Here the first four teams to form the league are pictured, this photo dates back to 1952.

The Early Days
    Sometime in the period 1951-52, Mead James, Kalispell Police Chief, read an article about a youth baseball program called little league. Taken with the idea for Kalispell kids, he quickly called around town seeking support and volunteers. One of those he contacted was Louis Fry.
    The first season, 1952, Kalispell Pee Wee Baseball was born. Four teams were fielded: Kalispell Mercantile (KM), Save-On Drug, Elks Lodge 725 and Howard's Shoe Shine Parlor. Louis Fry volunteered as the KM coach that first year. He would go on to coach the KM until the early 60's. Louis suffered a fatal heart attack the evening following a Pee Wee game and according to his son Don, many kids attended the funeral wearing their uniforms out of respect for Louis.
     In baseball circles, he's considered the grandfather of youth baseball in Kalispell. Following his father's death, Don went on to serve as the KM (the team became Semitool in the early 1980's) coach for another 30 plus years. Forty-three years to be exact! In those days the season began in June, after school let out and concluded just before school began, in late August. Umpires were all volunteers and the cost to play just $3.00.

Minor league added
    While the early league fielded 15 players each on four teams the organization recognized that many young players had nowhere to play and were generally too young to compete with the older players. In the early 60's the Minor league was created and was composed of kids in the 9 and 10 year old age bracket. The Major league served players10-12 years of age.

Rookie league added
    Although the two team system worked successfully for many years we recoginzed that the the youngest players were probably deserving of a program that would allow them to learn the game and compete with other players of the same age. The Rookie league was introduced in May of 1995 and serves as an entry into Pee Wee Baseball for seven and eight year olds.

Community sponsors
    As with any good home grown volunteer organization, business community support is vital. Several of our team sponsors have been sponsoring for over 40 years. The 2007 season marks the 56th season of sponsorship for the Elks, the longest running sponsorship in our organization.  Kalispell Pee Wee Baseball sponsor list

Volunteer system
    Today, Kalispell Pee Wee Baseball remains an all-volunteer program, just as it started in 1952. Coaches and team helpers are quite often parents of players, however many have passed through our ranks that had no relatives on the team. They simply enjoy the game and enjoy working with kids.

Kalispell Pee Wee Baseball is a Montana Not-for-Profit Corporation whose objective is to educate its participants in the fundamentals of baseball as well as develop an appreciation for sportsmanship and citizenship.