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Memorable Manitobans: Olive Elizabeth Bend Little (1917-1987)
Athlete.
Born at Poplar Point on 7 May 1917, daughter of Annie Ada Wilson (1887-1978) and John Pigott “Jack” Bend, she trained as a teacher at the Central Normal School. She pitched for the CUAC Blues and Moose Jaw Royals women’s baseball teams in seasons in which both teams won provincial championships. She played professionally in 1943, 1945, and 1946, playing for the Rockford (Illinois) Peaches when women’s baseball was so popular. She was a league all-star and pitched a number of no-hit games. She also pitched softball, and was elected to the Canadian Softball Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame in 1985.
On 1 August 1942, she married George Myles Little (1919-2010) and they had two daughters.
She died at Winnipeg on 2 February 1987 and was buried in the St. Anne’s Anglican Cemetery. She was selected posthumously as a Manitoba Women Trailblazer.
Sources:
Birth registrations [Olive Elizabeth Bend, George Miles Little], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
Marriage registration [Olive Elizabeth Bend, George Myles Little], Manitoba Vital Statistics.
“Olive’s success traced to father,” Winnipeg Free Press, 3 February 1984, page 46.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 3 February 1987, page 48.
Dictionary of Manitoba Biography by John M. “Jack” Bumsted, Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press, 1999.
We thank Patrick Bend for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 15 September 2023
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