The first Johnstown team played in 1883 in the
Western Interstate League and 1884 in the
Iron & Oil Association. A few years later, the
Johnstown Pirates/Terrors played in the
Pennsylvania State League. The
Johnstown Mormans in 1898 played in the
New York State League. The first version of the team named the
Johnnies played in 1904 in the independent
Pennsylvania League, which merged to become the
Tri-State League the following year. This team moved to
Chester, Pennsylvania during the 1912 season. The Johnnies resurfaced in the
Middle Atlantic League in 1925 and played continuously through 1942, when they had to temporarily suspend playing due to World War II. After the war, the team started up again in 1946 before dissolving in 1950. The
Wilkes-Barre Barons moved to Johnstown during the 1955 season and became the latest version of the Johnnies but only lasted two seasons. In 1961, the
Boston Red Sox had an affiliate in Johnstown named the
Johnstown Red Sox. Eddie Popowski managed the team. Multiple notable players spent time with the Johnstown Red Sox, including
Guido Grilli,
Bob Heffner,
Jerry Mallett,
Al Moran,
Dave Morehead,
Ted Schreiber,
Pete Smith,
Bill Spanswick and
Wilbur Wood. A new version of the team, known first as the
Steal and then the Johnnies played in the
Frontier League from 1995 to 2002 before moving to
Florence, Kentucky and becoming the
Florence Freedom. ==The ballpark==