Born in rural Mississippi, Bell moved to St. Louis in 1920. He played in the Negro Baseball League for 28 years, from 1922 to 1950, for the St. Louis Stars, the Kansas City Monarchs, the Chicago American Giants, the Pittsburgh Crawfords and the Homestead Grays. After retiring in 1951, he worked as a custodian and night watchman at St. Louis City Hall and spent the last 35 years of his life living in St. Louis with his wife, Clara. Cool Papa Bell Avenue between Dr. Martin Luther King Drive and Jefferson Avenue was named in his honor.