image of Boomer Harding by artist Scott ChantlerCartoonist Scott Chantler will be on hand for an event celebrating the 85th anniversary of the Chatham Coloured All-Stars becoming the first black team to win an Ontario Baseball Association provincial championship.

Reception to mark anniversary of historic baseball win

Graphic novelist Scott Chantler, a former UWindsor cartoonist-in-residence, will be on hand for a campus commemoration of the 1934 Ontario Baseball Association provincial championship won by the Chatham Coloured All-Stars — the first by a black team.

Chantler wrote and illustrated an account of the historic win, titled All Stars: the True Story of the 1934 Chatham Coloured All-Stars; copies of the work will be available for purchase at $5, with proceeds benefiting the Chatham-Kent Black Historical Society.

The 85th anniversary celebration is set for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 23, in Katzman Lounge, Vanier Hall. It is free and open to the public, and will feature reflections on baseball, community, and that famous championship squad by those involved in the “Breaking the Colour Barrier” archive of materials documenting the achievements of Wilfred (Boomer) Harding and his teammates.