Lawrence Farley

Lawrence Farley

• Bats Unknown, Throws Unknown

• Debut June 24, 1884
• Final Game July 12, 1884

• Born August, 1856 in Seneca Falls, NY USA
• Died October 6, 1910 in Kansas City, MO USA

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Biographical Information

Lawrence Farley was originally listed in most records as Tom Farley. His name made the newspapers in 1892 when he shot and killed his brother-in-law Michael Minnaugh, a saloon owner, in a business dispute in Alton, IL on November 24th. Press coverage at the time stated that the perpetrator was a former member of the Washington ball club. Farley was sentenced to life in prison for the crime, but the term was commuted to ten years by the Governor of Illinois in 1897. He was pardoned in December 1898 due to poor health.

Lawrence Foley played on a semi-pro team in Vincennes, IN from mid-May of 1884 until mid-June, when the team disbanded. The woeful Washington Nationals of the American Association were in St. Louis, MO at that time and picked up the unemployed Farley to help out in the outfield on June 24th (Alton is located only a few miles north of St. Louis, on the Illinois bank of the Mississippi River). Farley played 14 games for the Nationals, hitting .212, before being released in mid-July. In 1887 he would manage a team in Alton, according to contemporary newspapers, although its caliber is unknown.

Farley was a glass blower by trade, and was still living in Alton at the time of the 1900 Census. He had moved to Kansas City, MO by 1910 and died there on October 6, 1910.

Source

• "Lawrence Farley", in Bill Carle, ed.: Biographical Research Committee Report, May/June 2007, SABR, Cleveland, OH, 2007, pp. 1-2.