George Walter "Rube" Deneau

1878 - 1926  (48 years)

• Name	George Walter "Rube" Deneau
  Born	1878	Amherstburg, Essex Co., Ontario
  Gender	Male
  Occupation	1911	Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada   [1]
  	Base Ball Player
  		Kitchener-Baseball-BerlinGreenSocks-001-1911.jpg Berlin Green Sox Ontario Canadian League 1911 Baseball Team
  Eby ID Number	Waterloo-227333
  Died	10 Jan 1926	Windsor, Essex Co., Ontario, Canada
  Person ID	I227333	Generations
  Last Modified	7 Nov 2024

  
  

• Notes

  The 1911 team easily won the Canadian League pennant with a record of 70\endash 40, 11 games ahead of second-place London.[3] The team's manager and first baseman was George "Rube" Deneau. Their shortstop, Raymond "Scotty" Cameron, was described as the "fastest man in the league", and was compared with Joe Tinker; he hit .341 and stole 48 bases.[7][8] At the end of the season, he was drafted by the Philadelphia Athletics. "Berlin Busy Bees - Wikipedia". 2022. En.Wikipedia.Org. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Busy_Bees. _____________ George "Rube" Deneau George Deneau (died January 10, 1926) was a Canadian minor league baseball player, manager, and promoter who played on a number of Ontario and Michigan teams between 1898 and 1915. Known best by his nickname "Rube," he was born in Amherstburg, Ontario, about 20 miles downriver from Windsor, and died in 1926 at the age of 47.[1] He was remarkably popular with fans in his day, and newspaper reports routinely refer to the teams he was on as "Deneau's Boys," "the Deneauites," and (projecting his large build onto the entire team) "Deneau's huskies."... Berlin Green Sox, 1911-1912 In 1911 Deneau managed the Green Sox of Berlin, Ontario (later renamed Kitchener) to a pennant-winning 70-40 record in the Class D Canadian League (London, Hamilton, Guelph, St. Thomas, Brantford).[46] At Berlin he played 103 games, mostly at first base, earning a .297 batting average and a .427 slugging percentage. The team's stellar record notwithstanding, owner "Pop" Williams just broke even financially. The problem was that Berlin's Victoria Park was not big enough to accommodate the numbers the team needed to stay in the black. Deneau thought a move to Windsor might be in order, for Wigle Park was, in the words of the Windsor Evening Record, "one of the best baseball diamonds in Ontario." So after the regular season he took the Green Sox to the Windsor area for exhibitions against local teams and encouraged Windsor leaders to consider adopting the team. He also led a Canadian League all-star team that played exhibition games in the border area. As 1912 began there was no movement in Windsor for adopting the Green Sox, and Berlin authorities were dragging their feet on the prospect of expanding the facilities at Victoria Park. In February Deneau and "Pop" Williams negotiated with the city of Waterloo about moving the Berlin team there. Nothing came of that, but by April construction had begun on improvements to the Berlin field and Deneau was hiring men to replace the six from last year who had been snapped up by the majors. On May 11 the Berlin team came to Windsor for the latter's opening exhibition game at Wigle Park.[48] Deneau's team sported "the niftiest uniform in the league" and a new name, the Busy Bees.[49] There was a bump in the road when the Ontario Municipal and Railway Board ruled that public moneys could not be spent on the Victoria Park improvements without a referendum.[50] However, construction continued and all animosities crumbled at the season opener in Berlin, where Deneau was given a rousing welcome by 1500 fans, with a regimental band, a procession of leading citizens, and a presentation to Rube of "a monster bouquet and bag of gold." As the always adulatory Evening Record put it, "to show that his heart was in the right place [Deneau] won his game by 3 to 2" against the Brantford Red Sox. The league itself was upgraded this year to Class C and expanded to eight teams: Ottawa, Brantford, Hamilton, London, St. Thomas, Berlin, Guelph, and Peterborough. During the season Deneau continued to be the Renaissance Man of the diamond, serving as manager, utility outfielder, and sometime pitcher. He pinch-hit in one game against Ottawa on June 4 and in another on the 14th scored four runs on three hits and started a triple play. He pitched a total of 57 innings, was the pitcher of record in 9 games, won only 1 of them and lost 4. He batted 237 times for a .274 average in 63 games. However, the loss of those six men to the majors weighed heavily on the team. It ended up at 6th place in the 8-team league, with a .457 percentage. After the season, Deneau again organized a league all-star team that barnstormed the Ontario-Michigan area. "George "Rube" Deneau - Wikipedia". 2022. En.Wikipedia.Org. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_%22Rube%22_Deneau. ________________ RUBE DENEAU DEATH VICTIM Assistant Chief Of Riverside Police Dies Suddenly Popular Officer and Vet Ball Player Succumbs To Pneumonia George (Rube) Deneau. chief of the Riverside fire department and assistant chief of the Riverside police department, died at his home, 132 Lauzon road. Sunday night. following a week's illness of pneumonia. He was 47 years old. News of Mr Deneau's demise reached his large circle of friends as a distinct shock today. few people except those closely associated with him being aware of his illness, Only a week ago he attended to his duties as usual He had contracted a severe chill which rapidly developed into pneumonia. becoming acute toward the latter part of the week. His condition early yesterday gave little hope for his recovery and the end came after he had battled the disease with his characteristic courage. FORMERLY IN FORD Mr. Deneau was appointed assist ant chief of the Rivreside Police Department when that municipality was incorporated, four and a-half years ago. For about four years he served on the night staff of the Ford City police, under Chief Albert Maisonville. Throughout the entire district he was known only as "Rube," and one who always had the interests of his work at heart On various occasions he won high commendation for his actions in connection with tragedies and near-tragedies along the river front. WAS WELL KNOWN Word of his untimely death threw a shadow of sorrow over the entire border police departments 10 day, as Mr Deneau was one of the best known police officers in the county. From the moment he chose, poller work as his life calling he displayed outstanding bravery, never faltering in the execution of his dut les, no matter hew hazardous the task. OLD BALL PLAYER Not only was Mr. Deneau highly esteemed in police circles, but in the sporting world he had earned for himself wide renown as a baseball player. Born in Amherstburg, Mr. Deneau from the time he was able to wield a bat or throw a ball. chose the diamond" as the main stay of his athletic abilities. His rise to fame in the baseball world was quick, and he later became manager of the Battle Creek, Flint and Kitchener clubs which formed part of the Southern Michigan League Mr. Deneau will also be well' remembered for his baseball activities around London because of his prowess displayed in the days when "reversible batteries" were the Vogue DEVOUT CATHOLIC Mr. Deneau was a member of the Holy Name Society of St. Rose De Lania Roman Catholic church, also the Catholic Order of Foresters. The funeral takes place Wednesday morning at nine o'clock from the family residence to St. Rose De Lima church at 10 a. m. Honorary pall bearers will be members of the Catholic Order of Foresters of Riverside and Ford and of the Holy Name Society. The active pall bearers will be fellow officers in Riverside and Ford. The C. O. F. of Riverside and Ford will attend prayers at the residence to night at eight o'clock, and the Holy Name Society tomorrow night at eight o'clock. A detail from each of the other border police departments will be at the funeral, and the Riverside town council will attend in a body. LEAVES FAMILY Besides his widow, Irene, Mr. Deneau is survived by his mother. Mrs. Sarah Deneau, and four daughters, Georgina, Rosamond, Genevieve and Maryellen, also seven sisters, Mrs. J. H. Duprey, Mrs. J. Reynolds Mrs. W. Knapp, Mrs. P. Cornellus. Mrs. J Berthiaume, Mrs W. String fellow of Detroit, Mrs. A. Lawson of Windsor, and five brothers, Fred. Charles, Percy Russell and Wi liam, the latter residing in Chicago. Aloft the Riverside police station, the flag was at half mast today out of respect for one of the best known officials in the municipality. Denis Mahoney, chief of the Riverside police department who has been deeply moved by the death of his assistant, paid a glowing tribute to Mr. Deneau. "Rube" as we all ns knew him, was in my opinion one of the most capable officers ever to serve on a police force. His work was always performed thoroughly. and he did much to maintain a high standard of efllelency. His death removes one who will be greatly missed," said the chief. The Border Cities Star - Jan 11, 1926 ___________________ George Deneau George Walter Deneau "Rube" Born: 0 Primary Position: First base All Position(s) Played: P Career: 1906-1915 George Deneau compiled a career batting average of .275 with 22 home runs and 0 RBI in his 780-game career with the Jackson Convicts, Battle Creek Crickets, Saginaw Wa-was, Bay City, Berlin Green Sox, Berlin Busy Bees, London Tecumsehs and Brantford Red Sox. He began playing during the 1906 season and last took the field during the 1915 campaign. "George Deneau Minor League Baseball Statistics On Statscrew.Com". 2022. Statscrew.Com. https://www.statscrew.com/minorbaseball/stats/p-d20a3b34.

  
  

• Sources

  [S340] Census - ON, Waterloo, Berlin - 1911, Div. 23 Page 8.

  
  

• Event Map

  Born - 1878 - Amherstburg, Essex Co., Ontario Occupation - Base Ball Player - 1911 - Kitchener, Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada Died - 10 Jan 1926 - Windsor, Essex Co., Ontario, Canada  = Link to Google Earth