Poles

The Poles (Polish: Polacy, pronounced [pɔˈlat͡sɨ]; singular masculine: Polak, singular feminine: Polka) are a nation and West Slavic ethnic group native to Poland. The population of Poles in Poland is estimated at 37,310,000 out of an overall population of 38,538,000 (based on the 2011 census). The preamble to the Constitution of the Republic of Poland defines the Polish nation as comprising all the citizens of Poland; ethnicity is a private matter of each citizen.

Poland's population inhabits several historic regions: Wielkopolska ("Greater Poland"), Małopolska ("Lesser Poland"), Mazovia (in Polish, Mazowsze), Silesia (in Polish, Śląsk), Pomerania (in Polish, Pomorze), Kujawy, Warmia, Mazury, and Podlasie.

A wide-ranging Polish diaspora (the Polonia) exists throughout Europe (Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Russia, Belarus, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Latvia, Ukraine), the Americas (the United States, Brazil, Canada, Argentina) and in Australia. In 1960, Chicago, in the United States, had the world's largest urban Polish population after Warsaw. Today the largest urban concentration of Poles is the Katowice urban agglomeration (the Silesian Metropolis) of 2.7 million inhabitants. Milwaukee, Wisconsin, hosts a Polish Fest; and Chicago, Illinois, "Polish Fest Chicago".

Spot Poles

Spottswood Poles (December 27, 1887 – September 12, 1962) was an American outfielder in baseball's Negro Leagues. Born in Winchester, Virginia, he died at age 74 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Career

Poles was generally recognized as one of the fastest players of his day. His speed was said to be compared to that of Cool Papa Bell, a Negro League star of the 1930s, and Ty Cobb. He was a left-handed batter with a noted eye, who hit for high batting averages.

He started playing organized Negro ball for the Harrisburg Colored Giants in 1906 and first became a professional for Sol White's Philadelphia Giants in 1909.

Poles soon followed White to the New York Lincoln Giants in 1911, where he blossomed into a star; in his first four seasons with the Lincoln Giants, 1911–1914, Poles attained batting averages of .440, .398, .414, and .487 against all levels of competition.

Poles then spent the next few seasons jumping among the New York Lincoln Stars, Brooklyn Royal Giants, and the Hilldale Daisies. While Poles was with the Daisies, he joined the Army 369th Infantry Regiment (Harlem Hellfighters), attached to the French Army, to serve during World War I, earning decorations (five battle stars and a Purple Heart) for his combat experience in France as a sergeant. He returned home and continued a successful baseball career, playing for the Lincoln Giants from 1919 to 1923.