The Boston Bloomer team was organized in the 1880s and brought to Forest Park in 1937 by Emery Parichy. Parichy owned a roofing business in Oak Park (starting in 1926). Parichy Stadium in Forest Park was at the northwest corner of Harlem and Harrison (currently U-Haul and Ferrara Pan’s parking lot). The home team was the Bloomer girls from the National Girls Baseball League (NGBL) which started in 1944. Though “National” was in the name NGBL only played in the Chicago area. The league had six professional teams: the Bloomer Girls, the Blue Birds, the Chicks, the Queens, the Cardinals, and the Music Maids. Parichy Stadium also featured a great restaurant and museum for memorabilia and hosted wrestling matches. In addition the Rockford Peaches and Racine Bells from the All American Girls Baseball League (which required players to wear skirts) also played some games there. The All American Girls Baseball League required players to wear skirts and used the girls’ appearance to promote games. Players signed contracts to guarantee moral and ethical behavior. The NGBL was more about the sport. The league annually drew over 500,000 fans by the late-1940s.
