Eddie Dwight & Hurley McNair

Source: Phil S. Dixon (negroleagueman)

This photo of Eddie Dwight and Hurley McNair was likely taken sometime in 1929 or possibly 1930.  Both played on the Union Giants during those two years.  

Dwight started the '29 season with the Kansas City Monarchs but by August he was leading off the lineup and playing center field for Gilkerson.   In the photo he appears to still be wearing his Monarchs jacket and hat.  Previously, Dwight had played for the Union Giants in 1926 and '27.

Hurley McNair had a much longer history with Robert Gilkerson.  The two had been teammates on the Chicago Union Giants back in 1913.  McNair stayed on with the team in 1914 and again in 1916 with Gilkerson as his manager.

In 1917, McNair joined Gilkerson in Iowa as part of the Lost Island Lake Giants team.  He then rejoined Gilkerson and the Union Giants in 1919 mid-season.

When the Negro National League formed in 1920, McNair left to play with the Kansas City Monarchs where he stayed for eight years.  He spent one year with the Detroit Stars before returning to Gilkerson's team in 1929.  He played outfield for the Union Giants from 1929 to 1931.

In 1929, Gilkerson's Union Giants had a season record of 122-26-4.  In addition to Dwight and McNair, the team featured such players as Ted "Double Duty" Radcliffe and Cristóbal Torriente.

What is perhaps most interesting about this photo, besides the players, are the uniforms they are wearing.  Gilkerson's teams wore a variety of different designs over the years, however, this is the only picture that I'm aware of that shows this particular style.  

The lettering on the front is very similar to uniforms worn by the Kansas City Monarchs, the Chicago American Giants and other Negro League teams, yet it is very different than most of the other uniforms worn by Gilkerson's teams.  They likely only wore these for one season.