Lufkin’s Forgotten Minor League Baseball Team, The Foresters

Everyone knows about the Lufkin Little League baseball teams that did so well a few years ago - the Thundering Thirteen and the Fierce Fourteen. Lots of people also know that Lufkin has produced several star athletes.

What you might not know is that once upon a time, Lufkin had its very own minor league team. They were called the Lufkin Foresters.

Details on Lufkin's Minor League Team - The Foresters

According to Baseball-Reference.com, the Foresters were part of the East Texas League in 1946. In 1947, they were added to the Lone Star League, where they played the '47 season and '48 season. After what appears to be a season off, they came back as the Lufkin Angels in 1950 as part of the Gulf Coast League. 1950 was the last year for Lufkin's Minor League stretch, when the team was relocated to Louisiana and became the Leesville Angels.

Your next question would probably be the same one that I had: Where did this minor league team play in Lufkin? According to StatsCrew.com, they played at 112 Shephard Avenue at S. 1st Street in Lufkin. Now, I know that the spelling is different, but if I'm correct and the address is actually 112 Shepherd Avenue, that ballpark would have been on the same block that Regions Bank now sits on in Downtown Lufkin. The park started as Forest Festival Park in 1946, then was Forester Park from 1947-1948, and ended up as Angel Park in 1950.

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I don't know about you, but I enjoy digging into sports history like this, and it makes it even more interesting when it's right here in Deep East Texas. No, Lufkin didn't win any titles, but I still think it's cool that they were here. My question now is this: Do any of you remember the Lufkin Foresters?