he developed a close friendship with Williams, a sixth-degree black belt, since he first called him to inquire about judo instruction in 1997. "He's been my friend since that day, and he's the godfather of my three children," he said.
Tureaud remembers him as a meticulous teacher. "He was extremely concerned about detail. He wanted people to understand the deeper meanings in judo -- maximum efficiency and mutual welfare and benefit. I think he embodied the principals of judo."
"Dad was always there for his children," said his daughter Marilyn Voss of Minneapolis. "It's so hard to put into words. He was very supportive, a very loving father who was always there no matter what."
Williams was born on March 22, 1921 in Sioux City and attended Central High School. He later served in the Navy in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters during World War II.
He met his wife, Joyce, while in the service in Portland, Ore., then later returned to Sioux City, where the couple raised four children. Williams worked much of his life for the gas division of Iowa Public Service Co.
As a player for the Sioux City Ghosts, Williams, called Frankie "Papa Be Kind," traveled across the nation in the summer months playing fast-pitch softball games against all-star teams. He played from 1939 to 1941, when he entered the military. He played with the team again after the war.
The team was known for its entertaining, Harlem Globetrotter-like antics and shadow ball routine, in which they played an inning of softball with an invisible ball.
"We'd do anything to make the crowd enjoy the ball game," Williams told the Journal in a 1997 story. "We played the best teams we could get. And we had a lot of fun when we played."
Because they were all young black men playing white teams, they are also remembered for breaking ground for young blacks at the time.
"From a sociological perspective, these guys were really breaking frontiers and challenging the status quo," said Hansen.
"What really sticks out for me is that my dad never saw color," said Voss. "He looked at people for who they were. He and my mother both raised all of us like that and we raised our children like that."
The Ghosts' cultural contributions haven't escaped historians. In 1997, a collection of Ghosts artifacts, including a softball, cap and equipment bag, scrapbook and photo album, were enshrined in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.
As a sensei, Williams taught generations of judo students and was the sport's most accomplished competitor in the state. He was also a Golden Gloves boxer who taught others to spar at the Redshield Boys Club in Sioux City.
"I think his singing ability was probably the most prevalent. He will probably be remembered for his artistic ability," said George Boykin, executive director of the Sanford Center and a longtime friend of the Williams family. "He sang in the Sioux City Choral Association, and he put on many concerts in the community. He touched many lives."
Boykin said faith played a big role in Williams' life. "The church was the mainstay in Frankie's life, and it kept him mentally and spiritually and emotionally together in life. He passed that on to people he met and touched in his life."
"I don't think anyone in this family can fill his shoes," said Voss. "He had pretty large shoes. In my mind, his spirit will live forever. As long as you remember someone, they are still alive, and for me he is still alive."
Funeral services for Williams are pending with Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel in Sioux City.
Franklin L. Williams, the last surviving member of the original Sioux City Ghosts black softball team, died Tuesday, leaving a void in a community that he called home for most of his 86 years.
"The day is a little darker, the world is a little darker," said Johnny Tureaud, who studied judo under Williams for 10 years. "He was just an outstanding person. It's very sad."
While Williams was well-known for his role as pitcher for the barnstorming Ghosts team years before Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier, he was involved in many arenas of the community until his last days. Williams taught judo three times a week at Marshall's Tae Kwon Do in Sioux City. He was also involved in church activities for years and was a tenor who sang at weddings, funerals, benefit concerts and church services throughout his life.
And then there was his kind heart and his reputation as a gentleman.
"Truly, he was gifted in many ways, and there's a rarity there. Often times people don't use all the gifts that are given to them and I think Frankie did," said Steve Hansen, director of the Sioux City Public Museum. "With Frankie, Donald Doyle and Wiley Mayne, we lost a lot of history in one week."
Doyle was a state legislator for three decades, and Mayne was a Sioux City attorney who served as 6th District congressman for eight years. Both died in the past week and a half.
Hansen said his fondest memory of Williams was from 2004, when Williams threw out the first pitch at a ball game at Lewis and Clark Park for the city's 150th birthday. "It was something that ... in walking around the stadium with him, you just saw how many people he had impacted in one way or another."
Tureaud said he developed a close friendship with Williams, a sixth-degree black belt, since he first called him to inquire about judo instruction in 1997. "He's been my friend since that day, and he's the godfather of my three children," he said.
Tureaud remembers him as a meticulous teacher. "He was extremely concerned about detail. He wanted people to understand the deeper meanings in judo -- maximum efficiency and mutual welfare and benefit. I think he embodied the principals of judo."
"Dad was always there for his children," said his daughter Marilyn Voss of Minneapolis. "It's so hard to put into words. He was very supportive, a very loving father who was always there no matter what."
Williams was born on March 22, 1921 in Sioux City and attended Central High School. He later served in the Navy in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters during World War II.
He met his wife, Joyce, while in the service in Portland, Ore., then later returned to Sioux City, where the couple raised four children. Williams worked much of his life for the gas division of Iowa Public Service Co.
As a player for the Sioux City Ghosts, Williams, called Frankie "Papa Be Kind," traveled across the nation in the summer months playing fast-pitch softball games against all-star teams. He played from 1939 to 1941, when he entered the military. He played with the team again after the war.
The team was known for its entertaining, Harlem Globetrotter-like antics and shadow ball routine, in which they played an inning of softball with an invisible ball.
"We'd do anything to make the crowd enjoy the ball game," Williams told the Journal in a 1997 story. "We played the best teams we could get. And we had a lot of fun when we played."
Because they were all young black men playing white teams, they are also remembered for breaking ground for young blacks at the time.
"From a sociological perspective, these guys were really breaking frontiers and challenging the status quo," said Hansen.
"What really sticks out for me is that my dad never saw color," said Voss. "He looked at people for who they were. He and my mother both raised all of us like that and we raised our children like that."
The Ghosts' cultural contributions haven't escaped historians. In 1997, a collection of Ghosts artifacts, including a softball, cap and equipment bag, scrapbook and photo album, were enshrined in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.
As a sensei, Williams taught generations of judo students and was the sport's most accomplished competitor in the state. He was also a Golden Gloves boxer who taught others to spar at the Redshield Boys Club in Sioux City.
"I think his singing ability was probably the most prevalent. He will probably be remembered for his artistic ability," said George Boykin, executive director of the Sanford Center and a longtime friend of the Williams family. "He sang in the Sioux City Choral Association, and he put on many concerts in the community. He touched many lives."
Boykin said faith played a big role in Williams' life. "The church was the mainstay in Frankie's life, and it kept him mentally and spiritually and emotionally together in life. He passed that on to people he met and touched in his life."
"I don't think anyone in this family can fill his shoes," said Voss. "He had pretty large shoes. In my mind, his spirit will live forever. As long as you remember someone, they are still alive, and for me he is still alive."
Funeral services for Williams are pending with Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel in Sioux City.
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