Francis C Richter

The editor of the Reach Guide from its inception in 1901, Richter died the day after completing the 1926 edition. As a writer and associate of baseball officials, he was influential in the early development of the game. Beginning with Philadelphia Day in 1872, then the Sunday World and Public Ledger, he was the first to set up a sports department for any newspaper. Richter helped form the original American Association in 1882 and to place the Philadelphia Athletics in it. The next year he helped organize the Phillies in the NL. In 1883, he started Sporting Life, a weekly newspaper, which became a great force in baseball. In 1907, he was offered the presidency of the NL, but turned it down. Richter was a WS official for many years and wrote a history of baseball.