Details have been released about the upcoming August 2 celebration during which a new historical marker will be installed in Truxton, Cortland County, NY, honoring legendary baseball manager John J. McGraw and commemorating a professional baseball game played there on August 8, 1938, between the New York Giants and Truxton Giants.
The event planning has expanded to include speeches by state and local representatives, local authors and special recognitions by the San Francisco Giants and the Cooperstown Hall of Fame.
The ceremony will begin at 1 pm. Songs of the Game will provide baseball themed music, and food vendors will be on site and in town to provide classic baseball fare, event themed t-shirts, postcards and CDs. There will be exhibition baseball games played by local school and travel programs, kicked off by a special announcement, organizers said.
John J. McGraw grew up and played local baseball in Truxton. He played and coached in Olean (Alleghany College/St. Bonaventure) and was signed by the Baltimore Orioles. McGraw played for the Orioles and the New York Giants.
While a very respectable player, McGraw’s true fame came as a manager. By the time he retired in 1932, he had won 2,763 games (third only to Connie Mack and Tony LaRussa), 10 National League pennants and three World Series.
In 1933 he coached the National League’s first All-Star Game. He pioneered tactics still used today, including the Baltimore chop, the hit-and-run, and the squeeze play. According to Mack, “[t]here has only been one manager – and his name is John McGraw.”
Local resident an event organizer William Swisher said, “John was proud of his Truxton background. He donated funds to build a grandstand on the John J. McGraw field, where the historic marker will be placed and where the event takes place.”
Swisher and his late wife have donated the funds for the marker and for the restoration of the John J. McGraw monument, which will be completed by August 2.
The John J. McGraw historic field marker dedication will be held August 2, 2025, 1:00 pm at the baseball field, 6290 Railroad Street in Truxton, Cortland County, NY. The event is open to the general public.
Photo: The original John McGraw Field grandstand in Truxton, NY (courtesy Society for American Baseball Research).
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