Cobourg and area sports history will be remembered

Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame accepting first inductee nominations

COMMUNITY Sep 04, 2018 by Sarah Hyatt  Northumberland News

Ross Quigley, who has been instrumental in bringing to life the Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame, looked at some of the historical sport photos he has collected at his home. - Karen Longwell/Northumberland News file photo

COBOURG — Ross Quigley’s dream to share the sports history of the area and to honour local athletes and builders is in motion.

At the end of August, the Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame board announced it's accepting nominations and plans to induct its very first round of athletes and builders in 2019.

“We’ve got some wonderful athletes, teams and stories,” said Quigley, who serves as president for the organization and has been instrumental in bringing to life the Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame. “A large part of Cobourg’s history is its sports history; it’s going to be nice to be able to see it and to recognize it.”

Back in May 2016, Quigley rallied a group of sports enthusiasts to discuss documenting the history of Cobourg and area sports.

“A large part of Cobourg’s history is its sports history, it’s going to be nice to be able to see it and to recognize it,” said Ross Quigley, president of the Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame.

Looking back in the history books, residents can easily find lots of history about Cobourg but not lots about its sports history, said Quigley.

But addressing this gap wasn’t the only goal; Quigley and this group of sports enthusiasts also wanted to preserve local sports memorabilia and to honour local athletes and builders.

It took some time to get everything rolling and to do things like develop bylaws and the induction process, said Quigley.

And while it’s been a lot of work, Quigley believes this is a “special and worthwhile project” for the community and area.

Since 2016, 523 unique memorabilia items have been collected, and the group’s been working on documenting the histories of about 80 local sports.

“We’ve been working to identify all the sports organizations, events and competitions significant to this area,” said Quigley. “We’re looking to write the stories of all them.”

The Town of Cobourg has since also agreed to provide the space needed for the initiative, at the Cobourg Community Centre.

The hope now is that the community will help to elect “a number of worthy local athletes and builders” into the Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame. Nominations are being accepted until Sept. 30.

Election is restricted to athletes and builders of a sport who have a direct connection to the Cobourg and district area. Inductee nominations will be reviewed by an anonymous committee of volunteers who make recommendations to the board.

The hope is to recognize the first inductees with a ceremony and dinner sometime around June 2019, said Quigley.

The district area includes Hamilton Township, the Township of Cramahe and Alnwick/Haldimand Township.

Back in the day, a lot of these areas didn’t have their own rinks or leagues, so a lot of people would come to Cobourg to play, and these residents are a part of Cobourg’s sports history, Quigley explained.

Criteria to nominate an athlete or builder is outlined in nomination forms. Documentary evidence is needed to support a nomination.

Nominations forms are available at: Sommerville’s Sports, Hamilton Township, Cobourg, Alnwick/Haldimand Township and Cramahe Township offices, or by writing to Cobourg and District Sports Hall of Fame, P.O. Box 45, Cobourg, Ont., K9A 1M8.

The hope is the memorabilia displays at the CCC will be in place by October or so.

In an effort to keep things interesting and because people like different sports, the displays will be changed on a rotating basis, said Quigley.

by Sarah Hyatt

Email: shyatt@northumberlandnews.com