Kansas City, Mo. ? Thousands of people lined up Friday, starting before dawn, to get a final glimpse at 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 the open casket containing O’Neil just during the first five hours of the visitation that lasted 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.”

Following a private funeral and burial this morning, O’Neil will to be honored with a public memorial service at 5 p.m. at Kansas City’s Municipal Auditorium.

O’Neil was a player and manager for the Kansas City Monarchs, 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 the former Negro Leagues player and manager in his 1994 documentary “Baseball.” But for many in the crowd Friday, 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.”