Harry "Bucky" Lew, basketball's first Black professional

Harry “Bucky” Lew leapt over pro basketball’s color wall in 1902 and continued to integrate every single role in the game over the next 25 years. He was the first Black player, coach, manager, referee, and franchise owner in otherwise white leagues across New England. 

Lew was a singular man but he wasn't alone. Maine's own Louis Sockalexis undoubtedly eased his path. Lew signed his first contract the same year and in the same city baseball's first Indian had just played his most complete season in Lowell, MA. And Lew later circled the bases. His success running a team in Nashua, NH, led the Dodgers to place their first Black players in the US there as Jackie Robinson started in Montreal. 

Join Author Chris Boucher to hear more about these early inspirations for the full integration of major league sports.

A lifelong basketball fan, Chris Boucher hadn’t heard of Bucky Lew until he started researching early basketball in his backyard. He was shocked to learn all his hometown hero accomplished and now hopes to get Lew his proper due.