Horace Stoneham

Lore & Background

Horace Stoneham was born in Newark, New Jersey, on April 27, 1903, to stockbroker and financier Charles Stoneham and Johanna McGoldrick. On January 14, 1919, when Horace was 15, Charles Stoneham purchased controlling interest in the Giants. The young Stoneham studied at the Hun School of Princeton and graduated from Trinity-Pawling School in 1921. He briefly attended Fordham University but dropped out after four days and was sent by his father to work in a copper mine in California during the winter of 1923–24. He returned at his father's insistence to the Giants' spring training camp in Sarasota, Florida, ahead of the 1924 season to begin his apprenticeship as a baseball executive and future owner. He began by working on the Giants' grounds crew, then managed the leasing of the team's Polo Grounds stadium for other sporting events, and handled the team's travel and accommodation with club secretary Eddie Brannick. In the early 1930s, he was admitted into Hall-of-Fame manager John McGraw's inner circle. On January 6, 1936, at age 32, Horace Stoneham inherited the Giants upon his father's death, becoming the youngest club owner in the National League's 70-year history.

In Their Own Story

The lights of Candlestick Park hummed with the electric anticipation of a new era. Horace Stoneham stood on the field before the first home game in 1958, looking out at a sea of fans that felt worlds away from the Polo Grounds. The wind whipped off the bay, a stark reminder of the Pacific Coast he had chosen to call home. As the crowd roared for the opening pitch, Stoneham knew the long journey from New York was finally complete; the Giants were no longer just a memory, but a living part of San Francisco.

Reader's Guide

Stoneham's ownership witnessed three separate pennant-contending and -winning eras: the team that he inherited, the 1936–38 Giants with Bill Terry, Carl Hubbell and Mel Ott; the 1949–55 teams of manager Leo Durocher, with Monte Irvin, Sal Maglie, Bobby Thomson and Willie Mays; and the star-studded 1958–71 Giants of Mays, Orlando Cepeda, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal and Gaylord Perry. Although the Giants won only one pennant and one division title in their first 15 years after moving to the Bay Area, they were a consistent contender. During the mid-1970s, lacklustre on-field performance and dwindling attendance forced Stoneham to sell the team.

Did You Know?

• Stoneham became the youngest club owner in National League history at age 32 when he inherited the Giants in 1936.
• He was a hands-on owner personally involved in player trades and transactions.
• In 1948, Stoneham negotiated with Dodgers president Branch Rickey to release Leo Durocher from his contract and hired him as Giants manager.
• The Giants signed their first Black players in 1949: infielder Hank Thompson and outfielder Monte Irvin, who broke the team's color line on July 8.