The Henry Kuempel Collection - Austin Pioneers

This home movie, most likely shot in the late 1940s or early 1950s, captures baseball practice at Disch Field with the Austin Pioneers. The Pioneers was one of the eight original teams that formed the Big State League, a Class B minor league baseball circuit featuring clubs exclusively based in Texas. Ed Knebel, Henry Kuempel’s predecessor and colleague at the 7-Up Bottling Company of Austin, owned the club. He also financed the construction of Disch Field, the team’s home park. The Austin Pioneers played from 1947 to 1955, after which Knebel sold the franchise to James D. Connolly and Associates. The group subsequently brought the Texas League to Austin with a revived Austin Senators team. Disch Field, operated from 1947 to 1967, was home to the Austin Pioneers, Senators, and Braves. In the footage, players warm in the batting cages before practicing hitting and pitching on the field.