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were rumors of a possible floor fight at the Winter
Meetings. It would hinge on the issue of the existing NAPBL treasury upwards of $ 250,000. Some leagues, with operations suspended, wanted to divide up the money and liquidate the fund. The key issue was whether or not the suspended leagues or only those still active had the right to vote. Bramham prevailed, keeping the treasury intact for post-war operations, and was elected to a new five-year term as president. But time and responsibilities affected his health, and was forced to announce his retirement on the eve of the 1946 Winter Meetings. Bramham was retained as a consultant to the new president Trautman, but he died a few months later.
283:, since the organization was founded in 1901, but Bramham moved them to Durham, North Carolina, where he had a thriving law practice and was active in statewide Republican politics. Only five leagues committed to operate in 1933, but 14 actually opened and finished the season. As a result, Bramham soon found out that he had a full-time job and gave up his law business to devote all his energy to the organization during 14 years. That started an upward trend for the NAPBL guided by Bramham, which reached a peak of 43 leagues just prior to the start of World War II, as he inherited 14 leagues and 102 clubs, but turned over 52 leagues and 388 clubs to his successor
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267:, only 25 minor league circuits were able to finish the regular season that year. That number dwindled to 21 in 1930 and 16 in 1932. From there, the administrative duties were put in the hands of an executive committee for a period of one year, with orders to survey conditions and report back with recommendations and specific requests for changes.
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Despite the war threat, 41 NAPBL circuits operated in 1941, but many of them soon suspended operations. The number was down to 31 in 1942 and fall to just nine in 1943. But
Bramham had one more major battle to fight during his term of office. Late in 1943, when he opted to run for reelection, there
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One of the most significant reforms instituted by
Bramham during these years was designed to eliminate the so-called "shoestring operators", who often did not have the financial support to survive a full season. Bramham insisted that new owners show moral integrity and back up their operations with
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Judge
Bramham carried his judicial title during four different decades in baseball despite never having sat upon a bench. His law school classmates bestowed it to honor his dignified manner, a demeanor that had undoubtedly served him well in baseball circles. In between, Bramham was a member of the
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At the Winter
Meetings of 1932, Bramham was appointed as the third president of the NAPBL. Bramham treated it as a great opportunity, instead of a misfortune, and provided the strong leadership that the baseball industry needed to survive and eventually prosper in the 1930s, despite the turbulent
303:, protecting them from physical and verbal attacks from both uniformed and non-uniformed personnel. Among other of his ideas, he implemented by the mid-1930s a school of instruction for club business managers, and displays of promotional ideas at the Winter Meetings.
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After that
Bramham faced an even bigger hurdle, as was the start of World War II conflict. This not only drained the game of achievements, as ballplayers marched off to serve their country, but also created
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guaranty deposits, and he rigidly held all NAPBL clubs to this standard. This led to improved stability and sounder policies, making it easier to bring in new investors.
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before showing his interest in baseball, as he helped stabilize the ballgame in the state in 1902 and was largely responsible for the creation of the
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through gas rationing and electrical power, travel cutbacks and the elimination of night games in coastal areas on both sides of the country.
158:(July 13, 1874 β July 8, 1947) was an American baseball executive, lawyer and politician, whose most significant role was as president of the
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Baseball's
CanadianβAmerican League: A History of Its Inception, Franchises, Participants, Locales, Statistics, Demise and Legacy, 1936β1951
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in Durham, North
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During this time, Bramham accumulated enough experience as organizer and was well-versed in factors caused by the
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Umstead) Bramham (1878β1964) and his son
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University
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from 1933 through 1946. Bramham was one of the judges for the
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National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues
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National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues
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299:Bramham also was a strong backer of his
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484:William G. Branham Dies in Durham
214:club, precursor to the legendary
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25:William Gibbons Bramham
208:Durham, North Carolina
200:Hopkinsville, Kentucky
73:Durham, North Carolina
54:Hopkinsville, Kentucky
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263:After the historical
254:Major League Baseball
250:Minor League Baseball
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164:Baseball Hall of Fame
141:president (1933β1946)
135:president (1928β1929)
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103:Minor League Baseball
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571:William G. Bramham
241:in 1928 and 1929.
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287:in 1947.
149:1902β1946
105:executive
438:MiLB.com
198:Born in
84:American
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291:Reforms
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330:uremia
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324:Death
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399:MiLB
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188:1932
184:1928
180:1924
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