The identity of these W.W. II era soldiers and their vintage basketball team is unknown; if you believe you know anything about them or their team, please let us know.
Vintage All-Black U.S. Military Basketball Teams: Unknown Soldiers I
During World War II the Bronson Field Bombers, an all-black U.S. Navy basketball team stationed at Bronson Field in Pensacola, Florida, won the Naval Air Training Bases basketball championships.
After World War I, some veterans from Company E of the 372nd Colored Infantry Regiment, 93rd Division, formed a basketball team.
All-black military basketball teams go as far back as racial segregation in the Armed Services. One such team played in the early 1910s: the 10th Cavalry “Buffalo Soldiers” Five, from Fort Ethan Allen in Vermont.
Part 3 of a multi-part series on George Crowe, the last living New York (Harlem) Rens player, covers his stellar collegiate career and military experiences.
Did one devastating punch thrown by a future Basketball Hall of Fame player in an unrelated game threaten to derail Jackie Robinson’s baseball debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers?
The NBA celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1996. The problem is that it didn’t exist until 1950 when the BAA merged with the NBL. This new book clears that up.
April birthdays related to the Black Fives Era of basketball include Don Barksdale, Bill Yancey, John McLendon, Paul Robeson, and Charles Scottron.
The fact that some of the Hall of Fame’s Class of 2009 finalists are black does not stir up any controversy whatsoever. But that wasn’t always the case.
True, there are plenty of basketball stories right now amid the March Madness and the ever-tightening races for playoff position in the NBA. But there’s an important addition that should not be overlooked. This weekend marks the 70th anniversary of a landmark event in basketball.
4,300
Black Fives
We inspire excellence in youth and communities by preserving, teaching, and honoring the pre-NBA history of African Americans in basketball.
For years, we have been building something truly remarkable.![]()
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Something deeper than what’s visible on the surface.![]()
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This piece, created by the Gee’s Bend Quilters Collective from remnants of our Black Fives throwback jerseys, carries that idea.![]()
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On the front, you see something beautiful.![]()
On the back, you see the work.![]()
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Tens of thousands of stitches.![]()
Each one holding the whole together.![]()
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Like the earlier African American basketball pioneers whose names were forgotten, but whose work helped shape the game.![]()
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Like the countless people, often unseen, who did and are doing the work that holds our country together.![]()
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The surface only exists because of what’s behind it.![]()
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And it’s only as strong as the weakest stitch.![]()
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Do we really want to remove certain stitches?![]()
Are we OK with pieces falling apart?![]()
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Do we value the work we don’t see?![]()
Do we recognize it?![]()
Do we protect it?![]()
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That’s the real story.![]()
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A cultural archive. A sports heritage platform.![]()
Build with us.![]()
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Make History Now.![]()
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#culturalheritage ![]()
#intellectualproperty ![]()
#archives ![]()
#sportsbusiness ![]()
#blackhistory
For years, we have been building something truly remarkable.![]()
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A deep archive of early African American basketball.![]()
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The stories, the images, the history that shaped the game.![]()
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But this is more than an archive.![]()
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It’s a cultural IP and sports heritage platform.![]()
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Infrastructure of history, identity, and assets ready to build with.![]()
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For partners, institutions, and brands who want real cultural authenticity, not just performative optics.![]()
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Build with us.![]()
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blackfives.org/build![]()
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#blackhistory #culturalheritage #brandpartnerships #archives #intellectualproperty