O’Hara (AAGPBL)
Janice “Jerry” O’Hara (1918-2001), a talented athlete who excelled in basketball and softball, was born in Beardstown and graduated from Springfield High School in 1937.
O’Hara was a mainstay of several of Springfield’s top softball teams in the 1930s and ‘40s, including those sponsored by the Springfield Merchants and the Madison Furniture Co.
She was among the first players recruited for the original All-American Girls Softball League in 1943, joining the Kenosha (Wis.) Comets. She stayed with the Comets after the league changed its format to become the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. O’Hara pitched and was a first baseman and utility player with the Comets from 1943 to 1949.
O’Hara worked for WABCO in Peoria after her playing career. She is buried in Peoria’s Springdale Cemetery.
Contributor: Thanks to Anna Sielaff, local history librarian at Lincoln Library’s Sangamon Valley Collection.
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