Strike three! Local newsrooms missed the story of the Indianapolis Clowns

By: Tracey Compton, Indianapolis Public Editor

Outlets: Indiana Capital Chronicle

Published: June 10, 2026

Words: 1,879

Last Updated: 1 day, 20 hours ago

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Recently, I solved a family mystery. There is an old photo of my grandmother: she’s standing on a baseball field with a bare-chested man, wearing a grass skirt and white face paint. Where is she? Who is she with? Why?

What I ultimately surmised from this mid-century photograph, is that she’s standing with a member of the Negro American League baseball team the Indianapolis Clowns, or the Ethiopian Clowns, which was one of their names …

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