Tom Kennedy, Rodney Finger, and Larry Miggins pose in front of the Dickie Kerr statue when it still remained on exhibit at the old Finger Furniture Sports Museum.
Most of you know the story of the late Dickie Kerr. He was the young Chicago White Sox lefty who pitched his heart out honestly for the team that has come to be known as the Black Sox when eight of the men allegedly conspired to throw the World Series to the Cincinnati Reds back in 1919. Rookie Kerr won both his starts in the 1919 World Series, but it wasn’t enough to save the Sox from falling to the Reds, 5 games to 3.
Kerr later retired in Houston as one of the most famous people in our local baseball community. He also coached college baseball at Rice in 1927.
Bust View of the Dickie Kerr Statue.
The native St. Louisan was also a very close friend of Stan Musial, going back to the manager-player relationship that Kerr and Musial enjoyed together in 1940 at Class D ball Daytona Beach. As Musial’s prospects began to slip from injury in his third year, it was manager Kerr who helped him see that his bat provided a whole other set of prospects that may even even shine brighter as a future. When Musial married as a young minor leaguer, he and his bride even moved in with Kerr and his wife to save money – and more importantly, to cement a close lifetime relationship between the two families.
Years later, when Musial’s star hung in the highest region of MLB baseball heaven, the Kerrs had fallen upon hard times in Houston. And Stan Musial did what a Stan Musial does. He bought the Kerrs a house that remained their home for life. Dickie Kerr passed away in 1963 at the age of 69. We are not informed of the date his wife died.
Dickie Kerr was one of the good guys on the 1919 White Sox Scandal team.
The point today is that The Pecan Par Eagle has now heard from Donna Tinsley, a former Houstonian who also happens to be the great-niece of the late Dickie Kerr, who just recently saw the following linked column from a while back:
Ms. Tinsley also left the following comment at the foot of that post:
“It was wonderful to read about my great-uncle. We moved from Houston 20 years ago and I never knew where his statue landed after Fingers. My mom was named after him and his wife Cora. Her parents named her Dixie Corene. She spent summers with them and got to know Stan and some of the other celebs who congregated there like Clark Gable (on occasion). They were like parents to her since her dad died when she was seven. She said their home was always full of people. I remember going to a ceremony/dedication for Uncle Dick at the old Buff Stadium when I was a kid. Guess my husband and I will have to visit Constellation Field, seeing that it was close to where we moved from.
Thank you for a great article. It filled in a few blanks for me.
Donna”
Anterior view of the Dickie Kerr staue and base, as it appeared on display at the now closed Houston Sorts Museum that Finger Furniture operated for three generations before its closing for economic reasons.
Donna, we are happy that you enjoyed the article. Whenever you and your husband do return to our area to see the statue in it’s new location, please let us know. My guess is that the Sugar Land Skeeters would like to know so that they can do everything in their power to make you comfortable and also draw new attention to what the Dickie Kerr statue represents – and that big word is “integrity”.
Also, Donna, please let me know if you feel OK about me releasing your e-mail address to the Sugar Land Skeeters or other writers who may wish to contact you about a follow up story to your comments here. I will not release it to anyone without your expressed e-mail consent.
My e-mail address is bill.mccurdy37@gmail.com
Thanks again for writing.
God bless you and yours,
Bill McCurdy, The Pecan Park Eagle
The Pecan Park Eagle 
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