COMMUNITY Jun 21, 2017 by Karen Longwell Northumberland News
COBOURG -- Ross Quigley stands among some of the Cobourg sports historical items he has collected, including two Cobourg football team jackets from the Galloping Ghosts. Quigley is leading a committee to start the Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame. June 2017 - Karen Longwell / Metroland
COBOURG -- Ross Quigley looks at some of the historical sport photos he has collected at his home. Quigley is leading a committee to start the Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame. June 2017 - Karen Longwell / Metroland
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COBOURG — With a basement full of local sports memorabilia, Ross Quigley has long wanted to share Cobourg’s rich sports history with the public.
Quigley heads a committee of eight directors planning a new initiative — the Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame.
The purpose of the hall of fame will be to honour outstanding Cobourg athletes and those involved in sports as well as collecting, preserving, researching, and exhibiting items significant to sports history of the area.
“My interest in a Cobourg sports hall of fame goes back many years,” said Quigley.
Among the items in his collection are team photos and posters from sports organizations that long faded into the past. He recently received jackets from Cobourg football team, the Galloping Ghosts from the years 1937 and 1938. In talking with people over the years, he realized many are interested in Cobourg’s sports history.
“People suggested Cobourg had a hugely rich sports history,” he said.
There is a strong culture of sports in Cobourg and sports are an important part of any community, he added.
“Sports connect communities.”
As the population ages, Quigley said he is concerned items important to Cobourg’s sport history may be discarded.
In the past year the committee — including Quigley, Mike Irwin, John Ovens, Liz Basinger, John Hayden, Peter Harrison, Gil Brocanier and Don Conway — have worked on bylaws to become a registered nonprofit with help from the Peterborough Sports Hall of Fame.
In March the committee registered as a nonprofit corporation and will soon start seeking items from the public. They plan to put out calls for items for three sports at a time so they are not overwhelmed with donations.
The Rotary Club of Cobourg came on as a founding sponsor providing $10,000 in seed money for the project. Part of the funds will go toward a computer and printer/scanner to record all the items they gather. The Town of Cobourg is also behind the project with the Cobourg Community Centre named as a possible location for temporary Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame display cases. The displays will hopefully generate interest in the project. A location for the hall of fame has not yet been decided.
Contact Don Conway at dconway@eagle.ca for further information.
Karen Longwell is the News Editor for the Northumberland News. She can be reached at klongwell@northumberlandnews.com . Follow her on Twitter and Northumberland News on Facebook
Email: klongwell@northumberlandnews.com Facebook
The Cobourg Galloping Ghosts are the most famous team in Cobourg sports history. Managed by Fred Dufton, the Ghosts won eight Ontario championships, five after World War II. They were Canadian Dominion champions in 1946, 1948 and 1950. They were the first team in Canada to wear aluminum cleats and the second to wear white uniforms.
