Reflections: Women's softball has deep roots in Perth County

Women's softball has deep roots in Perth County, with its beginnings dating back over a century.

Women’s softball has deep roots in Perth County, with its beginnings dating back over a century. On May 30, 1922, the sport officially took hold in Stratford with the formation of the city’s first “girls” softball league. That league had four teams from local churches and factories – Imperial Rattan, Central Methodist, Immaculate Conception and the Ballantyne Beavers, who gathered in 1923 for the above photograph, now preserved at Stratford-Perth Archives.

The sport quickly captured the public’s attention. Matches often drew large crowds. The level of excitement occasionally resulted in disturbances so notable that the chief of police of the day, Joe Broadley, ordered a police presence at the