Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Fenton's 1937 Donkey Basketball Fund Raiser
The following is an excerpt from the book "The Village Players" republished with permission from the Fenton author, Robert G. Harris. If you would like to purchase the complete 307 paged book, with over 60 photos, you can find it at the Lil Professor Book Store in Fenton, Michigan. This book is a narrative history of the Village of Fenton, 1937-1941.
Note: Picture is not historical, is being displayed for illustrative purposes and is not directly connected to this excerpt.
Local Sports in 1937 Fenton
Guy Simmons, an employee of The Fenton Independent wrote a weekly column for both bowling and softball during their respective seasons. On one occasion, he wrote that “some (most)” of the women bowlers could beat the “gentlemen”. That seemed to be a bold statement for the 1930s, and he undoubtedly heard from many of the men who were bowling.
Womens bowling teams were formed in different ways, probably not much different than the men, except one never heard of men having matches with the “Married vs. Single”! The top women bowlers were: Miss Mary Asman, Virginia Hoskins, Mrs. Mabel Tamlyn, Mrs. Dorothy McBroom, Miss Alice Pasco, Mrs. Alice Butcher, Mrs. Dorothy Craft., Dorothy Long and Verna Hoskins.
On one occasion, some of the “boys” participated in a more physical activity to raise some money for the school athletic program. The businessmen from the “East side” of Leroy Street challenged their counterparts from the “West side” in a Donkey Basketball game to be held the high school gym.
The “boys” representing the West side were Hoyt Glaspie, George Tamlyn, Horace Hitchcock, Herb McKinley, Myron McGlynn, and M. Richmond. All were of early middle age and active businessmen in town. A younger group represented the East side: Bob Hunt, Bob Woodward, Bernard Webber, Francis Marshall, Harold Dode and Bob Beach. The teams mounted twelve Mexican burros and someone threw up a basketball and the game was on! To add to the excitement and entertainment young Charley Case wrestled a brown bear during the half-time intermission.
Labels: Fenton History, The Village Players 1937-1941
