KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -Thousands of people lined up Friday, starting before dawn, to get a final glimpse of former Negro Leagues star John ``Buck'' O'Neil.

O'Neil died Oct. 6 at age 94 from complications of congestive heart failure, and his body was in repose Friday at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

Don Motley, the museum's executive director, estimated a steady stream of more than 10,000 people passed by O'Neil's open casket during the first five hours of the visitation scheduled from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.

``They were in line this morning at 5 a.m.,'' Motley said. ``There was a line about a block long waiting to get in from all walks of life. Some of them had happy eyes, and some of them had tears. Buck was the greatest ambassador baseball ever had.''

A player and manager for the Kansas City Monarchs, O'Neil was the first black coach in the major leagues and a well-known promoter of the Negro Leagues in his later years. He became famous nationally after historian Ken Burns featured O'Neil in his 1994 documentary ``Baseball.'' But for many in the crowd, O'Neil had been part of their lives for far longer.

``I got to know Buck from a long time ago as a friend,'' said NFL Hall of Famer Bobby Bell, formerly of the Kansas City Chiefs. ``There were also a lot of football players who looked up to Buck.

``I never got to see him play baseball, but I got to know him as a man. I traveled all over the country. Every time I'd walk into a function I'd see Buck. If we had more people who lived their lives like Buck, it would be a greater world.''

John O'Neil Askew, of New York, flew in for the event. The great-great nephew and namesake of Buck O'Neil, Askew talked about O'Neil's legacy.

``He was the most grounded person in our family. He was not caught up in the hype of being the ambassador for the Negro Leagues. He was just 'Uncle Buck.'

``If you were having a bad day, he could disarm you. He would know you were having a bad day and he would disarm you and you wouldn't know that's what he was doing.''

One of O'Neil's trademarks was his rapport with kids, and that age group was well represented in the crowds that poured past his casket.

``He was a hero,'' said 12-year-old Charles Henderson, of Shawnee, Kan., who came with his brothers, 9-year-old Cedric and 5-year-old Trevor, and their mom, Luana. ``He was more than a baseball player.''

The Hendersons never met O'Neil, but they still wanted to pay their respects.

``I wanted my boys to have a chance to see one of the heroes in our community,'' Luana Henderson said. ``He encouraged me to teach the kids that we can do great things. It doesn't matter the obstacles, we can all overcome them.''

Following a private funeral and burial Saturday morning, O'Neil was to be honored with a public memorial service at 5 p.m. at Kansas City's Municipal Auditorium.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.