He thought that World War II would dilute major league talent so much, that the women's league was a way to keep interest in the game, and give people another reason to come to the ballpark. It was also seen as a morale booster for the wartime American public.
Wrigley had hoped to convince the other major league owners to also offer women's teams to play in their ballparks on off-days, but no one else would follow. So, initial tryouts were held in Wrigley Field, and the league remained a Midwestern affair. Four teams played that first season; Rockford, South Bend, Racine and Kenosha.
Wrigley and his partner in the venture Arthur Meyerhoff marketed the game magnificently. (Meyerhoff was an advertising executive). The women played tough baseball, but they were always the picture of 1940s femininity. They were required to wear their hair long, wear makeup and skirts, and take a training course taught by beauty consultant Helena Rubenstein. She taught them how to walk, talk, and interact with their male fans. The girls always had chaperones on the road with them too. These chaperones kept an eye on the girls 24 hours a day to make sure they stayed out of trouble.
The baseball on the field was of surprisingly good quality. The managers were former major-league ballplayers like Jimmie Foxx (whom they based the Tom Hanks character on in the film "A League of their Own"), Max Carey, Bill Wambsganss, Johnny Rawlings, Bert Niehoff, Dave Bancroft and Leo Murphy. And although they initially played with a softball and a pitching mound only 40 feet from the plate, they slowly moved the mound back and eventually played with a regulation baseball.
The league dissolved in 1954 when the number of women coming out for baseball began to decrease. Many post-war women opted for marriage and families instead. Still, the league was considered a great success. In 1948, at the peak of the league, nearly a million fans came out to the ballpark to watch women's baseball. By the end of their eleven year run, the league had expanded to include teams in Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Grand Rapids, Fort Wayne, Springfield Illinois, Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, Muskegon, Peoria, and even Chicago.
In fact, in a little known footnote to history, the All-American Girls League did something that men didn't do for another forty-five years at Wrigley Field. Temporary lights were installed in 1943, and the girl's played the first night game in Wrigley Field history.
