Montclair’s own Larry Doby was honored posthumously with a Congressional Gold Medal during a ceremony at the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13 in Washington, D.C. on what would have been his 100th birthday. Doby broke the color barrier in the American League in 1947 signing with the Cleveland Indians, 11 weeks after Jackie Robinson became the first player of color to play in modern major league baseball. He and his wife Helyn lived in Montclair from 1960 to 2003 where they raised their family. Doby’s daughter Susan Doby Robinson is a secretary at Northeast, his granddaughter Nicole Frasier is a retired Central Office secretary and his great grandson Justus Frasier is a paraprofessional at Buzz Aldrin.
Doby was voted to seven All-Star teams over his 13-year career and won a World Series in 1948 where he was also the first African American player to hit a home run in a World Series. All of the Major League Baseball teams were integrated by the time that Doby retired in 1958.
He became the second Black major league manager when he took the helm of the White Sox in 1978. Doby was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998 and has received countless honors for his achievements.
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