Lee Allen

Who was Lee Allen?

Leland Gaither "Lee" Allen was an American sportswriter and historian on the subject of baseball. He was known for an accessible writing style that made history more interesting, typically focusing on the people in the stories as much as the events. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Allen was the son of U.S. Representative Alfred Gaither Allen. He began his writing career with the Cincinnati Enquirer, and wrote the Cincinnati entry in the Putnam Publishing series on the Major League Baseball teams.

He authored other books, including histories of the National League and American League, the World Series, and a volume about the Giants-Dodgers rivalry. He was also a frequent contributor to The Sporting News, including articles to their annual publications as well as a weekly column called "Cooperstown Corner".

From 1959 until his death, he was the historian at the Baseball Hall of Fame, succeeding Ernest Lanigan. In that capacity, and with his substantial collection of biographical information on ballplayers, he had a great deal of input to the first edition of the famous MacMillan Baseball Encyclopedia which was published in the same year he died.