The Dayton Marcos were one of eight original Negro National League (NNL) teams were established in 1920
- Chicago American Giants
- Chicago Giants
- Cuban Stars
- Dayton Marcos
- Detroit Stars
- Indianapolis ABCs
- Kansas City Monarchs
- St. Louis Giants
The Dayton Marcos history predates the formal organized leagues of Negro League baseball as an independent team, and also as the only black team in the Ohio-Indiana League they played black and white teams all over the country throughout the 1910s. Early newspaper accounts mention the team as early as 1909, billing them as "one of the strongest Dayton semi-professional teams".
The team was started by Daytonian Moses Moore, a real estate agent. Moore owned the New Marco Hotel and apparently named his team after that enterprise. The team was to be entertainment for Dahomey Park, the first black-owned and operated amusement park in the United States. The Marcos home field was set at West Side Park, later renamed Westwood Field and located two blocks west of Dahomey Park. Local newspapers would sometimes refer to the team as "Moses Moore's Marcos."