Meet The Sports Writers

[Bill Burgess]

George Erskine Stackhouse

Born: August 27, 1860, Louisville, KY
Died: January 30, 1903, Brooklyn, NY, age 42,---d. at home of acute indigestion, after 48 hours.

New York sports writer;
Brooklyn, NY, printer, (June 2, 1880 census)
Brooklyn, NY, reporter, (June 1, 1900 census)
Arrived NYC, 1872
New York Tribune, office boy, 1875 ?, sporting editor, ? - 1903
New York Morning Journal,

Father: Joseph H., born Pennsylvania, 1831?; Mother: Martha E., born Kentucky, 1839?; Wife: Elizabeth, born New York, May, 1870; Daughter: Elizabeth E., born New York, January, 1888; Daughter: Charlotte, born September, 1890;

---------------------Appeared in 1889 book-------------------------------New York Times' obituary, January 31, 1903, pp. 9.

[Bill Burgess]

Edward Mathew Thierry

Born: October 2, 1888, Canton, OH
Died: April 17, 1944, Weston, CT, age 56---d. Long Island College Hospital (Brooklyn, NY)

Sports Writer;
Canton, OH, 11-year old, (June 2, 1900 census)
Sllegheny, PA, reporter, newspaper, (April 19, 1910 census)
New York, NY, executive, public utility, (April 13, 1940 census)
Pittsburgh Dispatch, sports writer, 1910
New York World
Cleveland Leader, 1917 (June 5, 1917 WWI Civilian Draft Registration)
Cleveland News
White Motor Company, executive
North American Company
Hill & Knowlton, New York office, (Public Relations, counsel), (WWII Draft Registration)

Father: Augustus, born Ohio, November, 1841; Wife: Lillian M., born Pennsylvania, 1887?; Wife: Clare Read, born Ohio, 1894?; Son: Richard R., born New York, 1924?; Son: Jack

New York Times' obituary, April 18, 1944, pp. 21.

[Bill Burgess]

Norman Sherwin Rose

Born: June 5, 1872, Cleveland, OH
Died: October 27, 1944, Chicago, IL, age 72---died in his room, Morrison Hotel, after a week's illness

sports writer;
Cleveland, OH, 8-year old, (June 17, 1880 census)
Cleveland, OH, editor, newspaper, (June 2, 1900 census)
Manhattan, NY, journalist, publishing, (April 22, 1910 census)
Manhattan, NY, writer, advertising, (January 10, 1920 census)
Cambridge, MA, adertising manager, newspaper, (April 2, 1930 census)
Advertising manager, advertising, (April 15, 1940 census)(listed S Norman)
Cleveland newspaper editor, 1900
New York Scripps-McRae League, sports writer, 1910
Middlesex (Mass.) Newspaper advertising manager, 1930
Cleveland Press, sports writer

Father: Edwin Gager, born New York, 1837?; Mother: Sarah Paulina Sherwin, born Ohio, 1839?; Wife 1: Florence J., born Missouri, May, 1876; married Florence J. in 1896; Son: Julius, born Ohio, March, 1897; Wife: Eloise, born Tennessee, 1899?, married Eloise, 1916; Son: Hugh, born New York, 1922?;

New York Times' obituary, October 28, 1944, pp. 15.

[Bill Burgess]

Frank Howard Brunell

Born: November 4, 1856, Yarmouth, England (Maidstone, Kent, England) (Date of Birth confirmed by passport)
Died: November 13, 1933, Magnolia Springs, AL, age 77,---d. stroke of apoplexy.

Chicago sports writer;
Evanston, IL, manager, publishing Co., (April 21, 1910 census)
Evanston, IL, publicist, newspaper, (January 5, 1920 census)
North Hempstead, NY, retired, (April 21, 1930 census)
Emigrated to the US, August 20, 1868.
Cleveland Herald sports editor, 1883, was appointed official scorer for Cleveland club same year,
Cleveland Plain Dealer, sports editor, 1886, city editor, 1889
Chicago Tribune, sports editor, August 1889
Chicago Inter-Ocean, (1890's);
Conceived The Racing Form, November 17, 1894.
On his passport application, he asserted that he had lived in the US, uninterrupted from 1872 to 1919, in Cleveland and Chicago. In 1919, he resided in Evanston, IL, as a journalist.

Wife: Jennie B., born Ohio, 1856?;

Players Brotherhood secretary. Saw his 1st ballgame, 1878,

Chicago Daily Tribune obituary, November 17, 1933, pp. 30.--------------------------------New York Times' obituary, November 17, 1933, pp. 19.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Sporting News' obituary


-----------------------Appeared in 1889 book--------------------------Sporting Life write-up, November 5, 1898, pp. 1.

[Bill Burgess]

John Osborn Seys

Born: April 20, 1871, Nokomis, IL
Died: January 23, 1938, Chicago, IL, age 66,---d. pneumonia, after a week's illness, at Edgewater Hospital.

Chicago Cubs' executive;
Audubon, IL, 8-year old, (June 23, 1880 census)
Chicago, IL, newspaper reporter, (June 1, 1900 census)
Chicago, IL, reporter, newspaper, (April 19, 1910 census)
Chicago, IL, secretary, baseball league, (January 2, 1920 census)
Evanston, IL, Vice President, baseball club, (April 5, 1930 census)
Attended University of Michigan, (1 year, did not graduate)
Newspaper reporter, 1893? - 1898
Fort Wayne Press (Indiana), 1898 - 1902
Chicago Daily News, baseball / turf writer, 1902? - December 5, 1918
Chicago Chi-Feds (Federal League), publicity agent, 1914 - 1915
Chicago Cubs, Traveling Secretary, December 5, 1918 - 1927
Chicago Cubs, Second Vice-President, 1927 - 1938

Father: C.D., born New York, 1883?; Sarah E., born Virginia, 1831?; Wife 1: Ella A., born Illinois, January, 1878; Wife 2: Winifred E. Tichborne, born Canada, 1887?; Married her February 10, 1910; Daughter: Hazel B., born Illiois, 1901?;

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Chicago Daily Tribune obituary, January 24, 1938, pp. 19.


December 3, 1936, Montreal, Canada: John Seys / Ford Frick.

[Bill Burgess]

Albert H. C. Mitchell

Born: March 21, 1866, Chelsea, MA
Died: July 19, 1927, Sherborn, (Boston), MA, age 60,

New York / Boston sports writer;
4-year old, living in Chelsea, MA (July 18, 1870 census)
13-year old, living in Boston, MA, (at school)(June 7, 1880 census)(listed A.H.C. Mitchell)
Newspaper writer, lived in Sherborn, MA (January 24, 1920 census)
New York Evening Mail
Boston American sports editor

Father: Charles F. Mitchell; Mother: Mary J., born Massachusetts, ; Wife: Jesse C, born New Jersey around 1869

Boston Daily Globe obituary, July 20, 1927, pp. 25.

[Bill Burgess]

Robert S. White, Jr.

Born: 1908?, Massachusetts?
Died: October 17, 1971, Quincy, MA, age 63,---d. Quincy City Hospital, after a stroke at home.

Boston sports writer;
Boston, MA, 1.5 years old, (May 6, 1910 census)
Medford, MA, (January 8, 1920 census)
Malden, MA, newspaper reporter, (April 10, 1930 census)
Quincy, MA, newspaper reporter, (April 17, 1940 census)
Graduated Boston College High School
Boston Post, sports editor, 1926 - 1956,
Boston Globe, sports editor, 1956 - 1971

Father: Robert S. Sr., born Canada, around 1884; Mother: Mary B., born Massachusetts, around 1885; Wife: Dorothy Riley, born Massachusetts, around 1910; Daughter: Nancy (Mantia), born Massachusetts, around 1939; Daughter: Mrs. Joanne Johnston.

[Bill Burgess]

Daniel Bernard McGrath

Born: April 9, 1950, Chicago, IL
Died: Still Alive

Chicago sports writer;
Graduated Leo High School (Chicago, IL), 1968
Freeport, IL
Reno, NV
Sacramento, CA
San Francisco, CA
Philadelphia Inquirer, deputy sports editor
New York, NY
Chicago Tribune, sports editor, associate managing editor, senior writer
Appointed President of Leo High School (Chicago, IL),

Wife: Jo-Anna; Daughter: Megan; Son: Matthew

Dan McGrath brings three decades of journalism experience to the Chicago News Cooperative, including more than 12 years as sports editor, associate managing editor and senior writer for the Chicago Tribune.

Before joining the Tribune, McGrath worked for newspapers in Freeport, Ill.; Reno, Nev.; Sacramento, Calif.; San Francisco; Philadelphia; and New York. While he has worked most of his career in sports, he also has been a media critic, national correspondent, metro columnist and book reviewer.

Sports sections McGrath edited have won more than a dozen top-10 awards from the Associated Press Sports Editors Association. He was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for spot news coverage in 1992 and for commentary in 1993. A Chicago native, he is the co-author or editor of five books on the city’s sports teams, including the best-selling Out of the Blue on the 2003 Chicago Cubs.

More importantly, Mr. McGrath is the husband of Jo-Anna and the father of Megan and Matthew McGrath, as well as the author of "Believe It: The Story of the 2005 World Championship White Sox."

[Bill Burgess]

John Edward Crane---Aka Eddie Crane

Born: August 5, 1928, Alexandria, VA
Died: May 26, 1998, Bayse, VA, age 69,---d. liver cancer, after 1.5 year battle.

Washington sports writer;
Alexandria, VA, 11-year old, (April 18, 1940 census)
Alexandria Gazette
Washington Star, sports writer, 1961 - 1965, schloastic (HS) sports editor, 1965 - 1981

Father: John A., born Virginia, 1906?; Mother: Elsie V., born Virginia, 1911?;

Virginia Sports Hall of Fame and Museum: Hall of Honor
High school sports in Northern Virginia and Eddie Crane were synonymous over a 30-year period from 1950 until 1980. Crane was a native of Alexandria, Virginia and a graduate of George Washington High School. He actually began covering prep athletics in 1943 while a student at George Washington High School. In 1948, he became a full-time sportswriter for the Alexandria Gazette, and served as sports editor for the paper from 1949-60.

Crane joined The Washington Star sports staff in 1961, and was appointed scholastic sports editor in 1965, and held that position until the Star’s demise in 1981. Crane’s work pushed high school sports to the public forefront. He helped to find and train stringers at more than 80 area high schools, and coverage expanded to tow full pages of scholastic sports every Saturday, plus a full page each Sunday and increased weekday coverage. Many coaches and school administrators attributed growing interest and larger crowds at high school games to Crane’s efforts. He also conducted sports journalism seminars for the Virginia High School League and was a speaker at the 1978 VSHSADA conference.

Among the many honors bestowed upon Crane were the Virginia Sportswriters Association Member Award in 1969, the VHSCA News Media Award in 1981, and the Alexandria Sportsmanship Club Award in 1986. Crane was a co-founder, charter member and president of the Alexandria Grandstand Managers organization that promotes youth sports and president of the Alexandria Sportsman Club.

His journalism colleagues, high school coaches and administrators agree that Eddie Crane was invaluable to the growth of scholastic sports in Northern Virginia and the epitome of what we hope to find in a high school sportswriter.

------------------------------------------------------------------------Washington Post obituary, May 28, 1998.

[Bill Burgess]

Charles Michael Egan---AKA Charles Egan

Born: October 1, 1897, Delphi, IN
Died: July 19, 1963, Washington DC, age 65,---d. at home after long illness

Washington sports writer;
Deer Creek, IN, 2-year old, (June 21, 1900 census)
South Bend, IN, 12-year old, (April 26, 1910 census)
South Bend, IN, 22-year old, (1920 census)
Washington, DC, reporter, newspaper, (April 4, 1930 census)
Washington, DC, telegraph editor, Washington Star newspaper, (April 22, 1940 census)
Washington Star

Father: Michael A., born Ohio, October, 1854; Mother: Catherine A., born Indiana, November, 1859; Wife: Ruth, born Indiana, 1901?; Son: Robert M., born District of Columbia, 1927?; Son: Thomas, born District of Columbia, 1932?;

Washington Post obituary, July 20, 1963, pp. D4.

[Bill Burgess]

Everett Browning Gardner

Born: October 14, 1905, Providence, RI
Died: September 25, 1991, Annapolis, MD, age 85---d. Arundel Medical Center (Annapolis, MD), cancer.

Washington sports writer;
Providence, RI, 4-year old, (April 15, 1910 census)
Providence, RI, 14-year old, (January 19, 1920 census)
Providence, RI, booker, insurance & real estate, (April 7, 1930 census)(listed Gardener)
Baltimore, MD, clerk, (April 9, 1940 census)(listed Everette Gardner)
Attended Brown University (Providence, RI)
Providence Journal, sports writer
Baltimore News-Post, sports writer
WWII, Navy
Washington Star, sports columnist
Washington Daily News, sports editor, 1947 - 1967, auto editor, 1967 - 1972; he wrote "About autos and racing" column until 1981.

Father: Ezekel E., born Rhode Island, 1870?; Mother: Edith P., born Maine, 1876?; Wife: Arlene, born Rhode Island, 1906?;

Washington Post obituary, September 28, 1991, pp. B5.

[Bill Burgess]

Luther D. Ham---AKA Bus Ham

Born: October 31, 1900, Kansas
Died: December 1, 1988, Sarasota, FL, age 88

Washington sports writer;
Atchison, KS, 8-year old, (1910 census)
Atchison, KS, Dsmg Co., stenographer, (January 7, 1920 census)
Oklahoma City, OK, sports editor, newspaper, (April 4, 1930 census)
Oklahoma City, OK, sports editor, local and state newspaper, (April 9, 1940 census)(listed Bus Ham)
US Army, 1942
Associated Press (Washington DC), 1943
Washington Post, sports editor, 1946-64
Retired in the late 1960's.
His favorite game was golf.

Father: Perry, born Kentucky, 1862?; Mother: Rosina, born Germany, 1863?; Wife: Dollie, born Texas, 1900?;

Washington Post obituary, December 25, 1988, pp. D14.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------December 16, 1946, Washington, DC: Douglas W. McGregor (Assistant US Attorney General / Bus Ham (Washington Post).

[Bill Burgess]

Bernard J. McDonald

Born: March 11, 1908, Jackson County, Missouri
Died: January 12, 1977, Kansas City, Kansas, age 68

Kansas City sports writer;
Kansas City, MO, 2-year old, (April 16, 1910 census)
Kansas City, MO, 11-year old, (January 5, 1920 census)
Kansas City, MO, 22-year old, (April 3, 1930 census)
Kansas City, MO, reporter, newspaper, (April 19, 1940 census)
Bureau manager (International News Service) (Tulsa)
Bureau manager (International News Service) (Kansas City, MO)

Father: Owen, born Missouri, 1865?; Mother: Margaret Helene Halfpenny/Halpin, born Canada, 1868?;

-----------------------------------------Official Baseball Guide, 1978

[Bill Burgess]

Ernest Alfred Harry Albert Collyer---AKA Bert E. Collyer

Born: September 6, 1876, Durham, Ontario, Canada
Died: July 28, 1938, Chicago, IL, age 61,---d. Chicago Memorial Hospital, after a long illness.

Chicago sports writer / publisher
Arrived in Chicago in 1905.
Chicago Evening American, horse race editor, 1905 - 1913
Founded/Publisher of Collyer's Eye, 1913 - 1938.

Father: Thomas J.; Mother: Elizabeth; Wife: Frances J.;

As a young boy he settled in Guelph, Ontario with his parents. Early on in his career as a journalist he would cover stories during the Gold Rush in Alaska, such as the Chilkoot Pass Avalanche in 1898. As his writing career grew he would become a sports writer in Chicago. He was known nationally as the publisher of the "Collyer’s Eye" that was first printed in 1914. Through this magazine, he would gain international fame as the individual who shocked the world and the American Professional Baseball Leagues when he revealed details of the Black Sox Scandal in 1920. He passed away in Chicago, Illinois, but is buried in Guelph, the place he had always referred to as his "hometown."

He was also a turf writer and horse race handicapper. Collyer's Eye handicapped horse races and boxers.

Chicago Daily Tribune obituary, July 29, 1938, pp. 17.-----New York Times' obituary, July 29, 1938, pp. 17.

[Bill Burgess]

Amos Theodore Thisted---AKA Red Thisted

Born: April 8, 1899, Lindsay, Nebraska
Died: June 2, 1977, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, age 78,---d. suffered a disabling stroke in 1969.

Milwaukee sports writer;
Springdale, IA, 1-year old, (June 7, 1900 census)
Wisner, NE, 11-year old, (April 15, 1910 census)(listed Amas H.)
(1920 census)
(1930 census)
Milwaukee, WI, sports writer, newspaper, (April 9, 1940 census)
Milwaukee Journal

Father: Peter Petersen, born Denmark, September, 1859; Mother: Katherine 'Kate' Mortensen, born Denmark, October, 1861; Wife: Alice, born Wisconsin, 1903?; Son: Dennis, born Wisconsin, 1927?; Daughter: Patricia, born Wisconsin, 1929?; Son: George, born Wisconsin, 1938?; Son: Joseph, born Wisconsin, 1939?;

Hartford Courant obituary, June 4, 1977, pp. 36A.

-------------------------------New York Times' obituary, June 4, 1977, pp. 17.