Maybe the most important find related to the Negro Leagues among the U.S. passport applications concerns “Pud” Flournoy, a southpaw who pitched for Hilldale, the Brooklyn Royal Giants, and other teams in the 1920s, and was supposed to have struck out Babe Ruth three consecutive times. We have, for the first time I think, learned that his full name was Willis Jefferson Flournoy; he was born on August 9, 1894 (WWI draft card) or 1895 (passport application) in Monticello, Georgia. He served as a corporal in the Army in World War I. If the passport application is correct, he was six foot five (his draft card says “tall”). He died November 22, 1964, and is buried in Beverly National Cemetery, New Jersey. He currently appears in Riley and other sources as “Jesse Willis Flournoy;” “Jesse” could be derived from his middle name. (His name appears in several databases as “Willie” instead of “Willis.”)
Here is his World War I draft card (a poor image):
And here is his U.S. passport application:
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