William Crane

William Elias Crane

• Bats unknown, Throws unknown

• Debut May 26, 1873
• Final Game May 26, 1873
• Born September 16, 1850 in Elizabethtown, NJ USA
• Died March 30, 1897 in Newark, NJ USA

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Biographical Information

William Crane played in one game at second base for the Elizabeth Resolutes of the National Association in 1873. He went 1 for 4 with an RBI.

His playing record was long conflated with that of Thomas Crane, who played for the sad-sack Brooklyn Atlantics in 1875, and those two seasons were attributed to Fred Crane, who was a famous player in Brooklyn, NY in the 1860s. However, Fred was retired at the time the National Association was formed, and it turns out the those two players were different men. In William's case, he was a local player from Elizabeth, NJ and his obituary published in 1897 confirms that he had been "an enthusiastic baseball player" in his younger years.

Further Reading

• "A Story of Two Cranes", Bill Carle, ed.: Biographical Research Committee Report, SABR, May/June 2025, pp. 2.