Archive for the ‘Football’ Category
June 16, 2008
The floods in the midwest have seemed far away this spring, especially since I and most of my family no longer live there, but even the great distance doesn’t protect me from being affected by the floodwaters. By chance over the weekend I discovered that Peter Jordan, Carlisle ’14, enrolled in Keewatin Academy. That fact interested me because two of the subjects in my new book, Leon Boutwell and Joe Guyon, attended Keewatin about the same time. My interest piqued, I searched through issues of The Red Man magazine and found that Peter Jordan had not only enrolled in the prep school but had bartered his services as football coach in exchange for tuition. Wanting to find more about this, I attempted to search www.NewspaperArchive.com but was thwarted.
Unable to log in, I went to the site’s home page where I received the cold slap of reality. Their home page informed me that NewspaperArchive.com’s servers are located in downtown Cedar Rapids, Iowa in an area that is now flooded by the Cedar River. Fortunately, all files, equipment, old newpapers and microfilm are OK. The servers are several stories above the flood waters and newspapers and microfilms are stored in a different building that was built on higher ground. The servers won’t operate because there is no electrical service in the flooded area at this time. Their emergency generators long ago ran out of fuel and fuel trucks cannot make it through the water. This might be an argument for natural gas-powered emergency generators.
Such is the modern world in which distant catastrophes can impact you in unforeseen ways. I guess I will just have to wait to find out more regarding Peter Jordan’s stint as Keewatin’s football coach.
Tags:Cedar Rapids, Cedar River, Keewatin Academy, NewspaperArchive.com, Peter Jordan, The Red Man
Posted in Carlisle Indian School, Football, Joe Guyon, Leon Boutwell | 1 Comment »
June 12, 2008
Yesterday’s Sentinel contained an article of interest to those interested in the Carlisle Indian School and related topics: http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2008/06/11/news/local/doc484fd5b21a214085579032.txt
Janet Zettlemoyer and Ilene Whitacre, daughters of John S. Steckbeck, donated their late father’s Carlisle collection to Cumberland County Historical Society. Steckbeck wrote Fabulous Redmen: the Carlisle Indians and their famous football teams in 1951 but the collection that fills 16 copier paper boxes is not limited to Carlisle football items. I’m told that it isn’t limited to Indian School-related items, that it contains a few things of interest to Carlisle (the town) history. However, there is so much stuff to sort through and catalog that it will be some time before collection items are made available to the public.
Photographs accompanying the newspaper article include parts of an oil painting and a pen and ink drawing that looks familiar. Discussions with my sources revealed that the oil painting was done by Frank Maze, Dickinson College head football coach 1950-51. It is based on the famous graphic done by Lone Star Dietz that is used as the frontispiece for Steckbeck’s book and on the masthead of this blog. However, Maze put a different head on his version. But whose head was it?
The pen and ink drawing – there turned out to be three in the collection – are Dietz originals of the artwork that adorned the cover of The Red Man magazine. Apparently the collection includes several Dietz items that Steckbeck purchase from the old warrior after he fell on hard times. I can’t wait to see this stuff.
Jim Thorpe historians will not be disappointed as the collection includes an audiotape of Steckbeck’s interview of Thorpe. I hope excerpts from this find their way into the audiobook version of Bob Wheeler’s landmark biography of Thorpe.
The collection also includes glass photo negatives of portraits of Indian School students. Who knows what else might be found in that collection?
Tags:Cumberland County Historical Society, Fabulous Redmen, Frank Maze, John S. Steckbeck, Whitacre, Zettlemoyer
Posted in Carlisle Indian School, Dickinson College, Football, Jim Thorpe, Lone Star Dietz | 1 Comment »
June 6, 2008
The College Football Hall of Fame may have snubbed Lone Star Dietz but Albright College hasn’t. Rick Ferry, Albright’s athletic director, informed me that Lone Star Dietz is to be inducted into the Red and White’s Hall of Fame on October 17. One of Lone Star’s problems in being selected for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame is that few of the sports writers and athletic directors on the Honors Committee are familiar with him or his record. Fortunately, the situation is different at Albright College. Two of the paintings that Lone Star donated to the College, the Albright Lion and a portrait of All-American Dick Riffle, hang where the public can see them in the Bollman Center. Also, photos of Dietz’s teams hang in the equipment cage. If one wants to venture off to other parts of the campus his paintings can be found in other buildings as well.
Another advantage Albright has is that a few people who knew him are still alive and remember him well. One of my pleasures in giving book talks is that one of his old players would sometimes show up. Their stories are wonderful. They often show us a side of Dietz of which we were unaware. Sometimes a child of a deceased player contacts me and shares stories that his father told him about Coach. As great a coach as Dietz was I sometimes think he had more impact on his boys off the field. It will be great to attend the ceremony and see Lone Star receive his due. Now I must revise his chapter in Doctors, Lawyers, Indian Chiefs before it goes to press. But that will be a pleasure.
Tags:Albright College, Hall of Fame, Red & White
Posted in Football, Lone Star Dietz | 2 Comments »
June 4, 2008
It is with much sadness that I share the following message received today from Sheldon Cohen:
My Dad, Gus Cohen, played for Lone Star at Albright. Gus passed away last Tuesday evening, May 27, 2008, at 7:15 P.M. very quietly after having been completely crippled by 2 strokes in February, 2005. Gus was an All-East and 2nd or 3rd team All-American in 1939-1940 and later signed with the Brooklyn Dodgers of the NFL. He was a member of the PA/Berks Sports Hall of Fame and won a Silver Star and multiple Bronze Stars in WWII. He was a devoted alum who was President of the Varsity Club at Albright and recruited a number of student-athletes over the years. Most recently, he had endowed the Gus Cohen Class of 1940 scholarship fund at Albright.
Having become fatherless at 6, Lone Star became Gus’s second father.
One of the things I learned when talking with Lone Star’s former players at Albright College was that he was a disciplinarian in a good way and made an impact on the young men in his charge. Below is a scan of Gus’s photo from a friend’s senior yearbook.
Tags:Albright College, Gus Cohen, Sheldon Cohen
Posted in Football, Lone Star Dietz | 1 Comment »
June 2, 2008
A 1974 Sports Illustrated article that was stuffed into the back of the Sports Immortals brochure included something of particular interest to me: “William (Lone Star) Dietz’ baby curls from his first haircut are not in Los Angeles’ Citizen’s Savings (née Helms) Athletic Foundation Hall.” The article went on to say that Lone Star’s baby curls along with a lot, and I mean a lot, of other sports memorabilia are in Joel Platt’s collection. As Lone Star’s biographer, I find this to be very interesting because I was previously unaware of the existence of Dietz’s locks. Considering that the color of his hair at birth was a significant issue at Lone Star’s WWI draft evasion trial, makes this artifact all the more important.
Leanna Ginder Dietz Lewis raised Lone Star and would have had his baby curls. She probably gave them to him and his wife, Doris, when she visited them in Reading. They would have likely remained in his estate until the executrix gave them to Joel Platt.
The prominent mention of Dietz-related memorabilia and the reference to Helms Athletic Foundation attest to his importance to the history of the game. Preceding the curls in the article were mentions of the Polo Grounds’ home plate crossed by Bobby Thompson after hitting his historic home run, Babe Ruth’s Boston Braves uniform worn when he hit his last three home runs, Bronko Nagurski’s 1934 contract with the Bears, and Pudge Heffelfinger’s Yale pants and pads. Following the curls’ mention were Gene Tunney’s long-count gloves and Cassius Clay’s 1960 Olympic Games sweatshirt. Some company, huh?
The Citizen’s Savings Athletic Foundation was a prestigious institution that inducted Lone Star into its hall of fame in 1976. Jim Thorpe and Pop Warner were the only other Carlislers inducted therein. The prominence of Dietz’s mention by Sports Illustrated is further evidence that he should be ensconced in the College Football Hall of Fame. A photo of an older Lone Star Dietz was slipped into the brochure along with the Sports Illustrated article. See below.
Tags:Citizens Savings Athletic Foundation, Helms Athletic Foundation, Joel Platt, Sports Illustrated, Sports Immortals
Posted in Carlisle Indian School, Doctors, Lawyers, Indian Chiefs, Football, Lone Star Dietz, Washington State University | Leave a Comment »
May 30, 2008
The year was 1975, decades before Cumberland County entered the museum business, when Pittsburgh sports entrepreneur Joel Platt proposed to build a major sports museum on the Harrisburg Pike just east of I-81 exit 52 in Middlesex Township. The Sports Immortals complex was to consist of a hotel, restaurant, recreational facilities and a museum containing over a million pieces of sports memorabilia. At the time Platt’s acquisitions dwarfed the combined collections of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, and the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, MA. It may still as Platt continued to acquire significant items after that.
Rep. Bud Shuster (the congressman who never met a road-building project he didn’t like) enlisted the support of former Cardinals pitcher “Vinegar Bend” Mizell, then Asst. Sec. of Commerce, in an attempt to get federal funds for the Sports Immortals museum. However, it was to be build in Shuster’s district near Breezewood where the Pennsylvania Turnpike and I-70 meet. Apparently this undertaking was unsuccessful because Platt showed up in Carlisle.
Carlisle’s leaders of the day were apparently unimpressed. Word has it that the owner of a motel located near the proposed site was strongly opposed to the project. His concerns had nothing to do with having competition for his restaurant and motel move in nearby; he was concerned about the impact on the community by the element that would be attracted by such a facility. Freddie Wardecker lent me his copy of the brochure that Platt handed out at his presentation and I scanned it into a PDF for your viewing pleasure. It would be interesting to see what the reaction would be today if such a facility was proposed for County land near the Military History Institute. Click on the image below to view the Sports Immortals brochure.
Tags:Carlisle PA, Joel Platt, museum, Sports Immortals
Posted in Carlisle Indian School, Football, Jim Thorpe, Lone Star Dietz | 1 Comment »
May 27, 2008
The advance reading copies (called ARCs in the trade) arrived for my new book and are being sent out to reviewers. This is a big moment in a writer’s life: seeing thousands of hours of hard work turned into something tangible. In the old days (pre-computer), ARCs were called galleys, bound galleys or galley proofs. Authors, editors and publishers go over these babies with a fine-tooth comb looking for errors, typos or things that have changed since writing was complete. It is an impossible task because, after all this scrutiny, some typos escape and find their way into the final book. But we try.
Another important use of ARCs is to see how the photos and artwork come out in print. Overall they came out very well, better than expected. But a cartoon about the Oorang Indians from a 1922 Baltimore newspaper is too dim. The challenge now is to figure out how to darken it without losing the detail.
This weekend I received some additional information and a correction regarding Louis Island from a family member who happened to see a previous blog. That was fortuitous because I want the book to be as accurate as possible. This blog is already proving to be of some value. That encourages me to continue with it.
Having these ARCs provides local booksellers the opportunity to provide their customers something extra. People can look at an ARC and pre-order the book if they choose. The bonus, besides being sure of getting a copy of the book as soon as it comes out, is to receive an inscription of his or her choice signed by the author. On-line booksellers also take pre-orders but personalized inscriptions are impractical.
Tags:Add new tag, ARC, biography, book, galleys, Louis Island
Posted in Albert Exendine, Alex Arcasa, Antonio Lubo, Archie Libby, Arthur Sheldon, Bemus Pierce, Benjamin Caswell, Caleb Sickles, Carlisle Indian School, Charles Guyon, Charles Williams, Dickinson College, Doctors, Lawyers, Indian Chiefs, Ed Rogers, Elmer Busch, Emil Hauser, Football, Frank Cayou, Frank Hudson, Frank Mt. Pleasant, Fred Broker, George May, George Tibbits, George Vedernack, Gus Welch, Hawley Pierce, Henry Broker, Hugh Wheelock, Isaac Seneca, James Johnson, James Phillips, Jim Thorpe, Joe Bergie, Joe Guyon, Joe Libby, Joel Wheelock, John B. Flinchum, Leon Boutwell, Lone Star Dietz, Louis Island, Martin Wheelock, Nicholas Bowen, Nick Lassa, Pete Calac, Pete Hauser, Pop Warner, Sampson Bird, Single-Wing, Stacy Matlock, Stancil Powell, Thomas St. Germain, Victor Kelly, Washington Redskins, Washington State University, Wauseka, William Baine, William Gardner, William Garlow, William Newashe | Leave a Comment »
May 23, 2008
People often ask what happened to the great Indian sportsmen. Carlisle produced world class athletes from the mid 1890s to WWI. Haskell picked up the mantle in the 1920s until financial cuts brought about by the Great Depression brought its competitiveness to an end. A few individuals surfaced from time to time but not with the frequency they did in the first two decades of the 20th century. Or so I thought. As it turns out we may have focused our attention in the wrong direction or too narrowly.
Apparently the Bird family holds a Memorial Day rodeo annually in honor of Sammie Bird, son of Carlisle star and captain of the great 1911 team, Sampson Bird. The avuncular Sam Bird bore the responsibility of running the family’s ranches immediately after returning from Carlisle. He looked after his children, grandchildren, siblings and their offspring. It seems that many of the patriarch’s progeny channeled their athleticism toward rodeo competitions. A quick Internet search identified a Sam Bird, grandson of the Carlisle star, his nephew Dustin Bird, and his daughters Brittany and Sammy Jo Bird as current rodeo stars. There may be more.
It is my great hope that someone will read this, fill in the missing pieces and tell me what I have wrong. Then next year I can inform people enough ahead of the rodeo that some will be able to attend.
Tags:Add new tag, Browning, Cut Bank, Dustin Bird, Montana, rodeo, Sam Bird, Sam Burd, Sammy Bird, Sampson Bird, Sampson Burd
Posted in Carlisle Indian School, Football, Sampson Bird | 2 Comments »
May 20, 2008
I called Bob Wheeler to let him know about the auction mentioned last week. http://sports.ha.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=709&Lot_No=19835&ic=Left-FeaturedItemMain-071107#Photo. Although the lot was out of almost anyone’s price range, it was important that he know about it, particularly the three audiotapes made by Jim Thorpe. Bob is making an audiobook for his definitive biography of Jim Thorpe and having Jim Thorpe’s voice in it would be a great addition. Bob was way ahead of me – decades ahead. He got copies of the tapes long ago and is working them into his audiobook. So, his audiobook will have things the printed version doesn’t have: Jim Thorpe’s voice for one. It will surely include some of Bob’s experiences interviewing all those people over thirty years ago and will surely include snippets of some of their voices. We’ll just have to wait for it as no release date has been set as yet.
As it turns out, these items come from Joel Platt’s collection that was mentioned in this blog some weeks ago. It appears that Platt periodically offers items for sale. It’s not clear if he receives bids high enough to get him to part with anything. It’s my opinion that the Smithsonian should buy Pratt’s entire collection and use it as the nucleus of a national sports museum – unless Mayor Reed of Harrisburg gets there first.
Tags:auction, Joel Platt, memorabilia, Patricia Thorpe, Robert Wheeler
Posted in Carlisle Indian School, Football, Jim Thorpe | 4 Comments »
May 17, 2008
I just received a copy of Michie by James G. Sweeney. Michie is of course West Point’s venerable Michie Stadium, site of many historic football contests. Sweeney’s description is enough to make one want to spend an October Saturday along the Hudson taking in fall foliage, tradition, spectacle and even a football game all at once. Having served in the Air Force rather than wait for greetings from my friends and neighbors to don an army uniform, I know nothing about West Point. It seems that Army’s football tradition and history is as important to their alumni and supporters as is The Big House to my wife. However, it is not Michie Stadium that caught my attention, it was its predecessor, The Plain.
Before Michie Stadium was inaugurated in 1924, the cadets battled their opponents on The Plain, a large drill field that figures prominently on campus. The Plain was also the site of some historic football games, more historic in my estimation than those played at Michie, but then I’m not a West Pointer. It was on The Plain that the soldiers first met the Indians in hand-to-hand combat in 1905 and the Indians emerged victorious. The Indians of which I speak are the Carlisle Indians who wrestled with future officers for the pigskin three times in their glorious history. The Indians won the first two games, 1905 and 1912, but were routed in 1917, the last year Carlisle fielded a team. After athletics were deemphasized in 1914, Carlisle was no longer competitive and many of the athletes who would have been present in 1917 were in France fighting a shooting war. So, that game doesn’t count for much.
The 1905 and 1912 games were truly historic. Jim Sweeney tells me he is writing something about them. Hearing things from the other side’s perspective will be interesting. Another historic game was played on The Plain in 1913 when a team from a little-known Jesuit college in Indiana was booked to fill an open spot in Army’s schedule.
Tags:Army, James Sweeney, Michie, The Plain, West Point
Posted in Carlisle Indian School, Football | Leave a Comment »
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