The Interstate League was the name of five different American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 minor baseball leagues

Minor league baseball

Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...

 that played intermittently from 1896

1896 in baseball

-Champions:*Temple Cup: Baltimore Orioles defeated Cleveland Spiders, 4 games to 0*National League: Baltimore Orioles-Statistical leaders:*Batting: Jesse Burkett .410*Home Runs: Ed Delahanty & Bill Joyce 13*Wins: Kid Nichols 30*ERA: Billy Rhines 2.46...

 through 1952

1952 in baseball

-Major League Baseball:*World Series: New York Yankees over Brooklyn Dodgers *All-Star Game, July 8 at Shibe Park: National League, 3-2 -Other champions:*Caribbean World Series: La Habana *College World Series: Holy Cross...

. The longest tenured of these was the last incarnation, which played in the Middle Atlantic States from 1939

1939 in baseball

-Headline Event of the Year:*On May 17, 1939, Princeton University and Columbia University played the first televised baseball game. On August 26, the Cincinnati Reds and the Brooklyn Dodgers played the first televised Major League Baseball game...

 through 1952, and was one of the few mid-level minor leagues to operate continuously during the World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 period.

This circuit, which began as Class C and was upgraded to Class B in 1940

1940 in baseball

-Major League Baseball:*World Series: Cincinnati Reds over Detroit Tigers *All-Star Game, July 9 at Sportsman's Park: National League, 4-0-Awards and honors:*Most Valuable Player**Hank Greenberg - OF, Detroit Tigers...

, typically had teams in Allentown

Allentown, Pennsylvania

Allentown is a city located in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is Pennsylvania's third most populous city, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and the 215th largest city in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 118,032 and is currently...

, Harrisburg

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Harrisburg is the capital of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 49,528, making it the ninth largest city in Pennsylvania...

, Lancaster

Lancaster, Pennsylvania

Lancaster is a city in the south-central part of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is the county seat of Lancaster County and one of the older inland cities in the United States, . With a population of 59,322, it ranks eighth in population among Pennsylvania's cities...

 and Sunbury

Sunbury, Pennsylvania

Sunbury is a city in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city is located on the east bank of the Susquehanna River, just downstream of the confluence of its main and West branches. The population was 9,905 at the 2010 census...

, all in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

; Hagerstown, Maryland

Hagerstown, Maryland

Hagerstown is a city in northwestern Maryland, United States. It is the county seat of Washington County, and, by many definitions, the largest city in a region known as Western Maryland. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2010 census was 39,662, and the population of the...

; Trenton, New Jersey

Trenton, New Jersey

Trenton is the capital of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Trenton had a population of 84,913...

; and Wilmington, Delaware. Its final champion was the Hagerstown Braves, a Boston Braves

Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....

 affiliate. That season, the York

York, Pennsylvania

York, known as the White Rose City , is a city located in York County, Pennsylvania, United States which is in the South Central region of the state. The population within the city limits was 43,718 at the 2010 census, which was a 7.0% increase from the 2000 count of 40,862...

 White Roses led the league in attendance, attracting over 78,000 fans.

Earlier versions of the Interstate League, with years active:

• 1896-1901: an unclassified loop with teams in Ohio
  Ohio
  Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
  
  , Indiana
  Indiana
  Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
  
  , Michigan
  Michigan
  Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
  
  , Kentucky
  Kentucky
  The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
  
  , and West Virginia
  West Virginia
  West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
  
  .
• 1905-08; 1914-16: a Class D league with clubs in Pennsylvania and New York
  New York
  New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
  
  .
• 1913: a Class C league operating in Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
• 1932: a Class D circuit based in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

In addition, a Class C Interstate Association existed for one season, 1906

1906 in baseball

-Champions:*World Series: Chicago White Sox over Chicago Cubs Inter-league playoff: Chicago declined challenge by New York Giants.-Statistical leaders:-American League final standings:-National League final standings:-Events:...

, in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio.

Further reading

• Johnson, Lloyd and Wolff, Miles, editors: The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball. Durham, N.C.: Baseball America
  Baseball America
  Baseball America is a magazine which covers baseball at every level, with a particular focus on up-and-coming players in high school, college, Japan, and the minor leagues. It is currently published in the form of a bi-weekly newspaper, five annual reference book titles, a weekly podcast, and a...
  
  , 1997.