Chris von der Ahe

Who was Chris von der Ahe?

Christian Friedrich Wilhelm von der Ahe was a German-American entrepreneur, best known as the owner of the St. Louis Brown Stockings of the American Association, now known as the St. Louis Cardinals.

Von der Ahe arrived in New York City but quickly moved to St. Louis, where he worked as a clerk in a grocery store. Later, he bought out the store owner and expanded business by establishing a saloon in the back of the store. Von der Ahe noticed that a number of his patrons visited the saloon after baseball games, so in 1882, he bought the bankrupt and scandal-ridden St. Louis Brown Stockings baseball franchise for $1,800 and joined the American Association baseball league. He named the team the Browns and hired future Chicago White Sox owner Charles Comiskey to manage the team and play first base.

Von der Ahe took a very active role in the team, even though he knew almost nothing about baseball. He was the first baseball owner with a significant public persona, the predecessor of Bill Veeck and Charlie Finley in this regard. With his thick German accent bushy mustache and showmanship, he was as much of a story as his players.