With your library card, discover history through the original stories in the Grand Rapids Press Digital Edition from home. Explore the rich history of the Grand Rapids Chicks All American Girls Professional Baseball League.
Special thanks to the Titche Family Fund of the Grand Rapids Public Library Foundation.
Bat girls for the 1950 season, Shirley Forwood and Marilyn Jenkins.
Photo credit: Robinson Studio photographs, Grand Rapids Public Library.
Marilyn Jenkins
Hometown: Grand Rapids
Marilyn Jenkins was 11-years-old when the league started. Marilyn loved baseball, and she got a job with the Chicks picking stones out of the infield and cleaning under the bleachers. She quickly became a bat girl for the team, a position she held for the 1945 through 1951 seasons. After graduating from high school, she joined the Chicks as a catcher for the 1952 through 1954 seasons.
Learn more about Marilyn through these original stories in the Grand Rapids Press archives:
August 3, 2010: Baseball: It’s a girl thing - Former GR Chicks reminisce about women’s league
November 6, 1988: Chicks players ‘overwhelmed’ to to have spot in Hall of Fame
August 21, 1954: Chicks thrill 2,260 Fans, Winning Big Doubleheader
May 12, 1953: Catching Lack Big Problem for Chicks
