George Ruth Jr.'s Background

It's 1895. In this year, the x-ray form of radiation is discovered. Alfred Nobel creates his last will and testament that will establish and fund the "Nobel Prize" upon his death the following year. Frederick Douglass, the ex-slave and author, and Louis Pasteur, the French microbiologist, die. J. Edgar Hoover (who will become FBI Director), Bud Abbott and Buster Keaton (both actors) are born. And, on Wednesday, February 6, 1895, so is a baby boy born to working-class parents in a brick row house in Baltimore, MD.

This baby boy is George Herman Ruth, Jr., who will later become known as "Babe" Ruth - one of the greatest professional athletes of all time. The house is at 216 Emory Street, which will later become the Babe Ruth Birthplace & Museum - a shrine to this baseball great.

George Jr. was the son of George Herman, a saloon keeper of German descent, and Kate, a mother with an Irish and German background. George Sr. and Kate had a total of eight children, although only George Jr. and his sister, Mamie, survived childhood. The Ruths were hardworking people. George Sr. was employed as a bartender at a local tavern and Kate also worked there. The hours were long and the work was hard. It did not leave much time for the family and raising the children.

And, George Jr. was considered to be an "incorrigible" kid, making it even harder for his time-strapped parents to properly raise their son. By age 7, George Jr. was running around the streets of the neighborhood, called "Ridgely's Delight", between the docks of the central harbor and the terminals of the Baltimore & Ohio railroad. It was in these streets that young, George Jr., got himself into constant trouble, picking up some of his behavior from the dockyard workers. He was said to throw tomatoes at police officers. He was said to roughhouse and get into some minor fights. He was said to be caught chewing tobacco and occasionally drinking. In general, he was a child, lacking the supervision and discipline from adults, who didn't know better.

But at age 7, that all changed. Recognizing that they did not have the time, or maybe also the ability, to control their trouble-making son, his parents made a difficult decision. They determined that George Jr. needed a stricter environment and more direction. They sought that from the St. Mary's Industrial School for Boys, also in Baltimore, where they sent George Jr. in 1902.

Although only a few miles away from the row house where George Jr. was born and the neighborhood in which he roamed, St. Mary's School was a world apart from his former surroundings. The School was run by Catholic monks from an order of the Xaverian Brothers. It was part orphanage, part trade school and, even, part reform school. The rules were strict and the Brothers enforced discipline. They also taught vocations to their students and encouraged participation in sports.

It was only discovered more recently, that Babe actually suffered from ADHD (attention deficit disorder), which contributed to Babe's wild, hyperactive nature - both in childhood and at times as an adult. It is also believed that Babe's ADHD was a factor in his excellent baseball skills. ADHD generally limits one's focus; however, when the mind is completely engaged in a particular subject or skill, ADHD can actually enhance that skill. Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison and Mozart are some other significant figures whose ADHD actually increased their level of ability in their field of expertise.

Being sent away to St. Mary's by his parents would ultimately have a significant impact on Babe's future personality. And, in this very different setting, George Jr.'s life began to dramatically change. It was where Babe was introduced to two of the most important influences in his life: his mentor, Brother Mathias, and his key to greatness, baseball.

Brother Mathias was one of the monks at St. Mary's who quickly took a liking to George. Brother Mathias was one of the school's disciplinarians, yet he was the closest thing to a father figure for George while he living at St. Mary's.

Brother Mathias was stern, but kind. Most importantly, he was George Jr.'s primary source for attention and confidence while growing up in the orphanage.

St. Mary's had multiple Baseball leagues, broken out by age groups, and George Jr. was instantly drawn to the game. Several of the monks, including Brother Gilbert, taught Babe the finer points of baseball, although Brother Mathias was his first and favorite instructor of the game. In Julia Ruth Stevens' words: "I think a lot of Babe's good coordination came from when he lived at St. Mary's and played baseball with Brother Mathias. He took a great interest in Daddy and Daddy loved Brother Mathias. He was the one that introduced Babe to Baseball and showed him what the game was all about. Daddy did, he really did love Brother Mathias."

To hear a little bit more about the special relationship Babe had with Brother Mathias, please visit Julia Ruth Stevens' interview in Section 09 Voices.

Babe later attributed his good fielding abilities to Mathias, who worked frequently with him, playing catch and hitting lobs and fungoes to George. The two of them worked for hours at a time, honing Babe's skills. Mathias can also be attributed with turning George into a pitcher. It was said that, one day, George was teasing his team's pitcher, when this pitcher was having a bad day at the mound. Brother Mathias responded by putting George into the game as a reliever for the teammate that he had just been taunting. George went in and pitched a great game. After that, he quickly became a regular pitcher.

It was as a pitcher, that George was first discovered by a professional baseball team in 1914. Jack Dunn was owner of the minor league Baltimore Orioles, and was considered by many to be a good scout for promising potential Major League players. He had heard through the grapevine about an 18-year-old by the name of George Ruth, who was part of a traveling team for St. Mary's Industrial, and was a dominant pitcher in his league. After George was scouted by the Orioles, it wasn't long before Ruth was signed to play.

In order for Ruth to play with the team, however, Jack Dunn needed to sign for him and become his legal guardian (at the time it was required for a minor to have a legal guardian until the age of 21). And so, George became a Baltimore Oriole, with Jack Dunn as his trustee.

Given that Ruth had spent most of his formative years - from age 7 to age 18 -- behind the protective walls of St. Mary's, it was at first overwhelming for George to suddenly be on the outside in the real world. As such and as the youngest member of the Orioles team, he tended to tag-along with his new guardian Dunn. Legend has it that, when Babe walked to the pitcher's mound for the first time in Spring Training, with Dunn at his side, one of his new teammates shouted "Look at Dunnie and his new babe." Yet, however it actually happened, George quickly became known to the other Orioles as "Jack's babe" and, ultimately, the nickname stuck. George became most popularly known as Babe Ruth.

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Babe Ruth's Personal Side

Although he started out under Dunn's wing, Babe didn't fear the real world for long. He was like a kid exposed to a giant playground, ready for him to enjoy and experience. Growing up in monastery and trade school, George and the other kids at St. Mary's suffered a large amount of neglect. Although Brother Mathias gave as much to Babe as he could, it could not replace that which would have come with a traditional life. At its essence, there was a lack of love, attention and freedom, and not to mention food, during those many years that Babe was at St. Mary's.

All of these factors surely contributed to Babe's large appetite for living once he got out of St. Mary's. Within 5 months of Babe's first season with the Orioles, at age 19, he was signed to the Major League Boston Red Sox. And, just a couple years later at 22, Babe was considered one of the best pitchers in the league and was definitely one of its most popular players. If one thinks about it, Babe had grown up in St. Mary's with no possessions, living under extremely strict rules and never having received any affection from loved ones for almost his entire life.

His initial contract with the Orioles in 1914 was reported to be for six months at $100 per month; yet, by May of that year, Dunn doubled his salary. And, Dunn increased it in the following month as well. And, in the following month - July 1914 - Babe was sold to the Boston Red Sox and his salary went up again - to $3,500 a season or about six times what he was making when he initially left St. Mary's for the Orioles.

There is no question of the potential effects that this incredibly dramatic transformation and transition could have a young man. There is no question that young Babe Ruth essentially went from one extreme to another. He was making more money than he could ever imagine. And, he was quickly becoming everyone's hero.

Babe lived every minute of it, as if every minute would be his last, and he loved every minute of it. In the process, he gained a not-undeserved reputation for being a partier, jokester and clown. Babe was like a kid in a candy store. Plus, he didn't have the manners and refinement of someone from a different background, sometimes coming across as a bit crude. Yet, most people were drawn to this lively, super-talented young ballplayer.

Today, Babe's "festive" aspects of his personality are as well known as his baseball achievements. What's interesting to note is that his fun-loving nature and its related habits seem to have become much more magnified and the focus of his story today, than they had been during his playing days or lifetime. Although Babe did his share of living of his "new life on the outside of St. Mary's", he wasn't quite the hard-drinker and carouser that some of the media has portrayed.

Julia Ruth Stevens shares her thoughts: "He had a very deprived childhood being put into St. Mary's and he really just wanted to try everything there was. He wanted to get enough to eat so he felt full… and he wanted to have enough to drink so that he felt good. It was just one of those things that I would never begrudge him for. When you consider that he died at the age of 53, he didn't have that many years from 19 to 53. But he was never a drunkard -- no way. He never drank any more than anyone else in the days of prohibition. It was just the thing that everyone was doing."

During the Summer of 2006, BRC interviewed a number of people who knew the Babe directly, such as Bill Werber his former teammate, or second- or third hand. It was said over and over again that he wasn't the drinker that he is portrayed as today. And, the same was that he may not have been the ladies' man that he has been labeled, either. There is no doubt that he enjoyed his beverages; he enjoyed the attention of many women (remember that he was a true, yet accessible, superstar, at a time when there weren't many similar celebrities); he loved to have a good time; and, he loved the attention of the public and essentially returned that attention in like kind.

As time has passed, and as the press and public fascination with the "bad boys" and the negative aspects of celebrity personalities has increased, the negatives of Babe's life outside the ballpark have taken on a new dimension, a bigger focus, a legend in and of its own. While the truth probably lies somewhere between the different extremes, the public sometimes forgets that Babe was human, too. And, he had the same interests and spirit that many regular people had then and have today.

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The Family Man

Within five months, Babe went from the Orioles in Baltimore to the Red Sox in Boston. His baseball career was running at warp speed. His personal life reflected the same dramatic changes. Babe wasn't even in Boston for more than a few months before he met and married a young waitress by the name of Helen Woodford in October 1914.

Babe bought his new bride a farm house out in Sudbury, MA, where they lived happily together for a few years. The reality is, however, that, at the time that Babe married Helen, he was still so "new" to the world outside of St. Mary's - the real world and real society. He was far from ready to really settle down. Babe was too interested in experiencing life's adventures and appreciating all the attention and admiration that he was receiving as a baseball star to respect the responsibilities and bonds that marriage entailed.

When Ruth was traded to the Yankees in 1920, the couple moved to New York, where Babe thrived more than ever in the spotlight. And, he soaked up the energy, entertainment and night life of the city. Unfortunately, Helen was never comfortable with his fame and all the attention that came with it. This disconnect increased the tension between them.

Even so, in 1921, Babe and Helen adopted a baby girl, whom they named Dorothy after friend and Yankee teammate Waite Hoyt's first wife (who also was Dorothy's god-mother).

Sadly, sharing the love of a new baby was not enough to maintain their relationship and they slowly drifted further apart. Helen ultimately had enough of the crazy life in the big city and of her big celebrity husband and decided to move with Dorothy back to the quiet of their Sudbury, MA home. Being a Catholic and unable to divorce, Babe and Helen remained married throughout the 1920's; however, they ended up spending most of their marriage separated.

It was 1922 when Babe first met the next love of his life, whom he would ultimately marry and remain with for the rest of his life. Her name was Claire Hodgson.

Claire was born in Athens, GA, the daughter of a lawyer who often did legal work for Ty Cobb. Claire, motivated to start a career in show business, decided to move to New York in 1918 with her baby daughter, Julia. Claire eventually had success in New York as a model and a showgirl. In the course of her performing career, she had befriended actor Jim Barton, who, in 1922, took her to a Yankee game and introduced her to the Babe. Claire was intelligent, energetic, confident and very self-assured around the Babe. In very short time, Ruth was very smitten with Claire.

As the rest of the decade passed, Babe and Claire became very close, but remained as friends given Babe's Catholic faith. In January 1929, Ruth's wife, Helen, sadly passed away in a tragic house fire. The exact cause of the fire was never completely determined, but a lit cigarette was the main theory.

In April of the same year, Babe married Claire a day before opening day at Yankee Stadium. After their marriage, Claire quickly introduced some much-needed discipline to Babe's life. She became his personal manager, managing everything from Babe's outrageous spending sprees to his exercise and eating habits.

Babe also acquired an instant family, which included Babe's adopted daughter Dorothy from his marriage with Helen, his newly-adopted daughter Julia from his marriage to Claire and Claire's mother and two brothers from Athens, Georgia. Babe finally had the big family he had always wanted.

Julia Ruth Stevens recalled for BRC some of her memories of growing up with Babe Ruth as her father and their family life:

"Mother had told me that he was going to adopt me and I was just thrilled and thought how amazing it would be to be the daughter of Babe Ruth. Of course I had called him Babe for all the years that I had known him. But when they got married, Mother told Dorothy that she needed to teach me to start calling Babe, "Daddy." But it wasn't long before I started calling him Daddy and I still call him Daddy to this day.

Daddy and Mother loved entertaining people at their home. Daddy loved his home and all the things that went on -- all the holidays. They would almost always have a New Year's party and I can remember some of the various people that used to come - Hoagy Carmichael would come and play the piano. That was just fabulous.

He liked to have people around him but there were lots of evenings though where we would play or cards or play checkers with Momma and he would always beat her and she would get mad and walk out!

He was so grateful to have an honest to goodness family, due to losing his mother at such a young age. Momma loved him and so did Gene and Hubert . He thought the world of all of them. It's not everyday that someone would be willing to bring in a whole family like that. Maybe a mother-in-law, but also two brothers? But he just loved it."

To hear more about Julia's life with her "Daddy", Babe Ruth, please visit Section 09 Voices to hear more personal stories.

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Babe's Generosity and Thoughfulness

Babe could never get enough attention and admiration from his fans - he thrived on their enthusiasm. It probably made him an even better, more motivated player as a result. Although he could be exuberant and somewhat cocky in personality, Babe normally didn't take his fame or fortune for granted.

Many times gave to others who were less fortunate, most particularly to children. Children were Babe's biggest fans, who loved and admired him unconditionally throughout his life, and Babe always loved children in return. Even as a child himself, Babe was looking out for the younger and less fortunate children at St. Mary's. It was said that in wintertime that Ruth would run around the courtyard of St. Mary's, rubbing and blowing on the hands of the younger kids, trying to keep them warm.

Later in life, during his baseball career and retirement, Babe always made efforts with kids and those who helped him. The stories abound. At the height of his fame, Babe hardly ever passed up a request to visit an orphanage or a sick child in the hospital. He always spent time patientaly signing baseballs for each and every youngster who waited for him before and after games, as well as in public appearances later in life. As another example, St. Mary's Industrial School in Baltimore suffered a major fire in the 1930's, which caused significant damage to the main building. In response, Babe organized a fundraising drive that generated over $100,000 - a substantial amount of money in those days -- for repairs and rebuilding.

Three of BRC's contributors conveyed stories that illustrated spirit and kindness.

Mike Gibbons, Executive Director of the Babe Ruth Musuem and Birthplace, shared this perspective:
"He never ever turned a kid down for an autograph - no matter what. Towards the end, when he was in the hospital before he died, there was always a bunch of kids down on the sidewalk hoping to catch a glimpse of him or something like that. He would have these business-sized cards with nothing on them and he would sign as many of them as he could at the time and give them to his nurse and tell her to take them downstairs to the kids down on the sidewalk, or he would give her $10 and say, 'here, go buy all the kids some ice cream cones.'"

Billy Werber, Babe's former Yankees teammate, recounted:
"He was very generous. In Detroit, the clubhouse boy had gone out earlier to hang the uniforms up and put the locker in order for the Yankees to the play. It was cold and the game was called off and the kid had come back to the hotel and he was shaking with cold and Babe called him over - we were sitting there in circle chewing the fat - and peeled two $20 bills out of his pocket and told the kid to go out and buy himself a coat. When the kid came back we were still standing there and he comes over to give Babe $20 back, 'Here Babe, it only cost me $20" and Babe said, "You keep it and buy yourself something good to eat.'"

Betty Hoyt, Yankee Hall of Fame pitcher Waite Hoyt's widow, recalled one of Waite's stories of Babe's generosity:
"Waite said that people were always borrowing from Babe because Babe was making a lot more money than the rest of the players. So they would borrow money from Babe and they would pay him back when they got paid, but Babe would never take interest on any of it. And sometimes Babe would get loans from the guys and he would always give them 6% interest. As soon as he got paid he'd go over to them and pay them their money back plus 6% interest but he would never take interest from them. Because he knew that he was much better off than they all were."

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