Lokka's History Project

The WWI Boston Navy Yard Team: Meaning and Context

The WWI Boston Navy Yard hockey team embodied a confluence of social mobility, immigration, war dodgers, and other issues. My challenge has been choosing the right narratives to talk about this incredible team and the brief league it spurred.

SOCIAL MOBILITY
Patriotic duty and war fever hid the many motivations behind the players and team leadership. Peeling away the patriotic duty and war fever gripping Boston, a couple of Boston brahmins provided loyal participants a path into Boston’s upper society. By and large, this was a rare opportunity. However, George V. Brown and Ralph Winsor offered chances for change to those who demonstrated desire to take it. The Boston Navy Yard’s hockey team offered them a chance to elevate those who played. Many players took the opportunity.

IMMIGRATION
The Navy rejected Thomas Henry Howard from his opportunity. Howard was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and son of Thomas “Atty” Atcheson Howard, a Stanley Cup winner. The Howard’s lived in New York City. Canada’s Military Service Act of 1917 (MSA), in part a draft measure, forced Canadians living in America to weigh options between returning to Canada, joining an American military service, or hoping to evade. At first, evasion might have been possible until the United States and Canada agreed to forcing British empire recruits to Canadian recruitment stations and allowing Canadian military police to enforce the MSA in the United States. As a result, Howard joined the Navy to escape from either Canadian or American Army service. Due to his 8th grade education, the Navy rejected his application to flight school. In the end, he traveled to Scotland on the USS Canandaigua. Together, they laid mines in the North Sea as part of the Northern Barrage.

WAR DODGER
Raymie Skilton complicates the social dynamic of the entire team. Skilton used his athletic abilities to escape the war altogether. First, his contract with Massachusetts Militia expired just before the Army went on a punitive expedition against Pancho Villa. While not clear if Battery A, 1st Light Field Artillery left for Mexico and the American southwest, Skilton was not enlisted. Before being drafted, he enlisted in the Navy Reserve to play football and hockey. After the hockey season ended, he found excuses to refuse orders to active duty. Eventually, he was booted from the Navy.

SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT
After reviewing military records and reading about Progressive-era social constructs, I still tell myself that some of this does not make sense. Individually, the explanations are self-evident. Brown, a prominent sports promoter, gathers the best team to instill patriotism in the hearts of Americans while balancing the norms of brahmin expectations. Winsor diligently does his duty to America on ice and the sea. While building the Boston Office of Naval Intelligence, he coaches a highly skilled team because it is the right thing to do. The son of Canadian hockey star prided family fealty over all else. The selfish goat who prioritized preservation of self. But there’s more. The war fever environment of Boston and the Navy’s physical education program exerted influence or created enabling conditions for this team to make sports headlines.

LAST FACTORS
A narrative without a good villain is boring. Were Cornelius Fellowes and Roy Schooley villains? All three had less than noble personal motivations. Furthermore, they exercised altruistic tendencies at different times. In the early years, Fellowes slid money to star players or assisted them with finding jobs. Schooley largely assisted players during the 1920s, when he was at peak influence. Brown provided immediate benefit to players through special assignments or connections. In my opinion, Brown’s support felt different even though sharing in the same self-promotion desires. Records seem to confirm Brown’s support was actualized idealism. Was George V. Brown the perfect upper class American? For at least two years (1917-18), he was.

NOTE:

Cover Art provided by Library of Congress. Digital ID: cph 3g01660 //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3g01660

Imposing Morality through Sports: The Navy’s Physical Education Program, 1917-1918

Posted on January 26 by Jlokka

Forward: The concepts from this paper support a fundamental question about the 1917/18 First Naval District’s Ice hockey team. Since starting on the National Amateur Hockey League (1917/18) project, I struggled describing the motivations of George V. Brown, Ralph Winsor, and the Boston team. Brown and Winsor have different goals than Cornelius Fellowes or Roy Schooley. But I couldn’t really explain it. The research conducted for the paper below answered some of those questions.

Whether exploring the Commission on Training Camp Activities from a sports or morality perspective, the organization imposed upper class values upon the drafted masses with the expectation of complete societal change. In 1917, Josephus Daniels, Secretary of the Navy, established a Commission on Training Camp Activities (CTCA) to provide for the moral and physical preparation of draftees[1]. The CTCA redefined military culture change in terms of Gilded Age pietist values built around physical activities, sex education, singing, and other cultivated entertainment opportunities. The CTCA’s athletics commissioner, Walter Camp, created a training regimen with a different moral outlook than the singular focus against sex and vice. Camp’s moral code promoted a complete man grounded in muscular Christianity. Subordinate to Camp, George Vincent Brown, from Boston and the First Naval District, shared Camp’s ethos. Amid the CTCA’s moral crusade, Brown focused on social advancement through amateur sports. As First Naval District’s athletic director, Brown acted consistently with Boston Brahmin values in addition to the shared concepts of muscular Christianity. Whereas Camp extolled these virtues, Brown acted on it. On behalf of the Charlestown Navy Yard’s hockey team, Brown interceded with the Navy and Boston University. Those who took advantage placed in developmental technologies, low key positions, or transferred into an advanced law degree. Brown changed individuals. Camp attempted individual change through mass instruction. The CTCA desired societal change through imposed values on individuals. While many CTAC initiatives remained, no moral lessons survived the 1920s.

Secretary of War Newton Baker, followed by Secretary Daniels, established the CTCA to address moral concerns developing in the U.S. armed forces. In July 1916, Secretary Baker sent Raymond Fosdick to investigate Army camps in the American Southwest. Fosdick identified “an ingrowing staleness all along the border[2].” He commented that soldiers frequented saloons and the brothels when not on duty. He noted that the soldiers needed reading materials, physical activities, and movie-houses. Upon returning to Washington D.C., Fosdick proposed to Baker the CTCA to eliminate liquor and vice while preparing the men for the physical demands of the frontline[3]. Fosdick specified the commission’s tasks as “[keeping] the camps and the surrounding neighborhoods clean and free from vicious influences” and “supply… social and recreational facilities to replace… the normal conditions of life[4].” In April 1917, Baker approved the commission with Fosdick as the chairman. Shortly afterwards, Daniels authorized a similar training camp commission for the Navy that would also be chaired by Fosdick[5].

The military’s authoritarian nature allowed Fosdick’s commissions to easily implement the moral reforms demanded by Gilded Age pietists. Gilded Age pietists tended to be Protestant nativists. They championed for prohibition, “Sunday blue laws”, and compulsory schooling. Combing secular and religion, they believed “the State was to take it upon itself to aid the weaker brethren by various crusading actions of compulsory morality, and thus to purge the world of sin[6].” With direct access to the Secretaries of War and the Navy, the CTCA implemented Service wide reform with a signature. Many reforms impacted the non-military communities surrounding the bases bypassing democratic processes to pass ordinances, statues, or laws. For example, Fosdick noted the elimination of 110 red-light districts across the nation with only thirty-five in a prohibited zone according to section 13 of the Selective Draft Act of May 18, 1917. He lauded the elimination of all red-light districts within five miles of any military facility[7]. Even operating within an authoritarian regime, the CTCA required structure to provide the necessary oversight of its activities.

The CTCA created six divisions to plan, monitor, and enforce proper behavior through controlled activities in the elimination of vice. For Fosdick, the Social Hygiene and Law Enforcement divisions with their focus on venereal disease and liquor formed the core of the CTCA’s mission[8]. To eliminate prostitution and alcohol, Fosdick minimized unstructured free time. To structure off duty time, the CTCA created divisions for Athletics, Camp Music, Education, and Entertainment. The Athletics division created training regimens around “war-like sports”, which included boxing, swimming along with baseball, basketball, hockey, and others[9]. Camp Music and Entertainment provided for spiritual and mental health. Education taught basic citizenship skills like reading and writing or offered French language instruction. Although not a formal division, the CTCA partnered with several external organizations like the Young Men’s Christian Association, the Knights of Columbus, the Jewish Welfare Board, The Young Women’s Christian Association, and the War Camp Community Service to preserve the “normal social relationship between the people and the men in training[10].” With the commission established, Fosdick identified Walter Camp to lead the Navy’s athletics division.

As the Navy athletics commissioner, Camp assumed responsibility for the physical activities of a moral program to eliminate vice and keep the Navy fit to fight. Before 1918, Camp became the authority on American football and organized sports in general. Building upon that football experience, he developed the “daily dozen” to standardize physical exercise across the Service[11]. The daily dozen consisted of twelve exercises targeting “every muscle of the body[12].” While the exercise movements originated from his football experiences, the Gospel of Fresh Air became the reason for existence.

Unlike his cohorts, Camp believed in the Gospel of Fresh Air more than the direct moralistic outcomes of the CTCA. In essence, the Gospel of Fresh Air claimed urbanization prevents proper attainment of physical development. To combat this situation, the Gospel argued outdoor sports must replace the struggles of early settlers[13]. For additional moral guidance, he authored an American Citizen’s Creed, which embodied the muscular Christianity approach to morality[14]. The creed stated:

I believe that a nation should be made up of people who individually possess clean, strong bodies and pure minds; who have respect for their own rights and the rights of others and possess the courage and strength to redress wrongs; and, finally, in whom self-consciousness is sufficiently powerful to preserve these qualities. I believe in education, patriotism, justice, and loyalty. I believe in civil and religious liberty and in freedom of thought and speech. I believe in chivalry that protects the weak and preserves veneration and love for parents, and in the physical strength that makes that chivalry effective. I believe in that clear thinking and straight speaking which conquers envy, slander, and fear. I believe in the trilogy of faith, hope, and charity, and in the dignity of labor; finally, I believe that through these and education true democracy may come to the world[15].

The creed spoke in broad language of generally noble virtues contrasting with the singular purpose against vice and prostitution. The creed meant to impart the ideal, well-rounded man to the reader[16]. Unfortunately, the creed captured “a definition of masculinity drawn from a class-specific vision of Christianity[17].” In validation, Camp celebrated desk workers as unhappy middle-aged wrecks who were invigorated after playing golf[18]. Developed while the commissioner for Navy athletics, the creed and daily dozen exercises meant to transform stagnant city dwellers into active people.

The CTCA athletics program never intended to cultivate serious amateur competitors. The athletics program prepared men for combat and replaced the free time activities of prostitution and vice. As a preparatory for war, the athletics program supported low scale competition. For the Navy, activities focused on swimming, boxing, and even considered sailing. Fosdick reported less than half the men in the Navy could swim. By June 1918, swimming became a compulsory sport[19]. Beyond the Northeast, inter-base competition rarely occurred. In contrast, northeastern servicemembers, usually officers, regularly participated in regional and inter-base competitions in the two decades leading up to World War I. Servicemembers who participated in organized amateur events usually belonged to state militias. Although the CTCA brought training standardization, George Vincent Brown and the draft forced the athletics program to organize serious amateur competitions.

Through organized amateur sports, Brown built a dais to showcase America’s military athleticism while providing an incentive for servicemen to enjoy competitive, amateur sports. On the eve of becoming the First Naval District athletic director, Brown organized track and field events solely for military athletes. Although created to foster healthy, inter-unit rivalry, the organizers encouraged public attendance to understand military drill and support the troops^[20]. After assuming the role of the First Naval District athletic director, Brown continued to organize and promote serious competitions. Brown shared core values with Camp, especially on the redemptive power of sports.

Brown’s personal beliefs and unique background in sports management prepared him for leadership in the military’s new athletics program. Brown solidified his concepts of amateurism and sports management under the employment of Harvard’s athletic director, Professor Ira Nelson Hollis. Hollis strictly adhered to the tenet of amateurs never playing for money[21]. Additionally, amateurism intertwined with muscular Christianity to form the upper-class notions of a well-rounded gentlemen. Amateurism dictated who could play as much as how they played. With the commercialization of sport, the upper classes needed to differentiate themselves from the “masses[22].” Boston believed in the gospel of progress, which acted independent of amateurism. Boston elites viewed themselves as “agents of improvement” stemming from personal achievement. Boston elites behaved as patrons of culture and exemplars of republican simplicity[23]. Boston elitist values instructed the wealthy how to act. For Brown, amateur sport provided the vehicle to act. The combination of Boston elitist values and amateurism provided Brown a framework to absorb new experiences.

Brown absorbed the important lessons in sports management in context of reality informed muscular Christanity. In 1904, Brown practiced amateur sports management as the Boston Athletic Association’s (B.A.A.) athletic director[24]. By 1906, Boston area sportswriters acknowledged his abilities in managing events[25]. When the Matthews Arena and associated indoor ice rink completed construction in 1910, Brown established B.A.A.’s amateur ice hockey team. A few years later, Brown worked to create an inter-city amateur hockey league with teams from New York City. Brown applied experience gained from organizing amateur sporting events towards developing serious competitions for drafted athletes.

In the decade prior to 1917, Brown gained important contacts through assuming sports leadership positions in multiple organizations. The New England Amateur Athletic Union elected him to a key position[26]. Through this position, he occasionally represented the Amateur Athletic Union. Additionally, he participated in the American Olympic Committee[27]. On the eve of war, Boston University hired Brown as their first athletic director. He maintained positions with Boston University and the B.A.A. while acting as the First Naval District athletic director. With this placement, Brown developed and implemented the district’s athletic program without interference.

Although Brown headed the First Naval District’s athletic program, LT Jesse K. Park, Jr. served as the Charlestown Navy Yard’s athletic director. In 1917, the Navy divided its shore commands into districts for defensive and management purposes. The First Naval District covered Boston and all New England except for Rhode Island. The Charlestown Navy Yard, located on Boston waterfront, was a subordinate command to the First Naval District[28]. Charlestown provided ship construction and repair facilities. Additionally, it housed the First Naval District’s Reserve pool. Rear Admiral Spencer Wood commanded the First Naval District with Brown as his civilian aid for athletics. Captain William Rees Rush commanded the Charlestown Navy Yard and subordinate to Wood. Charlestown retained day-to-day Reserve and recruit management since the First Naval District constituted a headquarters element. As a result, Charlestown selected LT Park as its first athletic director. LT Park managed fourteen Reserve ice hockey players in league battles from January 1918 until March 1918.

The fourteen ice hockey players feared little of receiving active-duty orders due to the excessive manpower reserve created by the draft. In anticipation of conflict, the Navy created the Reserve program in 1915. Originally only for enlisted veterans, the Navy broadened the program in 1916 to include non-prior service. However, the program remained only open for enlisted ranks. The Navy revamped the immature program as a coping mechanism for the rapid manpower increase. The Reserves acted as a pool of available manpower ready to be activated for duty. During America’s first year in the war, the Navy waited for craft to be built. While waiting, the draftees trained and participated in sport until Spring 1918. With the excessive manpower available to First Naval District operations, Brown and the Reservist athletes played the entire 1917/18 season with only one player called to active duty.

Even though LT Park publicly led the Charlestown Navy Yard ice hockey team, Brown drove the creation of a league to support his team. Brown took personal interest in hockey before the creation of Boston’s first indoor rink at the Matthew Arena. Brown picked only Americans to play on his hockey teams with two exceptions. Prior to 1917, Brown accepted Mickey Roach to play on B.A.A.’s hockey team. Roach learned hockey in the Boston high school system though being born and remaining true to Nova Scotia roots. Thomas Henry Howard became the second Canadian to play on a Brown team. In mid-January 1918, the Charlestown Navy Yard team lost a player. Brown borrowed Howard from the Second Naval District. Howard, the son of a Stanley Cup winner, learned to play in Brooklyn under his father. With a solid team that included three National Hockey Players, Brown coordinated with team owners in Pittsburgh, New York City, and Boston to form a league showing the best of American based amateur hockey. While Brown’s team achieved second, Brown met his goals.

While amateurism stated sport was its own reward, Brown’s Boston elitist values forced a sense of social responsibility to reward personal achievement. Whereas Walter Camp extolled the virtues of achievement through sport, Brown acted as an agent of improvement for athletes who played by the amateur rules. Brown’s actions separate him from Camp. Throughout 1918, Brown held leadership positions in the B.A.A., Boston University, and at the First Naval District headquarters. These positions provided Brown direct access to senior leadership like Rear Admiral Spencer Wood and Boston University President Lemuel Mulin. To reward the ice hockey players, Brown accommodated requests by leveraging his access. Successful requests remained within the bounds of service and Brown’s belief in Bostonian and amateur values. Brown acted on many requests received from the hockey team.

As First Naval District athletic director, Brown changed many lives and institutions. Brown helped John Jay O’hare to getting accepted and transferred into Boston University’s law program[29]. O’hare and Brown created the university’s permanent hockey program. At least five players received flight screening by LT Park. Park transitioned to flight candidate screening near the completion of hockey season in March 1918. Brown offered chances, but not guarantees. Park addressed a personal letter requesting a waiver for Thomas Howard. The Naval Reserve Flying Corps rejected the waiver request. Howard remained with the Fleet Mine Force[30]. Furthermore, the 1917/18 ice hockey team established the first hockey league that remained unchallenged until the National Hockey League’s appearance in 1925/26. Brown enriched lives by demonstrating and acting on Boston Brahmin values.

The CTCA undermined its own legacy. The CTCA established the foundation for every post exchange, base theater, and morale, welfare and recreation program. Current day military experienced cheap movies thanks to the CTCA. Finally, Service controlled standards for physical fitness started because the CTCA needed to replaced sex and alcohol. Yet, racist and classist policies raised questions, even in 1918. Furthermore, the CTCA represented the peak of Gilded Age piety. While the Eighteenth Amendment (prohibition) passed in 1919, the Gilded age piety exerted peak power during America’s involvement in World War I. No one acts outside the context of his or her era, and this is especially true for those who tried to impose morality via authoritarian methods.

Bibliography

Primary Sources

Camp, Walter. Keeping Fit All the Way, (Project Gutenberg, 2004), https://www.gutenberg.org/files/13574/13574-h/13574-h.htm.

Compiled service record, John Jay O’Hare, LDS/Yeoman, First Naval District, Series: Official Military Personnel Files, 1885 – 1998, Record Group 24: Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel, 1798-2007, National Archives, St. Louis, Missouri.

Compiled service record, Thomas Howard, Seaman, USS Canandaigua, Series: Official Military Personnel Files, 1885 – 1998, Record Group 24: Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel, 1798-2007, National Archives, St. Louis, Missouri.

Fosdick, Raymond B. Chronicle of a Generation; an Autobiography. New York: Harper, 1958.

“Keeping Our Fighters Fit for War and after” [on Recreational Programs and Activities at Army Training Facilities, and Control of Prostitution]. Congressional Document, 1918.

Personnel of War and Navy Departments; Commissions on Training Camp Activities [on Organization and Activities; Including Recreational Programs and Activities at Military Training Facilities, and Control of Prostitution and Alcohol]. Congressional Document, 1918.

Report of Chairman on Training Camp Activities to Secretary of War [on Organization of Recreation and Health Activities in Military Training Camps]. Congressional Document, 1917.

Secondary Sources

“Approval of Records Made” Boston Globe, September 22, 1914.

Buchanan, John G. “War Legislation against Alcoholic Liquor and Prostitution”, Journal of Criminal Law and & Criminology 9, no. 4 (1919): 520-29. https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1668&context=jclc.

“Every Event Hard Fought” Boston Globe, February 11, 1906.

“George V. Brown Taken by Death” Boston Globe, October 18, 1937.

Goewey, Ed. “Walter Camp, Football Authority, Heads Novel Movement and Will Employ Gridiron Methods in Training ‘Eyes and Brains” of Service.” The Tampa Tribune, 24 February 1918.

Goodman, Paul, “Ethics and Enterprise: The Values of a Boston Elite, 1800-1860”, American Quarterly 18, no. 3 (Autumn, 1966): 437-451. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2710847

Loane, Mark. “Ken Donald and Muscular Christianity.” Australian health review 32, no. 2 (2008): 305–7.

“Must Receive Money” Boston Globe, March 3, 1902.

“New Features for July 4 Sports on the Common” Boston Globe, June 15, 1917.

Rothbard, Murray. The Progressive Era, ed. Patrick Newman (the Mises Institute, 2017), https://mises.org/library/progressive-era-0/html/c/620. 

“Stars Enter for Tryouts” Boston Globe, June 1, 1912.

Wakefield, Wanda Ellen. Playing to Win : Sports and the American Military, 1898-1945 Albany, NY: State University of the New York Press, 1997.

[1] Fosdick chaired both the Army and Navy CTACs. While few differences existed, the focus is on the Navy’s Commission except where noted.

[2] “Keeping Our Fighters Fit for War and after” [on Recreational Programs and Activities at Army Training Facilities, and Control of Prostitution]. Congressional Document, 1918, 5.

[3] Ibid, 4.

[4] Report of Chairman on Training Camp Activities to Secretary of War [on Organization of Recreation and Health Activities in Military Training Camps]. Congressional Document, 1917, 3.

[5] Fosdick, Raymond B. Chronicle of a Generation; an Autobiography. New York: Harper, 1958, 143-144.

[6] Murray Rothbard, The Progressive Era, ed. Patrick Newman (the Mises Institute, 2017), https://mises.org/library/progressive-era-0/html/c/620. Rothbard defined the Progressive era from 1870 through 1940. Since Rothbard tied pietists to the 1890s, the Gilded Age (1877 ~ 1900) was used for clarity and accuracy.

[7] Report of Chairman on Training Camp Activities to Secretary of War [on Organization of Recreation and Health Activities in Military Training Camps]. Congressional Document, 1917, 11. Section 13 set the prohibited zone for brothels around military bases to five miles. See John G. Buchanan “War Legislation against Alcoholic Liquor and Prostitution”, Journal of Criminal Law and & Criminology 9, no. 4 (1919): 524. https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1668&context=jclc.

[8] Report of Chairman on Training Camp Activities to Secretary of War [on Organization of Recreation and Health Activities in Military Training Camps]. Congressional Document, 1917, 5.

[9] Personnel of War and Navy Departments; Commissions on Training Camp Activities [on Organization and Activities; Including Recreational Programs and Activities at Military Training Facilities, and Control of Prostitution and Alcohol]. Congressional Document, 1918, 11.

[10] Personnel of War and Navy Departments; Commissions on Training Camp Activities [on Organization and Activities; Including Recreational Programs and Activities at Military Training Facilities, and Control of Prostitution and Alcohol]. Congressional Document, 1918, 31.

[11] Ed Goewey, “Walter Camp, Football Authority, Heads Novel Movement and Will Employ Gridiron Methods in Training ‘Eyes and Brains” of Service.” The Tampa Tribune, 24 February 1918, https://www.newspapers.com/clip/86396508/.

[12] Walter Camp, Keeping Fit All the Way, (Project Gutenberg, 2004), https://www.gutenberg.org/files/13574/13574-h/13574-h.htm. See section “A Shorthand Method”

[13] Ibid. See section “The Gospel of Fresh Air”

[14] An accurate definition of Muscular Christianity is “a system which relied upon sport to allow people to grow in a moral and spiritual way.” See Mark Loane “Ken Donald and Muscular Christianity.” Australian health review 32, no. 2 (2008): 305. https://www.publish.csiro.au/ah/pdf/ah080305.

[15] Ibid.

[16] In this case, “man” means “males” and not humanity. See Wakefield Playing to Win, 11- 14.

[17] Wanda Ellen Wakefield, Playing to Win: Sports and the American Military, 1898 – 1945, (SUNY Press, 1997), 12. https://search.lib.asu.edu/permalink/01ASU_INST/pio0a/alma991000819439703841

[18] Camp. See section “The Gospel of Fresh Air.”

[19] Personnel of War and Navy Departments; Commissions on Training Camp Activities [on Organization and Activities; Including Recreational Programs and Activities at Military Training Facilities, and Control of Prostitution and Alcohol]. Congressional Document, 1918, 11.

[20] “New Features for July 4 Sports on the Common” Boston Globe, June 15, 1917.

[21] “Must Receive Money” Boston Globe, March 3, 1902.

[22] Matthew Llewellyn and Gleaves, John, The Rise and Fall of Olympic Amateurism, (Urbana, University of Illinois Press, 2016), 12-13.

[23] Paul Goodman “Ethics and Enterprise: The Values of a Boston Elite, 1800-1860”American Quarterly 18, no 3 (Autumn, 1966): 437.

[24] “George V. Brown Taken by Death” Boston Globe, October 18, 1937.

[25] “Every Event Hard Fought” Boston Globe, February 11, 1906.

[26] “Approval of Records Made” Boston Globe, September 22, 1914.

[27] “Stars Enter for Tryouts” Boston Globe, June 1, 1912.

[28] Charlestown Navy Yard also known by Boston Navy Yard and Boston Naval Shipyard. It reverted to Charlestown Navy Yard after becoming a historic site managed by the National Parks Service.

[29] Compiled service record, John Jay O’Hare, LDS/Yeoman, First Naval District, Series: Official Military Personnel Files, 1885 – 1998, Record Group 24: Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel, 1798-2007, National Archives, St. Louis, Missouri.

[30] Compiled service record, Thomas Howard, Seaman, USS Canandaigua, Series: Official Military Personnel Files, 1885 – 1998, Record Group 24: Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel, 1798-2007, National Archives, St. Louis, Missouri.

Pekka and Juhani: Their Migrant Story

Posted on June 24, 2021 by Jlokka

In late August 1975, Pekka Rautakallio, his wife Arja, and their two-year-old son, stepped off a plane into Phoenix’s sweltering heat. During those weeks, temperature highs floated between 105F/40.5C to 107F/41.6C. Back in Pori, Finland, summer started turning into fall with highs around 57.5F/14.2C. The Rautakallios retrieved their luggage ready to start the upcoming Phoenix Roadrunners’ hockey season. When he stepped off the plane, Rautakallio became a migrant worker as a Roadrunner defenseman.

Excluding advances in transportation, Rautakallio’s story shared many aspects with European migrants of the early-1900s. At the turn of the twentieth century, steamship agents recruited peasants trumpeting America’s wealth. The agents often acted as auctioneers, creditors, and even loaned clothes. Furthermore, agents knew about jobs and wages of destinations. After recruiting a peasant, the agents tagged him, usually with a button, to ensure smooth flow through the pipeline to America (Wyman 1993, 15-31). Sports agents share many commonalities with their steamship counterparts.

In July 1975, Finnish star Juhani Wahlsten convinced Rautakallio and Lauri Mononen to travel to Phoenix. Herb Rudory, a Chicago-based sports agent, met them in Phoenix. Rudoy negotiated two-year contracts for Rautakallio and Lauri Mononen with the Phoenix RoadRunners*. At the contract signing party, Rudoy preened for the publicity shot (Arizona Republic 1975, 30).

Steamship agents of yore accompanied their recruits on part of their journey until passing them to the next link in the chain (Wyman 1993, 29). Waiting outside the airport, the Rautakallios found Roadrunners’ General Manager, Al Rollins, waiting for them. Effectively, Rudory handed them off.

Taking them from the airport, Rollins dropped the Rautakallios off at a motel to find housing, transportation, and other necessities. Rautakallio spoke limited English. At practice, teammate Cam Connor asked Rautakallio about his name. Rautakallio replied in bad English, “It means Iron Rocky”. Thus, Rautakallio earned his nickname, Rocky. Still in adjustment, they lived out of the motel. Unknown to the Rautakallios, Phoenix contained a thriving Finnish community centered around George and Helmi Anttila.

After reading about a new Finnish hockey player, George tracked down the Rautakallios. George’s parents emigrated from Ranua, Finland in the early 1900s as immigrant laborers. George grew up in Michigan. In 1947, George and his wife, Helmi, moved to Phoenix due to health reasons. In 1953, the Finlandia Foundation opened a chapter in Phoenix. George was its first president and held the post for 23 years. Over the years, George assisted Finnish athletes and hobos. For promoting friendship between the United States and Finland, Finnish President Urho Kekkonen awarded George the Medal First Class with Gold Cross of the Order of the White Rose in December 1964 (Cooke 1970). George extended that helping hand to the Rautakallios.

Anttila met Rautakallio in the Roadrunners’ office. From there, Anttila helped Rautakallio rent an apartment just a few blocks away on 17^th Ave. Then, Anttila assisted them with getting furnishings and a car. When Mononen arrived in September 1975, Pekka already started informal training with Roadrunners’ coach, Sandy Hucul. While Mononen met the Anttilas, he received help from fellow Karelian living in Phoenix. Repeating history, both players relied upon the pre-existing community to help them transition.

The 1976/77 season added two more Finns to the Roadrunner roster, Seppo Repo (center) and Juhani Tamminen (left wing). With Mononen at right wing, these three Finns formed the Lappline because they originated from Lapland in northern Finland. The Lappline lived near each other on W. Octollio Rd. They lived so close that they would carpool to practice. Also, Rautakallio moved from 17^th to 27^th Ave. possibly to be close to the other Finns.

Ocotillo Rd and 27th Ave. 1979/2019 (Maricopa.gov)

Although Rautakallio’s English improved, the team declared Tamminen the official team interpreter. In the 70s, Finnish school experienced a systemic reform (Jaatinen 2014, 30). Reforming the schools included replacing German with English in the 1960s (Jaatinen, 39). As result, Rautakallio and the other Finns may have learned Latin and German, but only briefly exposed to English. Tamminen’s college offered a path to learning English not available to the other Finns.

On April 6, 1977, the Tamminen supplied the WHA Phoenix Roadrunners’ final win with three goals and an assist. The team’s 7-3 win against Indianapolis sealed the end of the team, but not the Finns. Tamminen and Repo finished the season with the Oklahoma Blazers. Rautakallio and Mononen returned to Finland. By the 1977/78 season, all Finns played for teams in the top Finnish league. In 1979, Rautakallio returned States-side to play for the NHL’s Atlanta Flames. He became the first Finn to play in an NHL all-star game.

Migration stories rarely end with the accomplishment of a few successful migrants. For example, the US Visa office considered Rautakallios, Tamminen, and the other Finns to be nonimmigrants. Migrating for work does not equate to being an immigrant. Transient athletes acquired an H-1, exceptional ability, or an H-2, temporary worker, visas potentially impacting quotas until 1990. In 1990, the US Immigration and Naturalization Service created a new category, P, to separately cover nonimmigrant, professional athletes. And what of their impact.

Today, the Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum still stands. Its economic impact is modest at best, but its cultural impact significant. It brought world class hockey to the desert. Its ice allowed Finns to demonstrate their hockey prowess for the NHL and the world. Finally, it kept winter sports alive for a young, Mexican-American named Auston Matthews to discover a passion for ice hockey. From San Ramon, California to Scottsdale, Az and now in Toronto, Matthews learned hockey from a Ukrainian who was Mexico’s director of ice hockey. All because of family connections to Mexico (Pinchevsky 2017). Matthews scored the most goals in the 2020/21 NHL season dominating the Rocket Richard race against Alex Ovechkin (Capitals) and Pasternack (Bruins). The circle completed as migrant worker Anttila assisted migrant Rautakallio who kept alive a migrant worker’s sport for migrant Matthews to excel.

*NOTE: This transaction was likely one of Rudoy’s first as an agent. By the 1980s, Rudoy improved how he handled players. Currently, Rudoy performs agent duties for NBA, NFL, and soccer (MLS and FIFA) players.

Links to the other parts of the series:
PART 1: Phoenix: Preparation for Migratory Sports
PART 2: The Coliseum’s Impact
PART 3: Migration Patterns of Hockey Players: Pekka Rautakallio and Juhani Tamminen

Player Stats (Hockeydb):
Pekka Rautakallio
Lauri Mononen
Seppo Repo
Juhani Tamminen

SOURCES:
Pekka Rautakallio (Hockey Player/Coach) in discussion with Hannu Kauhala, June 2021.
Juhani Tamminen (Hockey Player/Coach) in discussion with Hannu Kauhala, June 2021.
Wyman, Mark. (1993). Round-trip to America: the immigrants return to Europe, 1880-1930. Ithaca, N.Y : Cornell University Press, 15-31.
“Publicity Photo of Al Rollins, Juhani Whalsten, Pekka Rautakallio, Lauri Mononen, and Herb Rudoy.” Arizona Republic, June 17, 1975, 30.
Cooke, Ellen “Cooke’s Carte: Someone to put the Finnish to the Food”. Arizona Republic, December 3, 1970.
Order of the White Rose of Finland – Ritarikunnat, last accessed June 22, 2021.
Phoenix Roadrunners [WHA] all-time player list at hockeydb.com, last accessed June 22, 2021.
Jaatinen, R., & Saarivirta, T. (2014). The Evolution of English Language Teaching during Societal Transition in Finland – A mutual relationship or a distinctive process?. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 39(11). http://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2014v39n11.3
Pinchevsky, Tal “Secret behind Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews’ skating prowess is a Ukrainian via Mexico”. ESPN, Jan 17, 2017. NHL — The secret weapon behind Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews’ skating prowess is a Ukrainian instructor who moved from Mexico (espn.com) Last accessed June 23, 2021.

Climate data:
Climate Pori (August 1975) – Climate data (29520) (tutiempo.net)
https://www.almanac.com/weather/history/AZ/Phoenix/1975-08-01

Migration Patterns of Hockey Players: Pekka Rautakallio and Juhani Tamminen

Posted on June 18, 2021 by Jlokka

According to Finnish hockey historian Hannu Kauhala, ten Finns played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) opening the NHL for Finns like Pekka Rinne, Tukka Rask, and Miro Heiskanen. Four of them played for the Phoenix Roadrunners. Pekka Rautakallio played defense during the 1975/76 and 1976/77 seasons. For the 1976/77 season, Juhani Tamminen played as left wing on the Lappline along with Seppo Repo (center) and Lauri Mononen (right wing).

In the search of talent, the WHA discovered that talent in Finland with Rautakallio and Tamminen. Rautakallio (in gold and yellow) traveled from Pori, Finland to Phoenix, Arizona. Returning to Helsinki for two years, he joined the NHL’s Flames final season in Atlanta. He stayed with the team in their move to Calgary. Two seasons later, he returned to Helsinki.

Tamminen’s journey (in shades of blue) started in Turku, Finland. He headed to Cleveland and then traded to Phoenix. The Roadrunners declared bankruptcy. Tamminen moved with the team to Oklahoma City to join the Central Hockey League. For the 1978/79 season, he returned to Turku where he finished his playing career.

Of note, Rautakallio mentioned his first apartment was a few blocks away from the Memorial Coliseum on 17th Avenue. Not many two storey buildings existed on 17th Ave. One possible candidate was sandwiched between 17th drive and 17th Ave. along Grand Ave. (Note: Lower right corner below).

Arizona Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum and 17th Ave 1976/2019 (Maricopa.gov)

Similar to the migrant workers of today and the early-20th century, Rautakallio and Tamminen came with different backgrounds and requirements. Their ability to face the challenges of migration drastically differed.

PART 1: Phoenix: Preparation for Migratory Sports
PART 2: The Coliseum’s Impact
PART 4: Pekka and Juhani: Their Migrant Story

SOURCES:
Pekka Rautakallio (Hockey Player/Coach) in discussion with Hannu Kauhala, June 2021.
Juhani Tamminen (Hockey Player/Coach) in discussion with Hannu Kauhala, June 2021.
Kauhala, Hannu “WHA – Unelmien Liiga” 2014. ISBN: 9789526789729
Historical Aerial Photography (maricopa.gov) last accessed June 16, 2021.
HockeyDb “Phoenix Roadrunners 1976-77 roster and statistics” last accessed June 18, 2021.

The Coliseum’s Impact

Posted on June 15, 2021 by Jlokka

The Arizona Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum imported new industries centered around migrant workers whose economic impact was negligible. The Coliseum supported multiple sports teams including the Phoenix Suns (NBA) and the Phoenix Roadrunners (WHL and WHA). Though the Suns migrated players from across the United States, the Phoenix Roadrunners immigrated from Canada. The Suns’ 1968 inaugural roster included 18 American players. Besides being imported from Victoria, British Columbia, the Roadrunners 1967-68 inaugural roster included 28 Canadians.

From 1968 until 1977, The Roadrunners transitioned across leagues while maintaining a largely migrant workforce. From 1968 until 1974, they played in the Western Hockey League, a minor professional league, with affiliation to the Toronto Maple Leafs. In 1974, they switched to the NHL rival the World Hockey Association (WHA). In the WHA, the Roadrunners roster included 48 players with only 4 Finnish, 2 Americans, and 1 Dane. Of interest, two Finns, Pekka Rautakallio and Juhani Tamminen, shared their migration stories.

As migrant workers, Rautakallio and Tamminen are tied into the United States immigration laws and policies. The United States tracks two types of visas, immigrants and nonimmigrant. In the mid-70s, nonimmigrant visas, which includes temporary workers, exploded while immigrant visas remained fixed (Visa Office).

Latin American, usually Mexican, farm hands represent the public memory of migrant workers. These workers received H-2 visas especially after the Bracero program ended (ImmigrationHistory.org). However, most migrant workers, including hockey players, received H-1 visas. From 1974 until 1977, H-1 and H-2 visas represented less than 1% of all nonimmigrant visas. For the Roadrunners, the United States issued four temporary worker visas for the Finnish players. Even this represented a small percentage of temporary worker visas issued to Finland.

Fiscal Year	Country	Temp Worker Visas
1974	Finland	31
1975	Finland	103
1976	Finland	128
1977	Finland	83

When the WHA floundered and merged with the NHL, Phoenix experienced little to no negative economic impact. Andrew Zimbalist identified four underlying reasons why. On the player and business side, he noted teams exert greater cultural impact than economic. Teams typically run a small front office full time. The rest are game day and only work four hours per game. Players rarely make permanent residence of their teams home barn. Most money gets expended in their home town or vacation spots. On the residents side, Zimbalist identified families usually run on fixed budgets. Thus, dollars spent at the rink are taken from other entertainment activities. Since the Memorial Coliseum was self-funded, budget gaps covered by public funding do not apply. Despite being self-funded and sustaining, the Coliseum and the players who called it home contributed little to Phoenix’s economic growth.

In 1962, the Arizona State Fair Commission proposed an exposition center, which became the Memorial Coliseum. Stanford Research Institute studied the development of a exposition center in 1960. The study estimated 237 days of use with a potential profit of $20,250 (Arizona State Fair Commission 1962) [1]. In 2016, the Arizona State Senate reviewed the Fair Commission for privatization. The enlisted research company identified the coliseum and fairgrounds generate 718 full-time jobs with $24.5 million in wages. Additionally, employee spending provided $3.4 million into the economy (Hanna 2016). While this sounds impressive, it was a fraction of Phoenix’s revenue.

In October 2007, Contemporary Economic Policy published an article reviewing research surrounding the economic impacts of professional sports teams and stadiums on their host communities. Most studies concluded “stadiums do not cause income or employment to grow (COATES 2007, 567) [2]. Coates identified flaws in studies supporting positive economic impact. For example, Baltimore’s M&T Stadium accounted for an aggregate income increase of $3 million dollars, which equated to approximately 0.02% of Baltimore’s revenue of $15 billion (568). The Arizona State Senate’s research exhibited the same misrepresentation as M&T Stadium’s impact.

The 1960 promise and the 2016 performance audit highlighted a Coliseum with great cultural significance while hoping for significant economic impact. The Coliseum brought in professional basketball and hockey sports teams. These added to the growth of Phoenix as it moved from 99th to 20th in size. Yet, neither the Coliseum nor the teams contributed significantly to Phoenix’s economic growth. Unlike many other stadiums and arenas, Arizona’s Veterans Memorial Coliseum remains a self-sufficient entity sustaining an ember of winter sports in the desert.

PART 1: Phoenix: Preparation for Migratory Sports
PART 3: Migration Patterns of Hockey Players: Pekka Rautakallio and Juhani Tamminen
PART 4: Pekka and Juhani: Their Migrant Story

END NOTES:

20,250USD is approximately 184,000USD in May 2021 dollars according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index Inflation Calculator, accessed June 2021.
Most studies reviewed by Coates focused on publicly subsidized stadiums and arenas. In 2016, Xia Feng and Brad Humphreys examined property values near privately funded sports facilities. Feng and Humphreys agreed that all sports facilities provide “little to no significant positive tangible impacts”. However, their results suggested an intangible benefits to the local economy. Journal of Sports Economics 19(2), 2016.

Phoenix: Preparation for Migratory Sports

Posted on June 6, 2021 by Jlokka

Extreme population and area growth in Phoenix, Arizona in the 1950s supported the importation of migration-based sports, like hockey. Throughout the 1950s, Phoenix experienced about a 300% population increase and nearly an 1100% area expansion (Phoenix, 2013). This growth pushed Phoenix from the 99^th rank city in the U.S. to 29 (Phoenix 2003, 44).

In 1965, the Arizona State Fair Commission desired a multipurpose facility with unobstructed, arena seating for events ranging from livestock shows to concerts and sports. Associated Capitol Architects submitted the winning proposal, a hyperbolic-paraboloid arena covering approximately 2.75 acres (Az State Fairgrounds 1966).

Despite the deep Sonoran Desert locale, the commission and builders included facilities and mechanization for seemingly out-of-place activities. If taken by itself, including amenities for ice skating and hockey appears to be a random whim of the rich. However, Texas supported several minor professional hockey teams starting in the 1920s (Farris 2016). Eventually, these teams would lead to the World Hockey Association (WHA). In preparation for creating northeastern winters in the desert, engineers ensured the coliseum could produce artificial ice.

Oklahoma business men brought hockey to Phoenix. First, they forced their Tulsa Oilers team to play a few exhibition games. In 1967, the Western Hockey League granted franchise for a new team in Phoenix, who would be called the Roadrunners. In 1974, the Roadrunners switched allegiances to the WHA, a new competitor to the National Hockey league.

With Major League Soccer, three major league sports are rooted in the immigrant community. The immigrant community saved baseball. Additionally, baseball forced many sports related immigration quotas. Soccer started out as a national level amateur sport with attention during the Olympics. Basketball failed to discover international talent until 1990 with Valde Divac and Dikembe Mutombo. Hockey started as sport of immigrants, by immigrants, but for the common people.

In the WHL (1967-1974) and WHA (1974-77) years, only three Americans played for the Phoenix Roadrunners. During the WHA years, two Americans and four Finns played. Pekka Rautakallio (centered) offered his personal story about migrating to America for temporary work.

Typically, we associate migratory work with farmers or even the early 20th century. In the Southwest, where I grew up, I learned about migrant farmworker programs. But who knew that the Phoenix Roadrunners would eventually lead to Auston Matthews from Scottsdale, Az and winner of the Rocket Richard trophy for most goals in the NHL.

PART 2: The Coliseum’s Impact
PART 3: Migration Patterns of Hockey Players: Pekka Rautakallio and Juhani Tamminen
PART 4: Pekka and Juhani: Their Migrant Story

Sources:
Arizona State Fairground Brochure on the Coliseum, 1966, Arizona Memory Project.
1960 Census Supplementary Reports: Rank of Cities of 100,000 or More: 1960 PC(S1)-7, census.gov
2013 Summary of Community Profile and Trends, Phoenix.gov
McCartney, Earl “ICE Factory”, The Arizona Republic, February 13, 1966, retrieved from https://www.newspapers.com/clip/78675623/arizona-republic/
“Contract Signing” Arizona Republic, June 17, 1965. Retrieved from Clipping from Arizona Republic – Newspapers.com
Phoenix Roadrunners’ Logo, wikimedia. Retrieved from PHXRoadrunnersWHA – Phoenix Roadrunners (WHA) – Wikipedia
Farris, Jason (ed.) “Texas on Ice: Pro Strides to the Stars – the 1942/3 to 1992/3 Seasons” 2016

Sports Immigration: Phoenix RoadRunners (WHA)

Posted on June 1, 2021 by Jlokka

Since the late-19th century, sportspeople shared a common experience with migrant laborers, especially in the United States. Out of all sports, baseball shares the greatest link with immigration. In the early-20th century, immigrant fans saved baseball from extinction. Since then, baseball imported so many players that there is a cap. Yet, America would not have (modern) hockey if there was no immigration. From this American’s point of view, hockey is an immigrant’s game. Like many of the migrant laborers, the United States absorbed hockey into its fabric.

From Minnesota to Maine, hockey brought immigrants and immigrants brought hockey. Fishermen from Nova Scotia plying trade in Boston, like Mickey Roach’s family. Or, the frontier elite traveling to find personal success in New York City, like Tom Howard. Due to the cold northern climates, the migration of hockey and laborers make sense in the mid-Atlantic and mid-west states. However, hockey continued traveling south and so did the players and staff.

In the 1960s, Oklahoma business men brought hockey to the Sonoran Desert. They built the Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum at the Fairgrounds in Phoenix, Arizona. While they expected bands and basketball, they wanted hockey.

Touring the coliseum’s ice facility, Arizona Republic, 13 Feb 66

Before receiving the franchise for the RoadRunners, the Oklahoma businessmen brought teams from Tulsa to play in 1966. In 1967, the league awarded a franchise license. The owners moved the Victoria Maple Leafs from British Columbia to play in the desert.

Prior to the Immigration Act of 1990, sportspeople competed for the same visas as laborers. Despite teams and agents eased their journey for H-1 or H-2 visas, they are immigrants. As immigrants, they supported and added diversity to their communities. Many studied the relationship between baseball, immigration, and the value. However, many have not looked into how hockey changed their community. Whereas most baseball players remain, hockey players mainly return. Similar to early-20th Century European migrant laborers, they brought their American trunk home.

The Pekka and Juhani Series:
PART 1: Phoenix: Preparation for Migratory Sports
PART 2: The Coliseum’s Impact
PART 3: Migration Patterns of Hockey Players: Pekka Rautakallio and Juhani Tamminen
PART 4: Pekka and Juhani: Their Migrant Story

Immigrant Players Steal Bases And Basketballs, Not Jobs (forbes.com)
Extraordinary Ability and the English Premier League: The Immigration, Adjudication, and Place of Alien Athletes in American and English Society (valpo.edu) (Pages 545-549 or 6-10 of 67)
Round-Trip to America: the Immigrants Return to Europe, 1880-1930 Mark Wyman

The NAHL: Joseph “Joe” Shaughnessy

Posted on January 24, 2021 by Jlokka

Joseph “Joe” Michael Shaughnessy, with a largely undeveloped talent for hockey, blended into Boston’s large Shaughnessy community. Joe lived and died near his birthplace in Revere, Massachusetts. He most likely attended Boston College High School. During his Junior year (1913/14), he was selected for the hockey team. For the Boston Globe, Boston College High hockey was in a second-tier league. As a result, they did not receive much coverage. Joe’s skill development lacked a significant public record. Furthermore, he probably dropped out before his Senior year (1914/15).

Shaughnessy apprenticed as a mailer with the International Typographical Union (I.T.U.). He worked at the Boston Post. For the 1916/17, Shaughnessy played on the Boston Arena Hockey Club. With the Arenas, he helped them to a second-place finish having lost to the Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) in the final playoff game. In December 1917, he tried out for the Arenas, again. World War I intervened. Then, he found himself on the First Naval District team.

After the war, Joe returned to the mailrooms of the Post and then the Globe. He left hockey’s limelight. Although seen with the 1922/23 B.A.A. team, they probably kept him as a substitute. His real sports passion was baseball. He played short-stop for several seasons on the Boston Typos. The Boston Typos played in the Union Printers’ Baseball League, the longest running amateur league in the United States. In 1921, they won the championship. Beyond these few events, Shaughnessy largely kept out of the public attention.

Despite a stale public life, his private life roared to life. He married Marie Sullivan prior to the war. As the Roaring-20s kicked off, Shaughnessy’s family also grew. Joseph Arthur and Marie were born. Later, they were followed by Rita and William. All seemed well until Arthur died in 1946. Still, this Shaughnessy clan can claim a mantle of honor.

Discovering Joe Shaughnessy was more about discovering who he wasn’t. Even with the help of US Census data, it was challenging to unravel Joe from John, Ed, Frank, an insurance broker and the others. Obituaries seemed to blend Joe with Frank, who coached hockey in the 1920s. Publicly available family trees listed his last name as O’Shaughnessy. Differentiating them became a matter of one fact, Joe was born, raised, lived, and died in Revere, Massachusetts. Joe also remained true to his family and profession, a mailer. In his obituary, The Boston Globe noted Joe’s 37 years of service. In reality, Joe was probably closer to 45 years with I.T.U. Boston Mailers’ Local 16. When Marie died in 1976, they counted three children, nine grandchildren, and ten great grandchildren. I like to think that Joe probably never made himself out to be more than what he was.

The NAHL: Michael “Mickey” Richard Roach

Posted on January 10, 2021 by Jlokka

Michael “Mickey” Richard Roach cultivated his natural hockey talent resulting in the most successful professional hockey career out of all the USNAHL players. Roach played for 21 seasons. Following that, he coached nearly 6 seasons of professional hockey and another 11 seasons of coaching Senior Amateur hockey. Roach’s coaching career focused on cultivating the talent in others rather than himself.

Born on 1 May 1895, Mickey Roach, a second-generation Nova Scotian, left the Maritimes for Boston in time to start high school. He attended Boston English High School with tailored curriculum towards the trades. Even as early as the 1912/13 season, he played on two teams, English H.S. and the Boston Arena intramural Skate Boys. Listed as Roche, the Boston Globe named him to their All Interscholastic second team for hockey. For the 1913/14 season, Roach moved on from the Skate Boys to the Pilgrim Athletic Association team while still playing for English H.S. Once again, the Boson Globe named Roach, as “Roache”, to its Interscholastic team. But, placed him in the first team along with Frank Downing, Robert Paisley, and Percy Wanamaker. Roach’s skill and determination to develop that skill were evident.

After graduating, Roach played on the Boston Arenas for two seasons, but was driven for more. Much like the English and Huntington school teams, the Boston Arenas were limited to local play. The Boston Athletic Association team played in the developing intercity amateur hockey league. Despite his preeminence in Boston hockey circles, he moved to New York City in time for the 1916/17 season.

For the next two years, Roach played in the greater New York City league. First, he played with the Crescent during the 1916/17 season. In a four-team intercity league, the Crescents lost in the final match to the Boston Arenas. In 1917, World War I finally caught up to the United States. Amateur hockey greatly changed resulting in the creation of the U.S. National Amateur Hockey League (USNAHL). Roach, a clerk for the BonBright investment bank, played on Cornelius Fellowes’ New York Wanderers. In November 1918, the war also finally caught with Roach. He became a Royal Air Force (R.A.F.) cadet and traveled back to Toronto to start training.

Always looking for hockey, Roach picked up the uniform and picked up the stick. On 14 December 1918, the R.A.F. played one exhibition game against the Dentals in Ontario Hockey Association’s (O.H.A.) Senior A division. The R.A.F. bowed out of the season. Roach and Thomas “Flash” McCarthy, who joined him from New York, joined the Hamilton Tigers for the remainder of the season. This move started Roach’s NHL playing career.

Starting with the St. Pats in 1920, he played seven seasons in the newly formed NHL. He moved from the Toronto St. Pats to the Hamilton Tigers, who elevated from the amateur ranks. For the 1924/25, Roach moved with the Tigers. Bill Dwyer renamed the Tigers to the New York Americans, referred as the Amerks, and moved them to New York City. As a result, the Amerks and Roach were the first hockey team to play in Tex Rickard’s Madison Square Garden in December 1925. While Roach finished his NHL career in New York City, he continued to play on for three more seasons in the minor leagues.

While playing with the St. Pats, Roach married Elsie Alida Tobey, an Ontario native, in March 1920. Even though Roach played in Ontario, he established his family back in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. In April 1921, his first son, Clifford Roach, was born there. However, not all of his four children could claim a Nova Scotia start. On 8 November 1922, their second son, Warren, originated in Boston. Finally, Ontario was home to his two daughters, Elsie and Eleanor. Despite the numerous locales for key life events, they called Nova Scotia home.

Roach’s last season as player was the 1929/30 season with the Buffalo Bisons. The Bisons participated in the International Hockey League after the dissolution of the Canadian Professional Hockey League. In 1930, Roach accepted a manager/coach position with the Buffalo Bisons. In this new role, he started developing players for the NHL. From 1930 until 1936, Roach coached the Bisons, Syracuse Stars and, very briefly, the Rochester Cardinals. Roach left as a consistent contender, but never a winner, among team financial troubles and politics.

Retiring from professional coaching, he refused to let hockey go. Initially, he attempted to organize a Senior A team for O.H.A. Eventually, he received an appointment to coach the Niagara Falls Brights in Dec 1938. In Feb 1939, he resigned this position and moved back to Nova Scotia.

The Cape Breton league challenged for the Allan Cup, which was familiar ground for Roach. For the 1939/40 season, he sought to win with the North Sydney Victorias. At the time, Maritime Senior A hockey teams desired to claim the Allan Cup from the Halifax Wolverines. In 1941/42, he coached the Sydney Millionaires on a strong Cup challenge but fell short.

As war crept back in Roach’s life, he switched to coaching the Navy teams in the Cape Breton League. At the time, Cliff was playing his top game. Meanwhile, Warren joined the US Navy. By September 1953, Mickey Roach retired from hockey and settled into his Customs job. Although a few of his teams made strong challenges, he never coached an Allan Cup winning team.

With the exception of the 1918/19 Hamilton Tigers, Mickey Roach finished second more times than not. Whether as a player or coach, most teams were strong contenders with his participation. In recognition of his playing skills, the Nova Scotia Sports Hall of Fame honored him in their initial inductions. In addition to the playing and coaching careers, he raised two sons in the hockey tradition. Cliff played briefly for the Providence Reds in the AHL. As for his daughters, Elsie Corinne died shortly after birth and Eleanor probably lived a quiet life. In 1977, Mickey Roach’s passage received more attention in the States than in Canada. It is assumed his wife, Elsie, passed away some time after. When compared to Herb Drury, Frenchy LaCroix and other USNAHL players, Mickey Roach was the most successful hockeyist.

NOTE: Misspellings of his last name, especially in the Boston Globe, are Roache, Roark, and Roche. Elsie’s middle name also changes greatly from Alida, Ileeda, and Illita in government records.

Additional reading:
https://blog.thebackcheck.com/2016/05/11/mickey-roach/

Mickey Roach

Cliff Roach

The NAHL: Alphonse Albert “Frenchy” LaCroix

Posted on January 3, 2021 by Jlokka

When Alphonse Albert “Frenchy” LaCroix decided to grow up, he walked away from hockey for the forests of Maine. From 1914 until 1947, LaCroix rarely missed playing in a season of hockey. His youthful face and few public comments hinted at a jovial, prankster personality. Yet, his accomplishments demonstrated a rare skill on the ice.

Although born in Newton, Massachusetts, LaCroix’s parents immigrated from Quebec, Canada. Young Lacroix would be baptized as Alphonsum Aldine Lacroix on 22 October 1897 at Our Lady Help of Christians, a Catholic parish. His Father was one of the more well-known French residents in Newton. Thus, the Young Lacroix earned the “Frenchy” or “Frenchie” nickname. He still performed as the top goalie for three years at Newton High School. In 1915, 1916, and 1917, The Boston Daily Globe named him to their interscholastic first team. America had just entered into World War I when LaCroix graduated from high school.

In December 1917, LaCroix enlisted in the Navy Reserve. George V. Brown, the First Naval District Athletic Director, immediately pulled LaCroix onto his hockey team. From there, LaCroix made a lifelong ally. After the war, LaCroix played for Brown’s Boston Athletic Association Unicorns. Additionally, he played the goalie for the 1924 U.S. Men’s Silver-medal winning team. However, he continued to achieve greater heights.

In November 1925, he stepped into the Montreal Canadiens goal for an ailing Georges Vézina. Vezina suffered from tuberculosis and could not finish the game. LaCroix manned the net for two periods and another four games until the Canadiens signed Herb Rheaume. Afterwards, Lacroix remained as the Canadiens back-up goalie until the end of the 1926/27 season. The five games between 28 November and 15 December 1925 would be his only NHL games.

Although some accounts stated was an NHL emergency goalie, he was always retained by Les Canadiens, and used at Leo Dandurand’s discretion. In January 1926, they called for him to substitute for the Ottawa Senators’ goalie, who got knocked out. After a short rest, Connell decided to stick out the game. LaCroix did not play. In February, the Pittsburgh Pirates requested Lacroix’s services against the Canadiens on 23 February. Dandurand denied the request citing bad precedent. However, it is just as likely Dandurand did not want to face a good goalie. Pittsburgh won the match with their coach, Odie Cleghorn, in the net.

He played in three exhibition games. First, a 4 February 1926 game against the Montreal Yannigans, a Maroons feeder team. Second, He played for the Providence Reds on 8 April 1927. At the end of the 2^nd period, the puck struck the Reds’ goalie square in the chin. His final game with the Canadiens was a post-season match against the Providence Reds on 12 April 1927. The following season, Lacroix found himself with the Reds.

Stating with the 1927/28 season, Lacroix served the rest of his time in minor or senior amateur leagues. From 1927/28 until 1929/30, he bounced between the Reds and the Lewiston (Maine) St. Doms. At the start of the 1930/31 season, the Boston Tigers attempted to use Lacroix to salvage their standings. He was let go after just four games. The final time he would be paid-to-play.

During the 30s, he assisted George Owen Jr. in coaching the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Engineers. When World War II curtailed hockey at MIT, he co-established a team for an amateur industrial league with Owen. In the down time, he worked for an insurance broker. After the war, Lacroix packed up his skates and moved back to Lewiston.

On ice accomplishments hid private hardships. In October 1912, LaCroix’s dad died leaving his mom and three young sons. The oldest, Elyre, was about 7. Just after WWI, He married Anna Champagne in 1920. They had two children, Janet/Jeanette and Armand. Oddly, Armand disappeared from public record by 1940. By 1948, they divorced. Anna and Janet remained in Massachusetts while he left for Maine. There, he married Eva Fournier, née Malo. They had a daughter, Suzanne. Finally, he decided to settle down. Another private man with a public face. He passed away on 12 April 1973 from cancer. Eva joined him in rest in 2009. He is survived by Suzanne.

Frenchy Lacroix was the first American-born NHL goalie and, potentially the third American-born in the NHL. Across 13 seasons of play, he attained a 2.18 goals against average (GAA) in the regular season. Prior to his season with the Montreal Canadiens, he maintained a 1.82 GAA over 7 seasons. Plus, he won the silver with the 1924 U.S. Men’s Olympic Ice hockey team. His youthfulness continued to show through until the late-40s by being an assistant coach and team organizer for a war time industrial league. After the war, the game finally surpassed him. He headed to Maine’s woods to settle down.

NOTE: Over the years, LaCroix’s name took many variations. “LaCroix” was the definitive variant. However, La Croix and Lacroix were also seen. The later oft seen in newspaper articles. Rarely, his middle name, “Albert” appeared. On his WWII draft card, the registrar wrote “Aldéi” for his middle name.