Clifford Rankin "Pat" Crawford Memoirs & Scrapbook

Collection

Identifier: DC0309s

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of a memoir and a scrapbook. The memoir is entitled Baseball Life of C.R. "Pat" Crawford, written by Crawford and later retyped and printed by his family. The scrapbook was compiled by Crawford. It is mostly newspaper clipping from his college baseball career and early professional career as a player and coach. There are also photographs from college games. Artifacts A584-587 are signed baseballs belonging to Crawford.

Dates

Creation: 1919-1926, 2009

Biographical / Historical

C. R. Clifford graduated from Davidson in 1923. He came to Davidson from South Carolina and while a student was a member of the Bachelors Club, Eumenean Society, Omicron Delta Kappa and the YMCA. He served as secretary and treasurer of the Athletic Association; vice-president of the sophomore class; vice-president of the student body, president of the YMCA and was an athlete. He earned All-State Baseball 1921-22, All-State Basketball 1922 and was captain of the Basketball and Baseball teams in 1922. After graduation, he taught in Gastonia, North Carolina before starting a career in major league baseball. He played for the New York Giants, the Cincinnati Reds, and the St. Louis Cardinals. Crawford compiled a lifetime .280 batting average and was a utility player for the Cardinals' famous "Gas House Gang" that won the 1934 World Series. His first hit in the major leagues was a grand slam home run against the Boston Braves in 1929. In 1937, he and his wife, Sarah, purchased a 20-acre site in Morehead City, and there operated Camp Morehead by the Sea for many years. Crawford died January 25, 1994.