A League Of His Own: The Story of McMurry Legend Dan W. Dodson

April 15th, 1947, saw the opening day of the Dodgers’ 65th season. 26,263 fans packed into Ebbets Field, witnessing a moment that left a legacy in professional sports and racial equality history. Starting at first base was 28-year-old Jackie Robinson, the first black Major League Baseball player in an organization with a notorious “racial barrier”. The story of Jackie Robinson has been told through all forms of media, documentaries, and books, there is no more important story in sports history than the courage of an Army veteran and his dedication to breaking barriers not just for his race, but for the entire world. Behind the curtain of this historic moment was a 40-year-old sociologist with a history at a tiny college in Abilene, Texas. Dan W. Dodson stands as a silent warrior in the social justice movement. Branch Rickey, the at-time Dodger’s manager is often credited with sole responsibility for Robinson’s introduction to the MLB, but behind every story of legend is the truth, and the truth is more impactful than you could ever believe.

Dodson was born in Panther’s Chapel, Texas in 1907. Panther’s Chapel is currently recognized by the Texas Almanac as a “no longer existing” town. Despite these humble roots, Dodson pursued a life of education, graduating from McMurry College with an undergraduate degree and eventually receiving a graduate degree from Southern Methodist University. Notably in his early career, he began working for New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardi’s Committee on Unity in 1944. During this time Dodson helped eliminate secret quota systems used by large universities to limit admissions to Jewish, Catholic, and black students. Starting in 1945 Dodson began working with Branch Rickey and helped establish a plan based on Dodson’s education to help integrate the MLB. Dodson’s work and plans with Branch Rickey can be found in the Journal of Educational Sociology, Vol. 28, No. 2 (Oct., 1954), pp. 73-82.

McMurry has no shortage of notable alumni. Sarah Weddington was a vital part of one of the most important Supreme Court cases in our country’s history. Jorge Solis was a former U.S. district judge and oversaw many notable litigation cases. William Arthur Ward was a notable and prominent motivational writer. Yet in all of these names, little has been mentioned of a man who helped shape the racially integrated framework of the modern MLB. It is because of this that the work of Dan Dodson reaches an even further light of integrity. Dodson did not work for the rights of others for fame and fortune, he worked for what he believed was right. To quote Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The reward of a thing well done is to have done it.”

Dan W. Dodson passed August 5th, 1995, in Austin Texas at 88 years old. Thank you, Mr. Dodson, for your silent dedication and work to the most important of all social issues, equality for all, regardless of ethnicity or background. Robert Thomas Jr. (1995) of the New York Times and Timothy Chipp (2019) of the Abilene Reporter News both offer excellent stories on Dodson’s life and helped shape my framework for this article.