Garner Taylor

Willis Garner "Sec" Taylor (January 20, 1887 – February 26, 1965) was a sports reporter in Des Moines, Iowa from 1914 until 1965.

Early life Willis Garner "Sec" Taylor was born in Wichita, Kansas on January 20, 1887. He originally signed his name W. Garner Taylor, but he feared that it sounded pretentious. Accordingly, he went by the name Garner W. Taylor throughout his career. He also played high school baseball and basketball, and later played semi-professional basketball. A highly talented reporter, he nevertheless missed one of the biggest baseball stories ever. Taylor got a tip that the Chicago White Sox planned to fix the 1919 World Series, but he failed to follow up on it, a decision that he always regretted. Taylor co-founded the Football Writers Association of America in 1941. At a time of racial segregation, the 1940 All Star game was notable because it was racially integrated, and included UCLA star tailback Kenny Washington.

Besides officiating games, Taylor also served as a consultant to the Big Ten and the Pacific Coast conferences.

Minor League Baseball in Des Moines Taylor played a leading role in minor league baseball's long history in Des Moines. Professional baseball had deep roots in the city, dating back to teams like the Des Moines Prohibitionists, who played in the Western Association in the 1880s and 1890s.

When Sec Taylor arrived in 1914, the Des Moines Boosters were a fixture of the Western League. In 1925 the Des Moines Demons became the city's baseball club in the Western League. On May 2, 1930, the Demons made history when they hosted one of the first night games played under permanent lights in professional baseball history. General Electric provided the artificial lights on stanchions placed around Holcomb Park, the team's home field, which was located on the city's north side at the intersection of Holcomb Avenue and 6th Avenue. Besides the Iowa Cubs, Sec Taylor Field also hosts the Iowa State High School Baseball Tournament.