Buried in Monongahela Cemetery of North Braddock (Division 10, Row 8, Grave 46) is native Pittsburgher Ernest Gooden (b. 1900/02/04; d. 1934/10/19). He played in Negro League Baseball as an infielder during the 1920s (1921-1923). Until July 2023, his grave had remained unmarked since his burial in 1934. The Negro League Memorial Markers project (an initiative of the Josh Gibson Foundation) provided a grave marker, which was unveiled on July 8, 2023. Monongahela Cemetery of North Braddock poured the concrete foundation for Gooden’s marker, free of charge.
Gooden debuted in 1921 with the Homestead Grays and Pittsburgh Keystones. He played for Pittsburgh again the following season. In early 1923 he played for the Chicago American Giants. He then split time between the Toledo Tigers, Cleveland Tate Stars, and Detroit Stars – until he played his last game, also in 1923. Gooden then pursued a career as a newspaper editor and eventually founded a newspaper in Pittsburgh — The American. He died of a heart attack, in Pittsburgh, in 1934, at age 34.
Since 2004, a collaborative effort to locate the unmarked graves of ANLB players and provide markers in their memory has existed between the Negro Leagues Baseball Grave Marker Project and the Josh Gibson Foundation.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ran an article (on July 10, 2023), reporting on the memorial marker initiative and covering highlights from the life of Ernest Gooden.
Link to Pgh Post-Gazette Article
Link to biographical and background information on Ernest Gooden
To donate online to the Negro Leagues Memorial Markers, use the following link: Donate Online to NLMM. This link can also be used to donate to the Josh Gibson Foundation.
Link to Negro Leagues Baseball Grave Marker Project: https://nlbgmp.com
Link to the Josh Gibson Foundation: https://www.joshgibson.org/home
