George Washington, Vallie Eaves, Roy Sanner, Hal Simpson.

For people who came of age watching the Texarkana Bears, those names mean something.

From 1946 to 1953, Texarkana was home to a pro baseball team that had winning ways and colorful characters during a brief, post-war minor league baseball boom.

The Texarkana Bears racked up six winning seasons, playing one year for the East Texas League and then seven for the Big State League, a Class B circuit.

The Bears’ history is kind of a lesson in twos.

In its eight years, they took ho...