Though he had no children of his own, Joe Jackson always had a soft spot for kids. Here he is shown handing out ice cream to youngsters at a store near his home in Greenville, South Carolina, during the summer of 1948. Jackson, who was 61 years old at the time, was – despite reports to the contrary – a popular and very personable figure around his hometown, unfailingly eager to chat with locals and out-of-towners alike.

Longtime Greenville resident Joe Thompson later recalled: “Joe would come outside and talk baseball with the kids who gathered around him. There were many times when Katie [his wife] had to come forth and rescue Joe by shooing the kids away from him.” Biographer Kelly Boyer Sagert noted that “when a youth particularly needed money, Jackson would suddenly remember that he could pay someone to sweep the floor of his restaurant.”

In April 1946, a particularly notable out-of-towner – Ty Cobb – paid “Shoeless Joe” a visit at his liquor store in West Greenville. As the oft-repeated story goes, Jackson gave his old friend a glance but said not a word as he pretended to wipe down an already clean counter. After picking out a bottle of whiskey, an incredulous Cobb spoke up. “Don’t you know me, Joe?” he asked. Jackson replied, “Sure, I know you, Ty, but I wasn’t sure you wanted to know me. A lot of them don’t.” As the pair reminisced about old times, Cobb declared: “I’ll tell you how well I remember you. When I got the idea I was a good hitter, I’d stop and take a good look at you. Then I knew I could stand some improvement.” (Talk about a glowing endorsement!)

“I can still see those line drives whistling to the far precincts. Joe Jackson hit the ball harder than any man ever to play baseball.” — Ty Cobb

✍️ Compiled by Bobby King II

◾Sources: http://www.blackbetsy.com + https://www.greenvilleonline.com + Sagert, Kelly Boyer. “Joe Jackson: A Biography.” Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2004.
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