In many ways, the 1930s, 1940s, and into the 1950s represented the golden age of local baseball in Bloomington-Normal and the surrounding area, This collection was compiled by one of McLean County’s star players of that period, Joseph Vogel.
Joe Vogel was born November 29, 1907, in Benson. He married Ruby Aspel on August 15, 1933, in Downs, and they went on to have three sons and four daughters. Joe retired from General Electric. He was a member of Holy Trinity Church, the Bloomington Bass Club, and the Bloomington Moose Lodge. He was involved with baseball for 32 years and also coached Little League baseball in Heyworth. He died March 13, 1980.
This collection includes Joseph Vogel’s obit, McLean County Museum of History gift agreement with his son Dennis, and miscellaneous newspaper articles. There are three scrapbooks: Red Scrapbook – newspaper clippings; Gray Scrapbook – Municipal and Corn Belt Leagues; and Lesson Plan Book – Tri-County League.