Bull Connor

As the segregationist Commissioner of Public Safety for Birmingham, AL from the 1930s through '60s, Theophilus Eugene "Bull" Connor held a prominent role as antagonist in many of the Civil Rights Movements major events.

In addition to holding the "Public Safety" position for two long stints, Connor was previously a one-term representative to the Alabama state legislature, stood as a candidate to become governor of the state in 1938 and 1954 and was central in the creation of the national Dixiecrat party at the 1948 Democratic National Convention. The launching pad for Connor's public career was baseball.

In the mid-to-late 1920s Eugene Connor worked as a telegraph operator, began doing game recreation and gained a measure of local fame as the voice of the Southern League Birmingham Barons. Connor's nickname came from this period, though whether "Bull" refers to a bullhorn he used in his recreations or his ability to make up elaborate descriptions from bare-bones telegraphs (or both) is unknown.

Further Reading

Southern League by Larry Colton