The boards of directors for Bristol three little leagues–Edgewood, Forestville and McCabe-Waters–announced in an email to families of their respective leagues that they are merging into one league beginning with the 2021 season.

The reason they give in the email is low enrollment.

The move follows similar decisions by many Little Leagues across the country.

The new Bristol Little League Board of Directors, in their page-long email announcement, state:

“After careful consideration along with support and guidance from the Eastern Regional Office and approval from Little League International, we jointly announce that we will no longer be three individual little leagues. The leagues of Edgewood, Forestville, and McCabe-Waters will
combine to become Bristol Little League beginning in the 2021 season.

“This is not a decision that was entered into lightly. We know and recognize that this news will come with many mixed emotions. Please know that we feel it too. We all respect and cherish the history and community of our individual leagues. These leagues collectively have been around for over 70 years. Moving in a new direction is something that was hard on all of us. However, we move forward with the belief that this merger will be in the best interest of Bristol’s children now and in the future.”

The new league will utilize the facilities of all three leagues, according to the email, and in the coming months, the board will be sharing updates via the league’s website and social media pages.