Clarence Eldridge

In his 92 years of life, Clarence Eldridge wrote for big-city newspapers, practiced law, held leadership roles at an automobile manufacturer, worked in New York’s advertising world, occupied senior positions at two well-known food companies, and served as a marketing and management consultant with such sagacity that he was eventually elected to the American advertising industry’s hall of fame.

It seems almost superfluous to add that – oh, by the way – he also umpired six American League games in 1914 and 1915. Indeed, when Eldridge died in Florida in 1981, his local newspaper obituary didn’t mention his long-ago baseball connection.1

While Eldridge’s six games in the majors might have been dwarfed by his other accomplishments, they had a special place in his heart. After his 1915 umpiring stint, Eldridge was asked whether he would switch to baseball or stay in legal practice. “A regular position has not been offered me in the major leagues,” he replied. “I hope it isn’t. I am almost afraid of my choice.”2

Clarence Ernest Eldridge was born on June 24, 1888, in Three Rivers, Michigan, about 30 miles south of Kalamazoo, not far from the state’s southern border with Indiana.3 He was one of two sons of Ernest and Martha (Morton) Eldridge.

Clarence would later tell interviewers that his father was a foreman in a steel foundry, and perhaps he was at some point. His son’s birth record describes Ernest Eldridge as a “moulder”; the 1900 US Census describes him as a farmer, while the 1910 Census says he was a brass worker in a factory.4 Clarence served as manager of his high school’s baseball team, while also getting involved with school and professional newspapers. Profiles of him later in life make no mention of his playing organized baseball.5

From Three Rivers, young Eldridge moved on to the University of Michigan. He dove avidly into journalism, becoming managing editor of the Michigan Daily student newspaper while serving as correspondent for the Chicago Tribune and other professional papers.6 His dedication to journalism earned him the nickname “Dope,” and many news items from his younger years referred to him as “Dope Eldridge.”7 He was also listed in the 1909 college yearbook, the Michiganensian, as having served as varsity baseball manager.8 Eldridge earned his undergraduate degree that year, then stayed two more years to earn a law degree.9

His interest in umping and refereeing developed during his university years. Eldridge built up his skills working high-school, college, and professional games. These included contests in which his own college was playing, an apparent testament to his talent and impartiality.10

In 1907 he temporarily left school to serve as sports editor of a newspaper in Little Rock, Arkansas, which had a team in the Class A Southern Association. When an umpire in the league became ill, Eldridge successfully applied for his position. In his first game in Memphis, Tennessee, Eldridge called a Memphis player out on a close play, then ejected a coach for arguing. The police had to usher him past an angry crowd – but the Little Rock paper said he performed “in a very creditable manner, showing a perfect knowledge of the rules.”11

He was mobbed by Memphis fans again in August after another controversial call, and several players reportedly tried to attack him.12 He drew criticism in New Orleans when, sidelined by an injured ankle, he took a spot in the grandstand, cheered the Shreveport team, and harassed the umpire, as a fan would.13 Eldridge also drew criticism from some Southern League sources for favoring home teams.14

Two summers later Eldridge moved closer to home, working in the Class D Southern Michigan League. In July, a grandstand railing collapsed in Jackson, Michigan, under pressure from an excited crowd that was threatening to mob Eldridge. Twelve fans were injured.15

Worse followed in May 1910, when Eldridge was umpiring in the Class C Wisconsin-Illinois League. One of his calls caused severe unrest among a crowd in Racine, Wisconsin, and Eldridge sought refuge in a peanut stand until the manager of the Racine team hustled him into a car for a getaway. Fans pelted the car with bricks – one of which sailed through the windshield and hit 10-year-old passenger Gordon Lewis in the head, critically injuring him and requiring two emergency operations. (The boy pulled through.)16

The next few years saw Eldridge build visibility as a Chicago-based lawyer with a strong interest in baseball. In 1915 he represented investors in the Federal League’s Kansas City Packers as they successfully sued the league to prevent the transfer of the team to Newark, New Jersey.17 He contributed a series of articles to the Detroit Free Press in 1914 and 1915 that analyzed baseball-related legal issues, including the application of the reserve clause and legal conflicts between the upstart FL and the established American and National Leagues.18 An Eldridge-bylined piece in The Sporting News in January 1915 analyzed the FL’s legal challenge from a perspective strongly favoring the AL and NL.19 That month, the “Chicago attorney well known in baseball circles” also wrote to AL President Ban Johnson, suggesting a modification to the standard player contract.20

It wasn’t the first interaction between Johnson and Eldridge. According to reports, the baseball-buff lawyer had been “beseeching” Johnson for a chance to umpire in the majors. And on June 24, 1914 – his 26th birthday – he got it.

AL ump Bill Dinneen was, ironically, umpiring a college game between the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Michigan, so experienced college ump Eldridge took his place and worked the basepaths for a game between the Detroit Tigers and Chicago White Sox in Chicago. The game passed mostly without incident for Eldridge, except for a point in the sixth inning when he had to warn Chicago’s Buck Weaver against further argument on a call.21 On June 25, Eldridge put his “Dope” hat on and wrote a game story covering that day’s Tigers-White Sox contest for the Detroit Free Press. The story made no mention of his on-field role the previous day.22

Eldridge’s other big-league opportunity arose from the illness of umpire Dom Mullaney, who suffered an attack of appendicitis in May 1915.23 Eldridge worked alongside future Hall of Famer Billy Evans to call five Tigers games in Detroit between May 23 and 27, again working exclusively on the basepaths. He picked up his only major-league ejection on May 25, running Detroit’s George McBride for arguing a call at second base.

As it turned out, Mullaney worked his last big-league game on June 5 – but Eldridge was not a candidate to replace him. Although Eldridge “displayed much skill as an arbitrator,” he was forced to set aside professional umpiring when “the law firm with which he is connected [objected] strongly to his absence,” one reporter wrote.24

While Eldridge’s big-league umpiring dreams died in 1915, other aspects of his life flowered that year, as he married Delany Thayer. They had three children and remained married until her death in 1965.25 That summer Eldridge also served on the judging panel of a Chicago Tribune contest to find the three best amateur baseball players in Chicago. The winners were given opportunities with the Cubs, White Sox, and Federal League Whales.26

Eldridge worked further for the National Commission, which governed major-league baseball before the creation of the commissioner’s office, in 1916. He and another attorney, Ellis Kinkaid of Cincinnati, advised Commission Chairman Garry Herrmann, AL President Johnson, and National League President John Tener on issues related to player contracts.27

Eldridge’s professional life, though, was about to veer away from the law and baseball. In 1917 he helped the Reo Motor Car Company of Lansing, Michigan, file incorporation and other legal paperwork to set up operations in Chicago. Intrigued by the auto industry, Eldridge left law behind, accepted a job as assistant sales manager for Reo, and moved with his wife and young child to Lansing.28 By 1928 he had ascended to sales manager; his 1930 US Census listing describes Eldridge as the assistant to the president in an auto factory.29

Sales and marketing provided the theme for the rest of his corporate career. Eldridge left Reo in 1930 to join the Madison Avenue advertising firm Young & Rubicam, which numbered Reo among its clients. Another Young & Rubicam client was the food conglomerate General Foods, whose brands at the time included Postum, Grape-Nuts cereal, Jell-O, Maxwell House coffee, and Birdseye frozen foods.30 General Foods’ legal counsel in New York City was a former fraternity brother of Eldridge’s at Michigan, and Eldridge became Young & Rubicam vice president in charge of the General Foods account.31

In the late 1930s, Eldridge made the jump directly to General Foods, relocating from the New York area to Battle Creek, Michigan.32 At various times, he served as merchandising manager and general manager for Post Cereals. In 1951 he was named vice president in charge of marketing; the following year, he was elected to General Foods’ board of directors.33

Eldridge retired from General Foods in 1953 at age 65 but didn’t stay idle long. He took a position that same year as vice president in charge of marketing at another iconic American packaged-food company, Campbell Soup Co. of Camden, New Jersey. He was promoted to executive vice president before becoming a marketing consultant to the company in 1956, reportedly at his own request.34 Eldridge hired on with management consultancy firm George Fry & Associates and continued to work as a consultant to large companies until the age of 80, in 1968.35

Eldridge – still unable to resist the call of the typewriter – wrote a series of essays, “The Management of the Marketing Function,” that were published by the Association of National Advertisers.36 Well into his 70s, Eldridge appeared at events hosted by the association, making speeches and teaching courses on advanced advertising management.37 “He has spoken to us – wisely and well – almost innumerable times,” an association leader said of Eldridge.38

From time to time, Eldridge’s wisdom penetrated mainstream media. He was quoted in newspaper stories holding forth on everything from surplus citrus crops to the challenges of declining returns on ad spending. The sheer volume of advertising was numbing the American consumer, Eldridge said in 1964, and ads that emphasized psychology or “mood” over the virtues of the product weren’t helping. “If the ears of the advertising industry are as red as a Campbell soup label, it’s because Clarence Eldridge has been talking,” one journalist wrote.39

Working at the highest levels of corporate America had its financial rewards. In the mid-1940s, Eldridge owned a 755-acre dairy farm in Dutchess County, New York, which reportedly ranked among the area’s leading milk producers.40 He also invested in property in Pinellas County, Florida, some of which generated income in the form of a long-term water rights lease.41

In addition to monetary success, Eldridge also reaped recognition over his long career. In October 1957, at the 29th annual Boston Conference on Distribution, Eldridge was one of four business leaders named to the “Hall of Fame in Distribution” for developing a “dynamic marketing and sales program” promoting new uses of Campbell Soup products.42 Eleven years later he received the Association of National Advertisers’ Gold Medal for Leadership.43 And in 1983, he was posthumously elected to the American Advertising Federation Hall of Fame, which described him as follows: “He had exceptional marketing skills and applied them in assisting the growth of some major U.S. advertisers.”44

Eldridge moved from Michigan to Florida in 1971 and died in Seminole, Florida, on February 7, 1981, at age 92. Having remarried after the death of his wife Delany, Eldridge was survived by his wife, Bertha; sons Clarence E. Jr., William, and Morton; 10 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. He was the last surviving player, manager, coach, or umpire from his big-league debut game on June 24, 1914.45 Following private ceremonies, Eldridge was interred at Sylvan Abbey Memorial Park in Clearwater, Florida.46

Acknowledgments

This story was reviewed by Rory Costello and Len Levin and fact-checked by Paul Proia. The author thanks the Giamatti Research Center at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum for research assistance.

Sources

In addition to the sources credited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball-Reference.com and Retrosheet.org for background information on players, teams, and seasons.

Photo credit

Image of Clarence Eldridge from the Anaconda (Montana) Standard, June 27, 1915: Part Three: 7.

Notes

1 Romaine Kosharsky, “Clarence E. Eldridge, Marketing Executive,” Tampa Bay (Florida) Times, February 9, 1981: 7B. The New York Times included Eldridge’s umpiring career in its obituary: “Clarence E. Eldridge, 92, General Foods Executive,” February 11, 1981: D23.

2 Harvey T. Woodruff, “Young Lawyer Prefers to Be Ball Umpire,” Pittsburgh Press, July 4, 1915: Sports: 3.

3 As of 2023, only one other major-league player, coach, manager, or umpire listed Three Rivers as their birthplace: Matt Thornton, who pitched in 748 games between 2004 and 2016.

4 Steel foundry foreman from Woodruff, “Young Lawyer Prefers to Be Ball Umpire.” Michigan birth record for Clarence Eldridge, 1900 US Census and 1910 US Census accessed via Familysearch.org, October 2023.

5 Woodruff, “Young Lawyer Prefers to Be Ball Umpire”; “Mainly About Folks,” Battle Creek (Michigan) Enquirer and News, February 22, 1948: 16. “Manager” in a high-school or college setting does not mean a field manager, but rather an assistant or supporter who attends to equipment and other logistics. It seems likely that a baseball-loving boy would at least have played sandlot or pickup ball, but articles do not mention Eldridge playing in a more formal setting, such as on a high-school or semipro team.

6 Woodruff, “Young Lawyer Prefers to Be Ball Umpire”; “Mainly About Folks.” The Woodruff article claims that Eldridge earned $2,000 to $2,200 from journalism during his college years – sums that would be worth well over $60,000 in 2023 terms.

7 “Dope” is an increasingly archaic term for news or information, as used in the expressions “the inside dope” and “the straight dope.” Eldridge’s nickname is linked with the news business in “In the Wake of the News,” Chicago Tribune, October 26, 1921: 15. Another news item suggested that he was called Dope because “he soaks up college athletic statistics like a sponge does water.” “‘Dope’ Eldridge Is Ill,” Detroit Free Press, January 16, 1907: 13.

8 1909 Michiganensian: 11-18. https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015068018533&seq=60.

9 Woodruff, “Young Lawyer Prefers to Be Ball Umpire.”

10 In one example, Eldridge refereed a football game between the University of Michigan and Case (now Case Western Reserve University) in October 1907, while an undergrad at Michigan. “U. of M. 9, Case 0,” Port Huron (Michigan) Daily Times, October 7, 1907: 6.

11 Woodruff; “First Inning Decides Game,” Daily Arkansas Gazette (Little Rock), July 14, 1907: 8;

12 “Diamond Jingles,” Altoona (Pennsylvania) Times, August 26, 1907: 10.

13 “Umpire Eldridge Acts Peculiar in New Orleans,” Nashville (Tennessee) Banner, August 3, 1907: 9.

14 “Eldridge Well Known to the Southern Fans,” Knoxville (Tennessee) Sentinel, July 27, 1909: 12.

15 “Railing Collapses at Ball Game; 12 Injured,” Detroit Times, July 26, 1909: 1.

16 Gordon Lewis died in 1930, age 30, of unspecified causes. “May End Fatally,” Kenosha (Wisconsin) Evening News, May 16, 1910: 1; “Gordon Lewis Improving,” Racine (Wisconsin) Daily Journal, May 17, 1910: 1; “Gordon Sinclair Lewis Dies at Racine; Was 30,” Wausau (Wisconsin) Daily Record-Herald, August 22, 1930: 2.

17 “Ready to Furnish Bond,” Kansas City Star, March 16, 1915: 6; “The Agreement Filed,” Kansas City Star, March 24, 1915: 9.

18 A few examples: Clarence E. Eldridge, “Charlie Murphy Will Be More Docile When He Sees Strength of Enemy,” Detroit Free Press, February 17, 1914: 11; Clarence E. Eldridge, “Commission and the Two Major Leagues Are Sued by Federal,” Detroit Free Press, January 6, 1915: 10; Clarence E. Eldridge, “Victory for Organized Ball Would Be Triumph of Astute Lawyers,” Detroit Free Press, January 31, 1915: Part One: 17.

19 Clarence E. Eldridge, “Desperate Federals Seek Wreck of National Game,” The Sporting News, January 14, 1915: 3.

20 Eldridge suggested that a clause be added to the contract so that players who signed contracts but refused to abide by them would be barred from playing for any US baseball team for a 12-month period. “Here’s New Contract Suggestion,” Detroit Free Press, January 26, 1915: 10.

21 “Eldridge, Former S.M. Umpire, Given Trial by Ban Johnson,” Lansing (Michigan) State Journal, June 25, 1914; Ralph L. Yonker, “Michigan Has Just Claim to College Title,” Detroit Evening Times, June 25, 1914: 7; “Sox Sydelights,” Chicago Tribune, June 25, 1914: 13. That day’s plate umpire, Tommy Connolly, also had to eject Detroit’s Marty Kavanagh for arguing a third strike.

22 Clarence E. Eldridge, “White Sox Grab It by Three-Base Hits Opportunely Made,” Detroit Free Press, June 26, 1914: 12. Two years later, Eldridge wrote a newspaper game story about a high-school football contest he’d worked as a field judge: Clarence E. Eldridge, “Loyola Beaten by Lake Forest in 21-7 Combat,” Chicago Tribune, November 12, 1916: 24.

23 J. Ed Grillo, “Griffith May Choose Gallia to Pitch Today’s Contest,” Washington Evening Star, May 25, 1915: 15.

24 Morris Miller, “Sport Snap Shots,” New London (Connecticut) Day, June 10, 1915: 12.

25 “Mrs. Eldridge Dies in Florida,” Lansing State Journal, January 30, 1965: A-2. Three children from 1930 US Census and 1940 US Census listings, accessed via Familysearch.org in November 2023. This may have been Eldridge’s second marriage. In March 1910, a newspaper in Michigan reported that Eldridge, then in law school, had married Irene Bigalke, a University of Michigan freshman. The author of this story was unable to learn anything else about the presumably short-lived marriage. According to records accessed through Familysearch.org, Bigalke also remarried; she died in California in 1987, six years after Eldridge. “Dope Eldridge Weds an Ann Arbor Girl,” Port Huron (Michigan) Daily Herald, March 15, 1910: 8.

26 Justin Mckinney, “Just Like a Big Leaguer: The Chicago Tribune Amateur Baseball Contest of 1915,” Society for American Baseball Research Baseball Research Journal, spring 2018. https://sabr.org/journal/article/just-like-a-big-leaguer-the-chicago-tribune-amateur-baseball-contest-of-1915/.

27 “Reserve Clause Again Appears New Contracts,” Elmira (New York) Star-Gazette, December 6, 1916: 8; “Ten Days Release Clause to Remain in B.B. Contracts,” Waco (Texas) Daily Times-Herald, December 3, 1916: 11.

28 “Old League ‘Umps’ Auto Sales Man,” Lansing State Journal, December 21, 1917: 20. The Reo company, sometimes spelled REO, was founded in 1905 by Ransom E. Olds, previously the founder of Oldsmobile. Eldridge’s 1917-18 military draft card, accessed via Familysearch.org in November 2023, mentions his wife and child. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-G14V-9N9L?i=1407&cc=1968530&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AK6DX-KY9.

29 Sales manager: “Reo Sales Manager is Commended as Football Official,” Waterloo (Iowa) Evening Courier, November 21, 1928: 16. The story mentioned that Eldridge had been honored by a Detroit athletic association for his years of experience officiating college football games. Eldridge’s 1930 US Census listing is cited in a previous note. Incidentally, the 1930 Census also reported that Eldridge was not a veteran of military service.

30 “General Foods Corporation,” Encyclopedia Britannica, accessed November 2023. https://www.britannica.com/topic/General-Foods-Corporation.

31 “Mainly About Folks”; Kosharsky, “Clarence E. Eldridge, Marketing Executive.” The former story misspells the name of Young & Rubicam.

32 Kosharsky, “Clarence E. Eldridge, Marketing Executive,” places the move to General Foods in 1937. “Mainly About Folks” has Eldridge staying with Young & Rubicam until 1939, as does “General Foods Promotes Three,” Battle Creek Enquirer and News, July 30, 1951: 9.

33 “General Foods Promotes Three”; “Clarence Eldridge Is Named to Board,” Battle Creek Enquirer and News, January 3, 1952: 4. Interestingly, the Battle Creek paper reported that Eldridge had announced plans to leave General Foods for a position with a New York advertising agency. Reversing his decision, he received a promotion.

34 “W.C. Swanson Named Marketing Consultant,” Fremont (Nebraska) Guide and Tribune, January 30, 1956: 10.

35 “People and Events,” Chicago Tribune, February 8, 1956: F7; Kosharsky, “Clarence E. Eldridge, Marketing Executive.”

36 “ANA Gold Medal for Clarence Eldridge,” Broadcasting magazine, November 4, 1968: 30. https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/68-OCR/1968-11-04-BC-OCR-Page-0030.pdf.

37 Sample citations of Eldridge’s industry appearances from the 1960s include “ANA Offering Course to Management,” Broadcasting, February 11, 1963: 38, https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/63-OCR/1963-02-11-BC-OCR-Page-0038.pdf; “ANA Microscopes Advertising’s Culture,” Sponsor magazine, May 11, 1964: 17, https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-Sponsor-Magazine-IDX/IDX/1960s/1964/Sponsor-1964-05-2-OCR-Page-0017.pdf; and “Ready, Set, Go for ANA Meeting,” Broadcasting, October 24, 1966: 30. https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/66-OCR/1966-10-24-BC-OCR-Page-0030.pdf.

38 “ANA Gold Medal for Clarence Eldridge.”

39 Mike Zotti, “Vast Surpluses Predicted Soon in Florida’s Citrus Production,” Tampa (Florida) Tribune, April 10, 1964: 5B; William Allan, “Commercials Rub Consumer Wrong Way,” Pittsburgh Press, May 17, 1964: Section 4: 9.

40 “Cereals Division Centralizing Here,” Battle Creek Enquirer and News, June 4, 1947: 1. Dutchess County is in the Hudson River valley, north of New York City; its county seat is Poughkeepsie.

41 Paul Mitchell, “Clearwater, County Agreement on Water Appears Step Closer,” St. Petersburg (Florida) Times, June 12, 1953: 27; “Pinellas Real Estate Sales,” Tampa Sunday Tribune, January 24, 1954: 11C.

42 Frederick D. McCarthy, “U.S. Warned to Build 2-Way World Trade,” Boston Evening Globe, October 21, 1957: 1.

43 Allan Jaklich, “Negro in Economic Void: Evans,” Chicago Tribune, November 1, 1968: Section 3: 8.

44 “Clarence Eldridge,” American Advertising Federation Hall of Fame website, accessed November 2023. http://advertisinghall.org/members/member_bio.php?memid=610&uflag=e&uyear=.

45 From the five AL games Eldridge umpired in 1915, two players outlived him – Eddie Ainsmith of the Washington Senators (died September 6, 1981) and Larry Kopf of the Philadelphia A’s (died October 15, 1986).

46 Kosharsky, “Clarence E. Eldridge, Marketing Executive;” Findagrave.com entry for Clarence Ernest Eldridge, accessed November 2023. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/228130256/clarence-ernest-eldridge.