William Humber


William Arthur Humber is a Canadian sports historian, author, journalist, environmentalist, and educator.

Personal profile

Humber was born in Toronto, Ontario. He earned a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Toronto in 1972, and a master's degree in environmental studies from York University in 1975. Humber worked at Seneca College from 1977 to 2018, where he served as a department chair, and the director of Eco-Seneca Initiatives, the college's department devoted to environmental educational initiatives.

Writing

Humber is the author of several books on baseball, sports, the environment, and his hometown of Bowmanville, Ontario.

Baseball historian

Humber currently serves as a selector for the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, and was a selector for Canada's Sports Hall of Fame and the Clarington Sports Hall of Fame. In 1989, he was a subject specialist at the Royal Ontario Museum for an exhibit on baseball. Humber was inducted in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame on June 16, 2018. He was appointed a member of the Order of Canada in 2021, and was inducted into the Ontario Baseball Association Hall of Fame in 2025.

Books by Humber

  • Cheering for the Home Team: The Story of Baseball in Canada, Boston Mills Press, 1983.
  • Freewheeling: The Story of Bicycling in Canada, Boston Mills Press, 1986.
  • The History of Central Public School in Bowmanville, Josten's, 1989.
  • Let's Play Ball: Inside the Perfect Game, Lester and Orpen, 1989.
  • The Baseball Book and Trophy, Somerville House, 1993.
  • The Kids' Soccer Book and Medallion, Somerville House, 1994.
  • Diamonds of the North: A Concise History of Baseball in Canada, Oxford University Press, 1995.
  • All I Thought about Was Baseball: Essays on a Canadian Pastime, University of Toronto Press, 1996.
  • Bowmanville: A Small Town at the Edge, Natural Heritage, 1997.
  • A Sporting Chance, Dundurn Press, 2004.
  • Let it Snow: Keeping Canada's Winter Sports Alive, Dundurn Press, 2009.
  • The Regeneration Imperative: Revitalization of Built and Natural Assets, CRC Press, 2016.
  • Soccer Triumphant, St. Johann Press, 2022.
  • Tex Simone: The Man Who Saved Baseball in Syracuse, Wildebeest Publishing, 2024.
  • Old Ontario at Bat: Baseball's Unheralded Ancestry, Centre for Canadian Baseball Research, 2024.