Hartford Blues

Our early pro football team highlighted in this edition is one from Connecticut spearheaded a very interesting owner and promoter. The Hartford Blues and their rise and brief time in the NFL story is coming up.

The history of the Hartford Blues started off with the story of their founder, George Mulligan, who was probably the most famous promoter of sports and sporting event in Connecticut during the 1920s era. Mulligan came from an immigrant family and knew the lay of the land. He recognized that the hardworking people of the region would spent their extra money to watch live sporting events, and he wanted to make sure that they got what they paid for. Industries were growing and diverse in the area, insurance companies of Hartford, brass mills of Waterbury and hardware factories of New Britain, and what better way to get their mind off of their daily toil than to look on as skilled athletes would compete for their city against opponents.

In the 1920's, these workers supported the sporting event of choice, semi-pro football teams that played high level competition with former big name college players as the draw. George established first a gridiron squad called the Waterbury Blues. The process that Mulligan used was pretty well established by other teams in the North East. Hire on local talent from schools and sandlot teams then practice on Sunday mornings shortly before gametime as this was the only chance that he could get all the players assembled when they weren't working their day jobs. The formula proved worthy as in 1924 the Waterbury Blues were the top team in Connecticut. Mulligan had his sights on making his football team the best around though, and so he continued by hiring on the best local talent that Connecticut and the other nearby New England areas could provide so as to build onthe 1924 success.
Next he targeted big name collegiate players that had recently graduated. His main objective was to sign Harry Stuhldreher, the quarterback of Notre Dame in 1924 of the Four Horsemen fame. Stuhldreher at first did not accept Mulligan's offer to play for the Blues. The famous back had offers from rival New Britain as well as the very well established Providence Steam Roller team in Rhode Island. Stuhldreher first accepted with Providence and even played a game there. It was the Steam Rollers inaugural season in the NFL. Providence played a warm-up non league games against the West Point Artillery club in which Stuldreher played. Providence greatly outmatched the West Point team by the score of 127-0.

21 Sep 1925, Mon The Wilkes-Barre Record (Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania) Newspapers.com

Harry Stuhldreher, figuring he was the key to the hogh powered offense of the Steam Roller attack, asked his employer for more money. When the Providence manager refused to offer something satisfactory to his quarterback, Stuhldreher looked again for other options. Enter again the opportunity seeking sports promotion of George Mulligan, who really sweetened the pot in making the former Fighting Irish player's salary to be $7,500, plus a $500 bonus. Stuhldreher immediately signed on to the lucrative deal and jumped ship to play with the Blues. A couple of other former Knute Rockne players joined the fray too. Ed Hunsinger also signed on with Mulligan's roster and rejoined former Irish teammate Stuhldreher as an end in Waterbury. Art Garvey, a big, strong tackle, had played pro ball for several years since leaving Notre Dame in 1922. He had received some All-League mention as a Chicago Bear in 1923. Waterbury's other top backs at the start of the 1925 season were Ken Simendinger, from Holy Cross, and Dutch Forst, from Villanova. Another lineman, Dick McGrath, doubled as captain and coach. The nucleus of a strong team core was built.

1925 Season

Surrounding towns were starting to deploy strong opposition in sem-pro football. The areas of New Britain, Hartford, Norwalk, and New London each had formidable squads. Only the New Britain and Hartford had the talented roster fire power to really compete with the Blues. The Coffin Corner Magazine of the PFRA in a 1982 article by John Hogrogian wrote:

"All-New Britain had rivaled Waterbury for years on an almost even keel. They had a seasoned roster of local players featuring fullback Ed Barnikow, a non-college workhorse from Meriden, and quarterback Vic Radzievitch, a University of Connecticut graduate from Torrington."

Mulligan had his sights set on having a strong season in 1925, so much so that he could possibly have his team be awarded an NFL franchise in 1926. The '25 season started strong too as the Waterbury Blues dispatched a Yonkers team 32-0, followed up with victory in the next game by defeating Hartford 7-3. The momentum for the season and fan excitement really grew when Mulligan announced the signing of yet another of the famous Notre Dame Horsemen, Jim Crowley. The next opponent from Adams, Massachusetts took the punishment of the brutal Blues attack. The Waterbury flexed their muscles by running off to a 34-0 victory over the undermatched Adams eleven, with Crowley scoring three touchdowns and Stuhldreher booting two field goals and three extra points. However Crowley after the game grabbed his game pay and headed for greener pastures, giving the Blues a good-bye. 

The Hartford West Siders team had their earlier pre-season hopes of contending dashed as right after the heartbreaking loss to Waterbury, they lost another close one to New Britain. Coach Dave Hayes and others tried to rally the West Side eleven but to no avail. With such a lackadaisical performance against the New Britains, Hayes and owner Russell MacIntosh, fired each and every player on the squad, and with that they did not play another game after thattried to restructure a roster. Mulligan again seeing opportunity started looking into having his home games moved to Hartford since he beleived the West Siders may no longer be using Clarkin Field as reported by the Hartford Courant. The Blues in mid October faced a staunch challenge against the Rochester Jeffersons and again prevailed 7-6 over the Jeffs of Leo Lyons. On November 1, the Blues dispatched the team from Newark, 26-0. Meanwhile that same day in New Jersey, the reorganized West Siders again took the field. With a mostly new group of players, they traveled to New Britain and lost 3-0. After the game, the West Siders threw in the towel. George Mulligan immediately picked up the lease on Clarkin Field, and riding high on the string of victories, the Waterbury Blues were renamed midseason to become the Hartford Blues. Reports indicated that poor support from Waterbury is what led to the venue change. It was also reported that Mulligan had negoatiated a deal and paid for the Hartford Blues to have a franchise place int he NFL for the 1926 season.

The Hartford Blues officially played their first game with their new name in a rematch game with Rochester in which they again succeeded in a narrow 8-6 win over the Jeffs. It wasn't as wonderful as it sounds though as the poor cool rainy weather provided a disappointing crowd of only 2,000 in thier new city and their star player, Stuhldreher suffered a mild concussion in the game.

This set up for a showdown at Clarkin field the following week against New Britain, who had some new life given to them with the recent signing of former Providence player halfback Dutch Connors. The Blues went into the game undefeated, but the contest was hard fought. A still groggy Stuhldreher was limited by the New Britain defensive strategy, and the Blues other star back, Simendinger, suffered a season ending injury in the midst of the contest. Final score on the rain soaked field, New Britain 6, Hartford 0.

With the victory New Britain, was prematurely claiming their rights to the state championship, but Hartford pointed to a rematch scheduled for November 29. The next games for each team gave way to winds for each. On Thanksgiving Day, the Blues didn't schedule a game because a number of key players, not being available. The All-New Britain team had a formidable foe when they traveled to Philadelphia and lost a 7-0 decision to the Frankford Yellowjackets.

Eventhough his team was not playing during the holiday Mulligan was still hard at work. He booked a coveted NFL game where the defending League champs, the Cleveland Bulldogs would play the Kansas City Cowboys at Clarkin Field to give the Hartford fans a glimpse of NFL competition that was forthcoming. NFL president Joe Carr sanctioned the match abruptly as an official League contest and with that the NFL arrived in Hartford a year before the Blues were official members. Kansas City won the game handily against a greatly weakened Cleveland team 17-0. It was the Cowboys final game of the 1925 season.

Mulligan went to work though as he almost imediately signed new players, some that played for Kansas City, to the Hartford roster. Other new team member were added too such as halfback Don Miller, who became the third Horsemen to sign a contract with Mulligan. With the revamped roster the rematch with All-New Britain loomed.  A large turnout of over 7,000 fans watched on at Clarkin Field to witness the Blues whip New Britain, 28-7. This was just days after Britain got beaten by the Frankford eleven, maybe too close to that game as the New Britain team seemed to have very little fight in them. Regardless the reinforced Blues dominated and ensured its claim on the state championship title.

Mulligan then watched his team defeate the Pere Marquette Knights, the best team in Boston followed by another "W" against St. Alphonsus also of Beantown. The finale of the year had the Cleveland Bulldogs return to Hartford. Mulligan really promoted this game and subsequently he signed the remaining members of thefour Horsemen to play in the Hartford backfield. The Hartford Courant speculated that Mulligan might be paying $5,000 for the one-day services of Stuhldreher, Miller, Crowley and Elmer Layden. Despite the talent level of the Blues climbing a notch with the reunion of the Notre Dame famed backfield, this trip to Hartford ended in a 13-6 victory of the Bulldogs over the Blues. This wrapped up a great season with the Blues finishing at 10-2.

The 1926 NFL season

With playing in the NFL Mulligan decided to change the home venue for the Blues for the third time in a year. It was a brand new stadium at the East Hartford Velodrome, a bicycle track just across the Connecticut River in East Hartford. The Velodrome was an oval with about 8,000 seats around the banked wooden track  however there was just enough room inside the track to present a football field.

On the personnel fron unfortunately for Mulligan and Harford, Layden and Stuhldreher left the team to join the Brooklyn Horsemen of the American Football League. Harftford began their inaugural 1926 NFL season on a sour note with a 21-0 loss to the New York Giants. The team later added two losses in back-to-back games against the Frankford Yellow Jackets and a loss 6-0 loss to the Brooklyn Lions, at Ebbets Field. The team would go on to only win three games during the season, against the Brooklyn Lions 16-6, the Dayton Triangles 16-0, and the Canton Bulldogs 16-7 in a game that ended  a bit early due to darkness and a lack of field lights. The rest of the season was like the lights were still out for Hartford as they suffered four more losses. The Kansas City Cowboys, Buffalo Bisons and the barnstorming Duluth Eskimos all won over the Blues and to add insult to injury, New Briatin in a non-league tilt also outlasted the Hartford eleven. It was a disappointing 3-7 record in the big league.

After such a successful 1925 season, the Blues ended their dissapointing 1926 year in the NFL after the season and returned to being an independent for 1927, playing one season as the Hartford Giants before folding the franchise forever.

The picture in the banner above is from the Wikipedia Commons photo collection of the Public Domain of a cropped installment of A.D. Condo's "Osgar und Adolf", the two ethnic caricatures try to teach Mister Skygack, from Mars to play baseball. By Mr. Armundo Dreisbach Condo

Special thanks to Pro Football-Reference.com, Stathead.com, the Professional Football Researchers Association's Coffin Corner Magazine, Connecticut History.com website and the the Wiki American Football Database.