Stephen Russell Mallory Scarritt (1903 - 1994)

Born 14 Jan 1903 in Pensacola, Escambia, Florida, United States

Ancestors

Died 4 Dec 1994 at age 91 in Pensacola, Escambia, Florida, United States

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Biography

Russell Scarritt played baseball for the Boston Red Sox from 1929 to 1931, including playing against Babe Ruth.

Born 14 JAN 1903. Pensacola, Escambia, Florida. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]}

Married

Husband Stephen Russell Mallory Scarritt. Wife Capitola Armatine Pou. 19 FEB 1927. Pensacola, Escambia, Florida. ^[5]The wedding of Miss Capitola Pou and Mr. Russell Mallory Scarritt was solemnized last evening at 8 o'clock at the home of the bride's aunt, Mrs. A. M. McMillan. The bride's only attendant was her cousin, Miss Mattie Mae McMillan and Mr. Scarritt's best man was his brother, Mr. Harry Scarritt. "Later in the evening, Mr. Scarritt and his bride left for New Orleans where they will spend a week, after which they will return to Pensacola to spend several weeks before going to St. Paul, Minn." ... "The bride is the younger daughter of Mrs. Norma Pou, and the late Mr. Frank Pou. She attended Texas Women's college, in Fort Worth, and possesses much beauty and personality. Mr. Scarritt, who is the son of Mrs. Agnes Scarritt, is a member of one of Pensacola's pioneer families. He attended the University of Florida, where he took a prominent part in athletic and social circles." ^{[6] [7]}

Husband Stephen Russell Mallory Scarritt. Wife Mildred Hart. 30 OCT 1940. Warrington, Escambia, Florida. ^{[8] [9]}

Notes

From baseballalmanac.com: Russ Scarritt was born on Wednesday, January 14, 1903, in Pensacola, Florida. Scarritt was 26 years old when he broke into the big leagues on April 18, 1929, with the Boston Red Sox. Biographical Data. Birth Name: Stephen Russell Mallory Scarritt Bats : Left. Born On: 01-14-1903 Throws : Right. Born In: Pensacola, Florida Height : 5-10½. Died On: 12-04-1994 Weight : 165. Died In: Pensacola, Florida First Game: 04-18-1929. College: University of Florida Last Game: 05-25-1932. Nickname: None Draft: Not Applicable. He played in 1929, 30, and 31 for the Boston Red Sox and in one game in 1932 for the Philadelphia Phillies. His career major league statistics include: 285 games, 1037 at bats, .285 average, .385 slugging percentage, 44 doubles, 25 triples, 3 homers, 120 RBIs, 49 walks, 91 strikeouts. Also he had a .956 fielding percentage and a .486 stolen base percentage.

From baseball-reference.com, he led the Red Sox in 1929 in slugging percentage, at bats, hits, total bases, triples, RBIs, and singles. In 1930 he led the team in sacrifices.

Florida's First Big League Baseball Players, A Narrative History , by Wes Singletary, Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2006, pp. 47-53 has an article on Russell Mallory Scarritt, mostly an interview with Scarritt about his playing days. Some excerpts: "It was hard for me to keep a roommate; I had so much sickness to deal with. My wife had breast cancer and I had to stay home and take care of her. We had grown up together and she went through a great deal of pain with the cancer. We got married in 1923 and she died in early 1933. She'd had a hard time of it because she'd lost our first child and that threw her for a loop, and then she got the cancer. It took a lot out of me after she died and I just decided to quit baseball. You know, I didn't go on a date for four years after that." ... "When my wife passed away and I left baseball, I plugged into oil prospecting out in Texas and dug a few dry holes, and finally gave up on it and had to go to work. I got a job with Ford Motor Company here in Pensacola as a service manager and worked for them for forty years. It kept me busy. My brother Francis had tried to get me to go in with him on a Lincoln-Mercury dealership in St. Petersburg, but I didn't want to leave Pensacola. He did pretty good for himself down there." ... "I had an older brother, Jerry Scarritt, who died as a young man and who played football at Auburn and the University of Florida. He played football, baseball and ran track -- an athlete. Jerry died down in Gainesville in 1904 of typhoid fever and pneumonia that he'd picked up from a contaminated well. My house burned down on Christmas Day right after I quit playing. I lost all of my stuff that I had saved from my playing days; it burned everything I had. People remember me though. I get about three letters a week looking for autographs. I sign them and send them back."

From the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Sunday, January 27, 1929, p. C3: "Scarritt Passed Up West Point For The Diamond - Red Sox Recruit From St. Paul Is a Heavy-Hitting Outfielder - by. James J. Murphy -- Confronted with the problem of choosing between a career as an officer in Uncle Sam's Army or a star in professional baseball, Russell Mallory Scarritt selected the latter as his calling. The solution came while he was attending a military school to fit himself for a commission with the land forces of the country and became skilled in the national pastime. When Russell received an appointment to West Point he rejected it in favor of the diamond. The Army's loss was baseball's gain, for Scarritt is a descendant of real fighting stock. Russell saw visions of eventually getting into the circle where Babe Ruth is idolized. From a meager beginning he has advanced in easy stages until the big opportunity is at hand. He gets a trial with the Boston Red Sox in the spring, having been purchased from St. Paul of the American Association. It will be a distinguished recruit that will hustle to earn his way into the regular lineup of a consistent tailend club which Manager Bill Carrigan is attempting to transform into a contender for the American League pennant. The nephew of the late U. S. Senator Stephen R. Mallory of Florida advances to the big show with the reputation of being a clever outfielder, but most important of all a dispenser of prodigious drives. Scarritt, born in Pensacola, Jan. 14, 1904, is 5 feet 10 inches and weighs 165 pounds. He bats left-handed but throws right-handed and is reported to have a powerful arm. It has been his hitting that has attracted the most attention. During his professional career he has never failed to club the ball above the charmed 300 mark. With St. Paul last season he had a batting average of .354 for 120 games. His 149 hits were good for 192 total bases and included 29 doubles, four triples and two home runs. After starring in semi-pro baseball in Florida for two years, Russell joined Johnson City of the Appalachian League in 1923 and spent the following year there. He was with Greenville of the South Atlantic League in 1925 and 1926 and wielded his bludgeon so effectively each season that he was purchased by St. Paul, with whom he has starred for the past two seasons. Scarritt keeps fit during the winter by working for a construction company, playing golf, hunting and swimming. He is ranked as one of the best amphibians in Florida. Therefore, Bill Carrigan need have no fear of him being drowned while chasing the ball in Fenway Park on a rainy day."

From PRIVATE LIVES Series: PRIVATE LIVES; [CITY Edition] by. HUNT SCARRITT. St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Fla.: Nov 13, 1991. pg. 1.D Copyright Times Publishing Co. Nov 13, 1991. His grandson, Hunt Scarritt, wrote a personal memoir of his aging grandfather. [article (paywall) ]

Census

1930 Palmetto Beach, Escambia, Florida. ^[10]

Scarritt, Russell hd owns home $8000 M W 26 M (23) FL FL FL ballplayer/Boston

Scarritt, Capitola wf F W 25 M (22) FL AL AL

Pou, Norma m-i-l F W 47 Wd (18) AL AL MO

Scarritt, Theodore s M W 1 S FL FL FL

1935 New Warrington, Escambia, Florida. ^[11]

Scarritt, Russell M. hd M 32 FL fin 12th renter pressman

Scarritt, Theodore s M 6 FL

Scarritt, Thomas s M 3 FL

1940 Warrington, Escambia, Florida. ^[12]

Scarritt, Mrs. Agnes hd F W 75 Wd fin. H-4, b. FL lived same house in 1935 owns $2000 house not a farm informant

Scarritt, Russell s M W 37 Wd fin. C-4, b. FL same house service salesman - automobile $1200 salary in 1939

Scarritt, Theodore gs M W 11 S fin. 5 b. FL same house in schl

Scarritt, Thomas P. gs M W 8 S fin. 3 b. FL same house in schl

1945 Warrington, Escambia, Florida. ^[13]

Russell M. Scarritt 42 M FL 2 yrs college asst manager

Mildred H. Scarritt 31 F FL high school housewife

Jeremiah Scarritt 3 M FL

Thomas Scarritt 13 M FL 7th grade student

Theodore Scarritt 16 M FL 10th grade student

Died 4 DEC 1994. Pensacola, Escambia, Florida. ^{[14] [15] [16] [17] [18]}

Buried St. John's Catholic Cemetery, Warrington, Escambia, Florida. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/26815995/stephen-russell-scarritt

Sources

1. ↑ Source: #S12 aged 7 in 1910 census
2. ↑ Source: #S5 tombstone says 1903-11-14 to 1995-12-4 both of which dates disagree with other records
3. ↑ Source: #S4 SSDI gives birthdate as 14 Jan 1903
4. ↑ Source: #S3 Florida Death Index says b. 14 Jan 1903
5. ↑ Source: #S7 Wedding announcement in the Pensacola Journal of Feb 20, 1927, transcribed in the Golson Genealogy, p. 629. Some details:
6. ↑ Source: #S1 Florida Marriages 1837 - 1974 at familysearch.org Groom name Russell Mallory Scarritt Bride name Capitola Pow Marriage date 19 Feb 1927 Marriage place Escambia County, Florida Batch number M74337-7 Record group Florida-EASy Film number 941007 Reference number bk v p 294
7. ↑ Source: #S72 p. 438
8. ↑ Source: #S1 from Florida Marriage Index, 1822-1875 and 1927-2001 at familysearch.org: Name Russell M. Scarritt Marriage Date 1940 Marriage Place Escambia, Florida, United States Certificate Number 24477 Volume 575 Mildred Hart has the same certificate number and volume from the image at Florida Marriages, 1830-1993 - very faded copy, can read both their names and that it was October 1940 but the day is not readable, return was made on 31 Oct, and it was recorded book 42, page 358, witnesses Mr. and Mrs. Fred L. Eglehoff
9. ↑ Source: #S7 from the Pensacola News Journal (Pensacola, Florida), Tue., Nov. 5, 1940, p. 5: Marriage of Miss Mildred Hart And Mr. Russell M. Scarritt - Mrs. Clara Hart announces the marriage of her daughter, Mildred, to Mr. Russell M. Scarritt, Wednesday evening, October 30, at St. John's rectory, Warrington. The Rev. Joseph Royer performed the ceremony. Attendants were Mr. and Mrs. F. L. Egelhoff.
10. ↑ Source: #S12 ed 44, "Big Bayou Station"
11. ↑ Source: #S12 Pct 44 of Pensacola, p. 14
12. ↑ Source: #S12 ed 17-65, p. 940, sht 5A, election Pct 44, taken April 6, Pou Station
13. ↑ Source: #S12 Pct 44, unpaginated, 9 Navy Nook
14. ↑ Source: #S5 tombstone says 1903-11-14 to 1995-12-4 both of which dates disagree with other sources
15. ↑ Source: #S7 from an online index of obits from the Pensacola News Journal: SCARRITT Stephen Russell Mallory 91, 06 Dec 1994 (this would be the date of the obit, not the death)
16. ↑ Source: #S4 RUSSELL M SCARRITT 14 Jan 1903 04 Dec 1994 32514 (Pensacola, Escambia, FL) (none specified) 263-09-0789 Florida
17. ↑ Source: #S3 Florida Death Index says d. 4 Dec 1994
18. ↑ Source: #S7 The Pensacola Journal of 6 Dec 1994 has a long article on the front page of its sports section that serves as an obituary and summarizes his playing days [obit (paywall)]

• Source: S12 census record
• Source: S5 tombstone inscription
• Source: S4 Social Security Death Index
• Source: S3 death certificate or record
• Source: S7 newspaper
• Source: S1 marriage record
• Source: S72 James M. Black, Families and Descendants in America of Golsan, Golson, Gholson, Gholston (Salt Lake City, Utah: The Author, 1959) Note: Most of the data for the Scarritt family in this book seems to have been provided by the sister of Capitola A. Pou Scarritt.