Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum
How Alberta’s Betty Carveth Dunn Became Part of Baseball History
Born in 1925, Betty Carveth grew up in Grande Prairie, Alberta and became a part of baseball history.
Betty Carveth was one of only sixty-four Canadian women to play in the All American Girls Professional Baseball League. A right-handed pitcher, she played during the 1945 season with the Rockford Peaches and was traded mid-season to the Fort Wayne Daisies. She returned home to Edmonton and became the city’s first female Little League Baseball coach and coached the boys for 10 years. At the age of 12, she pitched for the Twilight Ladies Softball team which won three Peace River Championships in a row. In the mid-1940s, she pitched for Edmonton’s top-rated Walk-Rite women’s baseball team.
Betty played for the Walk-Rite team from 1943-1945 at the age of eighteen to twenty. It was during this time that a scout saw her play and asked her to try out for the All American Girls Professional Baseball League in the United States; a league that was featured in the 1992 movie “A League of Their Own.” Betty played from April to October in 1945, earning $75 a week – which was four times more than she had made as a secretary back in Edmonton. There was a list of rules and a dress code the players had to abide to, both on and off the field. They attended a half day of beauty school and were told to look and act like ladies, however while on the field, they were to play ball like men. Sliding into a base or making a flying catch was not pleasant as the uniforms were short dresses, knee socks, and caps which provided very little protection.
When the 1945 season closed, Betty returned to Edmonton and demonstrated her love for baseball by promoting and signing autographs throughout the years that followed. She was named Ambassador of Baseball for the inaugural IBAF (International Baseball Federation) Women’s World Baseball Championship in 2004 and then named Special Ambassador in 2012. She threw the ceremonial first pitch at both tournaments and did again in 2015 at one of the Edmonton Prospects games.
As a member of the AAGPBL, Betty was inducted into the American Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, USA in 1988. She was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998 with the Canadian AAGPBL players.
Learn more about the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame.
Mike Rogers played professional hockey for a total of 12 years; five years in the World Hockey Association, then seven years in the National Hockey League. Mike has the distinction of being one of only four players in the NHL to achieve 100 points in their first three seasons – the others are Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Peter Stastny. Mike’s first year in the NHL was with the expansion Harford Whalers team in 1979/80. He scored 105 points in both his first and second year. Mid-way through the 1980/81season, he was named captain. Mike joined the New York Rangers for the 1981/82 season and led the team with 103 points. He averaged 67 points in his next three seasons as the team adapted a more defensive style of play. In 484 regular-season NHL games, he had 519 points. In 1974/75, during Mike’s first year in the WHA, he led the Edmonton Oilers rookies in goals and points and was selected the WHA’s Most Gentlemanly Player. He was traded to the New England Whalers in 1975/76 and was their top scorer in 1978/79. In 396 WHA games, he scored 145 goals and had 222 assists for 367 points.
Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum
Alberta Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2019: James Donlevy, Football & Hockey Builder
‘Jim’ Donlevy devoted his professional career to more than 50 years of coaching, teaching and administrative leadership. His career in football began in 1954 coaching Bantam and High School Football teams. He joined the Edmonton Huskies from 1961 to 1963 and won two Canadian titles. At the University of Alberta, he led the Golden Bears to four National Championship games and brought home the Vanier Cup in 1972 and 1980. He had the most wins of any Golden Bears football coach with 89 wins, 69 losses and 3 ties. From 1993 to 2015, Jim was the Western Hockey League’s Education Consultant. He built a formal education and scholarship program for the student athletes playing in the league. It is now considered one of the most comprehensive education programs for hockey in the world today.
Please consider sharing this inspirational story on your own social media channels so others can learn about and enjoy Alberta’s rich sports history. Click here for more inspirational stories from the Class of 2019.
june, 2019
The Works International Visual Arts Society advances the development, awareness and appreciation of art and design in Canada and provides artists, designers and the public a forum for exchanging ideas. The Works Art & Design Festival, entering its 33rd year, is the most unique, free event of its kind. It attracts artists, designers and patrons from around the world – boosting the city’s energy and imagination for 13 days each summer. The best in cutting-edge design, digital art and new media technology are showcased alongside traditional visual art mediums in galleries transformed from alternative spaces. Visitors also participate in workshops and seminars about the exciting changes and arising issues in art and design. Edmonton enjoys The Works Society’s programs year-round through its education programs and the Art & Design in Public Places Program which leaves permanent art and design in public places.
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