Arky Vaughan - 11x14" Print

Artwork by Don Henderson. Vector illustration of Arky Vaughan. In the early 1930's for a kid growing up in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh there was only one game in town. Sure there was Pitt football up on Cardiac Hill, but in the heart of Oakland was the field of dreams, Forbes Field, home of the Pittsburgh Pirates! The Pirates were a part of the fabric of Oakland. Nestled in the middle of a working class neighborhood, even if you weren't lucky enough to be at the game, you could still hear the crack of the bat and the sound of the crowd on summer nights when the Pirates were at home. KDKA Radio broadcast every game. Very often the sound of the crack of the bat was provided by the likes of Joseph Floyd "Arky" Vaughan! Vaughan was gifted, maybe one of the best to ever play the game. This guy was the real deal with a career .300 batting average. After the 1941 season, Vaughan was traded by the Pirates to the Dodgers till he had a run in with Leo Durocher and refused to play for three seasons. When Durocher was gone Arky returned and retired from baseball in 1948. In 1952 while on a fishing trip Vaughan's boat was caught up in a storm on Lost Lake and capsized. Vaughan and a companion both drowned. Arky Vaughan was only 40 years old. In 1985, Joseph Floyd "Arky" Vaughan was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. You might wonder about my connection with Arky Vaughan, other than the obvious Pittsburgh connection. Well my dad George Henderson grew up in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh, just a few blocks from old Forbes Field. As a kid and being left handed, he got labeled with the nickname "Arky". The name stuck, he even got it tattooed on his left forearm along with a Pirate tattoo on his right arm. When was the last time you felt that strongly about a team? I never knew all this until the day Freddy Sanchez won the National League batting title. On the news they said that this had only happen two other times in Pirate Baseball history and one of those times was in 1935 when Arky Vaughan hit .385! Arky Vaughan March 9, 1912 - August 30, 1952 Printed from an Epson Expression XP-15000 printer using Claria Hi-Definition Ink on a 13x19" luster finish, premium photo paper. Mailed in flat, rigid envelopes to prevent damage or curling, and are ready to frame. * Watermark will not appear on physical print.