WinkVlog

By all accounts, the Yellow Jackets were taken in as part of the tight-knit Frankford community. Many of the players had day jobs in the neighborhood, and many of them lived in boarding houses near the stadium, per Billy Penn. They hung out at the YMCA and played football with neighborhood kids. The team had a band and a fight song, as well as cheerleaders and a mascot. And after covering expenses, the organization donated any further profits to local charities.

For all the strong organizational infrastructure and local support in the community, the Frankford Yellow Jackets were struggling by the early 1930s. The Great Depression hit the Yellow Jackets from just about every angle imaginable, per The Washington Post. The nearby textile mills shut down, which meant fans — and some players — lost their day jobs. As a result, ticket and concession sales were down. The team couldn't attract veteran players without a significant salary offering. Frankford Stadium, which was damaged in a fire in 1929, was finished off in a larger fire in 1931.

Soon, the Frankford Yellow Jackets were forced to become a traveling team in 1931 with no home field. After racking up a 1-6-1 record to start the season, the morale of the Yellow Jackets was decidedly low. One final blow — a 13 to 0 loss to the New York Giants on November 8, 1931 — led the Yellow Jackets to suspend operations, per the Free Library of Philadelphia. They never recovered and declared bankruptcy.

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