Billy Sunday

He met Helen Amelia ‘Nell’ Thompson at a time when both of them were in serious relationships respectively. However, just as they say destiny plays a part of its own, the two eventually broke off their relationships to unite with each other.

Financial differences did not come in between as the two eventually tied the knot on September 5, 1888. They were blessed with four children, three sons and a daughter

In 1935, he suffered a heart attack. Though the doctors advised him to be cautious about preaching with such delicate health, he paid no heed and continued to preach. He breathed his last on November 6 of the same year.

William Ashley ‘Billy’ Sunday was born to William Sunday and Mary Jane Corey, near Ames, Iowa. After the death of his father in 1862, his family moved to live with his grandparents for a few years.

Billy and his elder brother were sent to live in Soldiers’ Orphans’ Home in Davenport, where he received a decent primary education and also began to hone his athletic skills.

At the age of 14, with a will to earn money of his own, he started working under Colonel John Scott. Soon, he was offered a home with the Scotts, who made sure that Billy studied at Nevada High School.

Despite not receiving a high school diploma, he was already considered well-educated by the standards of others, by 1880.

He moved to Marshalltown in 1880, where he was employed with the fire brigade team for his athletic build. It was during this time that he began playing for fire brigade baseball tournaments and eventually joined the town’s baseball team. His first match was two years later, where the town team defeated the Des Moines team.

His professional baseball career began in 1883, when he signed with the Chicago White Stockings, a National League team.

Initially, he started off as a part-time player, but was soon recognized for his speed and by 1887, made a regular right fielder. However, an unfortunate injury limited his games to about 50.

For the 1888 season, he was sold to the Pittsburgh Alleghenys team. This was the first time that he played the whole season. The crowds in Pittsburgh took to his prowess on the field, thus creating a large fan base.

In 1890, he was named the team captain of the Pittsburg Alleghenys, but with a bad season, the team could not afford him and he was, thus, sold to the Philadelphia Phillies, with whom he played a total of 31 games.

In 1891, he was released from his contract with the Philadelphia Ball Club, but still remained one of the greatest baseball players in the United States. In his best season, he ranked 17th in the league and had hit .291.

He received the National League Pennant for baseball, for two consecutive years - 1885 and 1886.