Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

LCI RAMS VARSITY FOOTBALL JACKET

Date

1960

Materials

WOOL, LEATHER, STEEL

No. Pieces

1

Length

80

Width

68

Description

GREEN WOOL-BODIED “LCI RAMS” LETTERMAN FOOTBALL JACKET. GOLD KNIT FABRIC BANDS DISPLAYED ON UPPER SLEEVES AND CUFFS. SLASH FRONT POCKETS EDGED IN GOLD LEATHER. SIX YELLOW-PAINTED SNAP CLOSURES. DIAMOND PATTERN INTERIOR LINING. LEFT SLEEVE PATCHES EMBROIDERED “67”,”KENDALL”. LEFT SLEEVE CUFF DISPLAYS WEAR AND HOLES. WHITE RESIDUE ON RIGHT SLEEVE AT CUFF SEAM. HOLE ALONG REVERSE SEAM OF LEFT GOLD KNIT BAND. FADED AND WORN OVERALL. PAINT WORN OFF OF SOME SNAP CLOSURES.

Subjects

CLOTHING-OUTERWEAR

Historical Association

SPORTS

EDUCATION

History

LETHBRIDGE COLLEGIATE INSTITUTE LETTERMAN/ VARSITY RAMS’ FOOTBALL JACKET PURCHASED BY THE GALT MUSEUM VIA EBAY ON 7 JANUARY 2008 FOR $164.00 US. THE JACKET’S KENNEWICK, WASHINGTON STATE SELLER, MARTY (LAST NAME UNKNOWN), CLAIMED HIS FATHER PURCHASED THE JACKET SIX TO SEVEN YEARS PRIOR AT A KENNEWICK-BASED SAINT VINCENT DEPAUL STORE. ACCORDING TO THE SCHOOL’S YEARBOOK “SPOTLITE”, THE “KENDALL” NAMED JACKET WAS WORN IN 1961 BY KENDALL RUSSELL WHO, WENT ON TO BE THE SCHOOL’S STUDENT VICE PRESIDENT AND THE FOOTBALL TEAM’S CAPTAIN IN HIS GRADUATING YEAR. RUSSELL WAS LOCATED BY THE GALT IN KENNEWICK, WA, WHERE HE RESIDED AT THE TIME OF THE DONATION. HE CLAIMED THAT HE LOST TRACK OF THE JACKET, WORN ONLY IN GRADE 10, IN THE EARLY 60S AND WAS UNSURE, AT THE TIME OF HIS 2008 GALT INTERVIEW, AS TO HOW IT WAS/WHEN DISPOSED OF. FURTHER, HE HAD NO KNOWLEDGE HOW IT CAME TO BE LOCATED IN KENNEWICK WASHINGTON – THE SAME COMMUNITY HE RESIDED IN AT THE TIME OF THE EBAY SALE. IN AN INTERVIEW IN 2008, HE SAID, “I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT HAPPENED TO THIS JACKET. I HAVE NO IDEA HOW THIS EVER ENDED UP IN KENNEWICK, WASH.” ADDITIONALLY, HIS WIFE OF FORTY YEARS HAD NEVER LAID EYES ON THE JACKET UNTIL SHE VISITED THE GALT WITH HER HUSBAND IN 2008. INFORMATION BELOW DERIVED FROM GALT INTERVIEW WITH KENDALL RUSSELL ON 12 OCTOBER 2008. RUSSELL WAS BORN AT ST. MICHAEL’S HOSPITAL IN 1944. IN THE MID 50S, HE RECALLED DRIVING BY THE CIVIC CENTER FIELD WITH HIS PARENTS, SEEING THE RAM’S FOOTBALL TEAM PLAYING IN THE FIELD. HIS PARENTS NEVER ENCOURAGED HIM TO PLAY NOR WAS HE INFLUENCED BY AN OLDER BROTHER (12 YEARS HIS SENIOR) WHO PLAYED THE GAME WHILE HE WAS A CHILD. DESCRIBING HIMSELF AS ATHLETIC IN HIS YOUTH, RUSSELL FREQUENTED THE LOCAL YMCA “HEAVILY”, PARTICIPATING IN THE INSTITUTION’S SWIMMING AND GYMNASTICS PROGRAMS. IN ORDER TO PLAY FOOTBALL, HE HAD TO WAIT UNTIL HE ATTENDED LCI ON ACCOUNT THAT NO JUNIOR FOOTBALL PROGRAM OR ORGANIZED TOUCH/FLAG FOOTBALL OPPORTUNITIES EXISTED. WHEN THE OPPORTUNITY FINALLY AROSE, HIS PARTICIPATION WAS, “THE THING TO DO, AN ACCOMPLISHMENT…A RIGHT OF PASSAGE”. RUSSELL CLAIMED THAT A NUMBER OF EARLY ORGANIZED LCI SPORTS, INCLUDING FOOTBALL, WERE THE RESULT OF RAMS’ COACH JIM WHITELAW. IN RUSSELL’S OPINION, WHITELAW HAD AN EXTRAORDINARY VISION FOR THE TIME, SAYING, “HE WAS INTERESTED IN SPORTS BUT HE WAS REALLY INTERESTED IN THE PEOPLE WHO PLAYED. IT WAS A TEAM; IT WASN’T AN INDIVIDUAL EFFORT”. RUSSELL’S POSITION ON THE TEAM WAS DETERMINED BY COACH JIM WHITELAW. WHEN HE FIRST JOINED THE TEAM, RUSSELL PLAYED RIGHT END AND SPENT A LOT OF TIME ON THE BENCH. IN GRADE ELEVEN HE WAS SWITCHED TO RIGHT TACKLE ON OFFENCE OR TACKLE ON DEFENSE. IN SOME CASES, HE SPENT SIXTY MINUTES OF EVERY GAME ON THE FIELD. “IF YOU WERE LARGE IN STATURE (YOU PLAYED) GUARD/TACKLE/CENTER. IF YOU WERE FAST AND TALL (YOU PLAYED) THE RECEIVING/PASSING POSITIONS. (AND) THAT’S HOW I PLAYED TACKLE. THE LAST YEAR I ALSO PLAYED CORNER LINEBACKER. WHERE HE NEEDED ME, THAT’S WHERE I PLAYED.” MOTIVATION TO PLAY FOOTBALL CAME FROM HIS ENJOYMENT OF THE GAME AND FRIENDSHIPS WITH OTHER TEAM MEMBERS. COMMENTED RUSSELL, “I JUST LIVED FOR FRIDAY NIGHTS OR SATURDAY, IT WASN’T DRUDGERY, IT WASN’T A TASK, (IT WAS) JUST PURE FUN.” DURING RUSSELL’S ERA THERE WERE VERY FEW TEAMS TO PLAY AGAINST. THE RAMS, HE SAID, TRAVELED TO PLAY AGAINST TEAMS FROM MEDICINE HAT, CARDSTON (GAME WAS AN ANNUAL HALLOWEEN HORROR EVENT), CUT BANK, MN, AND PICTURE BUTTE. AFTER HIGH SCHOOL AT LCI, HE PLANNED TO ATTEND BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY TO PLAY COLLEGE BALL ON A SCHOLARSHIP, HOWEVER, HIS PARENTS URGED HIM TO PURSUE STUDIES AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA WHICH, ENDED HIS FOOTBALL PURSUITS. DURING THE INTERVIEW, HE PRODUCED JACKET LETTERS AND PHOTOS OF HIMSELF IN HIS FOOTBALL UNIFORM. ALL MATERIALS WERE FOR DONATION TO THE GALT. THE LCI JACKET LETTERS – THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF ANY JACKET - WERE NEVER WORN HE SAID, COMMENTING, “IF YOU HAD THE JACKET, IT WAS FAIRLY APPARENT THAT YOU HAD EARNED THE LETTER”. BEING AWARDED A LETTER MEANT THAT YOU HAD CONTRIBUTED TO THE OVERALL EFFORT OF THE TEAM. THIS JACKET (DONATED) WAS RECEIVED, “AT THE END OF THE FOOTBALL SEASON IN GRADE TEN (1960), AND IT WOULD HAVE BEEN PUT ON THE DAY IT CAME”. HIS PARENTS WOULD HAVE PAID FOR THE JACKET AND IT WAS WORN BY RUSSELL EVERY DAY UNTIL, IN GRADE ELEVEN; HE RECEIVED A NEW, FULL LEATHER-SLEEVED RAMS’ JACKET THE LOOSE LETTERS (DONATED) WERE ACQUIRED IN GRADES ELEVEN AND TWELVE AND WERE ASSOCIATED WITH HIS FULL LEATHER SLEEVED JACKET – ALBEIT NEVER DID SEW THEM ON. TO RECEIVE THE LETTERS, HE SAID, “YOU HAD TO DISPLAY A LEVEL OF COMPETENCE (AND) … HAD TO PLAY SO MUCH TIME ON THE FIELD.” THE LCI COACH DECIDED IF THE LETTER WAS TO BE AWARDED AND, IF GRANTED, IT WAS HANDED OUT BY HIM AT THE ANNUAL AWARDS ASSEMBLY. ONLY IN GRADE TEN, HE SAID, COULD YOU HAVE THE JACKET BUT NOT THE LETTER. IN GRADE ELEVEN YOU HAD TO GET THE LETTER TO GET THE JACKET. THE LOOSE LETTERS (P20080032001-2) WERE NEVER SEWN ON RUSSELL’S GRADE ELEVEN JACKET BECAUSE HE “VALUED THEM BEYOND THE VALUE OF THE JACKET”. THE LITTLE STAR REPRESENTS CAPTAIN AND THE TWO BARS MEANT HE HAD TWO LETTERS. “WHEN PEOPLE LOOK AT YOU, CAPTAIN OF THE FOOTBALL TEAM/TWO LETTERS, FOR WHATEVER THAT’S WORTH, IT’S IMPORTANT TO SOME PEOPLE”, HE SAID. FOR FULL INTERVIEW AND OTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE SEE PERMANENT FILE.

Catalogue Number

P20080001000

Acquisition Date

2008-01

Collection

Museum

Less detail