Olde Broderson, Baseball Player

Olde Broderson was born in Germany in August of 1888 to Carsten and Catherine Hansen Broderson. The family emigrated to the United States in 1890. By 1900 the Brodersons had a family of eight children and resided in Sandusky.

Olde’s job was at the car shops of the New York Central Railroad, but in his free time he loved to play baseball. He was a member of several different area teams throughout the years, playing for the Shamrocks from about 1911 through 1914. A columnist for the Sandusky Star Journal wrote in 1921 when Olde played for the Griswold-Wags team, “We’ve been watching Broderson play ball for several years, been amazed at the unusual sight of seeing a man improve with every season and often wondered if 'Brod' hadn’t discovered that spring of perpetual youth that Balboa, or maybe it was Ponce De Leon, went after.”
On the afternoon of Sunday, June 21, 1925, Olde Broderson was in the lineup as catcher for the Kelleys Island baseball team the Chinks. In the seventh inning, Suhr, the third baseman for the opposing team, was on third base, and attempted to slide home on a base hit. Olde was trying to block Suhr’s run for a score, and the two players collided. Olde received internal injuries from this accident. His teammates escorted him home on the steamer Chippewa. Olde remained in constant pain, and died the following day.

Olde’s obituary said that he was “one of Sandusky’s oldest active baseball players.” Six members of the Chinks team served as pallbearers at the funeral. Representatives from all Sandusky baseball teams attended the funeral services, where a huge floral tribute honored Olde.

Olde Broderson is buried at Oakland Cemetery. He was survived by his wife and three sons, seven siblings, and both his parents. He was sadly missed by his family and friends.