About Us History

Monroe "Dolly" Stark

Memphians have always loved their baseball. Back in 1911, one Memphian made it to the Major Leagues. Born Jan. 19, 1885 in Ripley, MS, Monroe Randolph Stark’s name was soon abbreviated to Dolly by his friends.  Dolly started his baseball career with various college teams as far back as 1901, but the first professional team he played for was at Friars Point, MS in the East Arkansas league in 1903.  In 1904-5 he was with Columbia, TN in the TN-Alabama league and in 1906 with Flint and Tecumseh, MI in the Southern Michigan league. By 1907, Dolly had moved to the Columbus, MS club of the Cotton States league.  The 1908 season found him with Little Rock, Ark, in the Southern league, and in 1909 he was with the San Antonio Club of the Texas league until he was sold from them to the Cleveland Naps (now Cleveland Indians) of the American League.  There he played his first game in the Majors Leagues on May, 24, 1909 at age 24.

He played shortstop for the Cleveland Naps in 1909, the Brooklyn Superbas (now L.A. Dodgers) in 1910, and the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1911-1912. Dolly batted and threw right-handed, weighed 165 pounds, and was 5 feet 10 ½ inches in height.   During his Major League career, he had a .238 batting average, scored 90 runs, and knocked in 30 RBIs.  One report said, “He was a hustler … and kept his mates gingered up at all times.”  His final game in the Majors was on May 24, 1912. 

In 1913, Dolly played with Buffalo in the International league, then with Sacramento, CA in the Pacific Coast league the latter part of that year. He next came to Memphis in 1914,  the Nashville the following year, and in 1916, he helped both Little Rock and Nashville. At the start of the 1916 season, Dolly became the seventh manager of the Memphis Chickasaws but resigned before the end of the season turning the reins over to George Moriarty. Dolly managed the Augusta Club of the South Atlantic Association in 1920. 

After baseball, Dolly used his management skills to operate the Cherokee Inn on Summer Ave. in Memphis.   His life came to a tragic end when he was murdered there on Dec. 1, 1924 at age 39.  That tragic night, he reportedly was involved in a fight with his long-time friend, H. S. Atkinson, that ended with Atkinson fatally shooting Dolly in the chest. Besides his young widow, Stark was survived by his father and a brother, Alexander N. Stark, superintendent of Elmwood Cemetery.