1897 Carlisle Indians football team

American college football season February 2026 August 2023 1897 Carlisle Indians football Independent 6–4 William T. Bull 1st Bemus Pierce Indian Field The 1897 Carlisle Indians football team represented the Carlisle Indian Industrial School as an independent during the 1897 college football season. Led by William T. Bull in his first only season as head coach, the Indians compiled a record of 6–4 and outscored opponents 232 to 98. Frank Hudson was the quarterback. On the line were the brothers Bemus Pierce and Hawley Pierce. The two Pierce brothers, each weighing over 200 pounds, were both among the best players of their day. In 1906, The Washington Post declared them the greatest pair of linesman brothers in the history of the sport:"But the greatest pair of brother linesmen were the Indians, Pierce. Bemus Pierce and Hawley Pierce were right guard and left tackle in the Carlisle line in the old days when the redskin booters of the prolate had everything in the country scared. Two hundred pounds apiece they weighed, and they won games for their team in 97. Tackle back and guard back for a solid half was the Indian play and it was 400 pounds of Pierce into the opponents' line pretty steady. Bemus was captain of the team and one of the best men on the kick-off football has seen. He could measure and place his kicks accurately and every red knew where the ball was going before it soared."Unlike Baseball, Gridiron Prowess Runs in Families The Washington Post 1906-12-09 Hudson gained acclaim for drop-kicking field goals against two of the top teams in the country—Yale and Penn.Frank Hudson American Indian Athletic Hall of Fame http://americanindianathletichalloffame.com/frankhudson.php 2015-04-04 2008-08-21 https://web.archive.org/web/20080821114557/http://americanindianathletichalloffame.com/frankhudson.php usurped Hudson accounted for all of Carlisle's points in a 20–10 loss to Penn at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. The New York Times wrote that "little Hudson showed his ability as a kicker by dropping the ball squarely between the posts."Carlisle Indians Beaten: Pennsylvania Defeats Them at Football by a Score of 20 to 10 The New York Times November 7, 1897 https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1897/11/07/102545283.pdf The game against Yale was played at the Polo Grounds in New York, and The New York Times described Hudson's field goal as follows:"[S]teadying himself for an instant the ball was dropped and with a delicate touch from his foot was sent sailing straight as a die toward the Yale goal. The spectators held their breath and watched the ball as it sailed on just over the heads of the Yale players and finally dropped over the bar. Then they cheered and young Hudson was the hero of the day. The goal was one of the prettiest ever seen ..."Yale Beats the Indians: White and Red Men in Mimic Warfare on the Polo Grounds Yesterday Afternoon; The Crowd with Carlisle The New York Times October 24, 1897 https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1897/10/24/105956136.pdf The success of the Carlisle football team was a source of great pride for Native Americans. In 1897, the Indian Helper (the Carlisle school newspaper) described a celebration that greeted the football team on its return from a game played in New York City against Yale University:"On Monday morning after breakfast, the football team, who returned the evening before from the Yale game which was played at New York last Saturday, was treated to a free ride across the parade, in the large four horse herdic, drawn by the entire battalion. Capt. Pierce, Frank Cayou, Frank Hudson, and Martin Wheelock occupied the small phaeton drawn by boys, and went in advance of the others. The band played lively marches, as handkerchiefs waved and mouths shouted. The demonstration was a great surprise to all making a unique scene for such an early morning hour. The school is proud of the record made for clean playing, and were gratified that the boys scored.”untitled Indian Helper October 29, 1897 Schedule October 2 w y Dickinson Carlisle, PA 36–0 October 9 w y 1897 Bloomsburg Normal Bloomsburg Normal Bloomsburg, PA 26–0 October 16 l y Princeton Osborne Field Princeton, NJ 0–18 8,000 Indians and Tigers Fought Fiercely: Victory for Princeton Came After Much Effort and Injured Men The Brooklyn Daily Eagle October 17, 1897 9 https://www.newspapers.com/clip/16524692/indians_and_tigers_fought_fiercely/ Newspapers.com October 23 l y Yale Polo Grounds New York, NY 9–24 9,000–13,000 Nine Points Scored Against Old Eli https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97461286/the-brooklyn-daily-eagle/ The Brooklyn Daily Eagle Brooklyn, New York October 24, 1897 8 March 12, 2022 Newspapers.com Yale Beats the Indians The New York Times October 24, 1897 3 https://www.newspapers.com/clip/98268163/yale-beats-the-indians/ Newspapers.com October 30 w 1897 Pennsylvania College Pennsylvania College Indian Field Carlisle, PA 84–0 November 6 l y Penn Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA 10–20 14,000 Indians Score On Penn's Team https://www.newspapers.com/clip/98188097/the-philadelphia-times/ The Times Philadelphia, Pennsylvania November 7, 1897 1 March 22, 2022 Newspapers.com Indians Score On Penn's Team (continued) https://www.newspapers.com/clip/98188159/the-philadelphia-times/ The Times Philadelphia, Pennsylvania November 7, 1897 10 March 22, 2022 Newspapers.com November 13 l y Brown Polo Grounds New York, NY 14–18 1,500–3,000 Brown Kicks To Victory https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97438149/the-sun/ The Sun New York, New York November 14, 1897 8 March 11, 2022 Newspapers.com Brown 18, Carlisle 14 https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97438268/the-boston-globe/ The Boston Sunday Globe Boston, Massachusetts November 14, 1897 6 March 11, 2022 Newspapers.com November 20 8:00 p.m. w y Illinois Coliseum Chicago, IL 23–6 10,000–12,000 Poor Lo Will Punt https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97461512/chicago-tribune/ Chicago Tribune Chicago, Illinois November 20, 1897 5 March 12, 2022 Newspapers.com Scalped By Poor Lo https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97461859/the-chicago-chronicle/ The Chicago Chronicle Chicago, Illinois November 21, 1897 2 March 12, 2022 Newspapers.com Indians Win, 23 To 6 https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97461859/the-chicago-chronicle/ The Sunday Inter Ocean Chicago, Illinois November 21, 1897 8 March 12, 2022 Newspapers.com Is Won By Red Men https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97462293/chicago-tribune/ Chicago Tribune Chicago, Illinois November 21, 1897 1 March 12, 2022 Newspapers.com Is Won By Red Men (continued) https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97462354/chicago-tribune/ Chicago Tribune Chicago, Illinois November 21, 1897 4 March 12, 2022 Newspapers.com November 25 2:30 p.m. w y Cincinnati League Park Cincinnati, OH 10–0 4,500 Glorious—Will The University Feel—If They Can Score Against the Carlisle Indians https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-cincinnati-enquirer/199310225/ The Cincinnati Enquirer Cincinnati, Ohio November 25, 1897 2 June 10, 2026 Newspapers.com Grand Struggle on the Gridiron https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97462628/the-cincinnati-enquirer/ The Cincinnati Enquirer Cincinnati, Ohio November 26, 1897 2 March 12, 2022 Newspapers.com November 27 w y 1897 Ohio Medical Ohio Medical Western League ball park Columbus, OH 20–12 2,000–3,000 Carlisle Red Men Surprised https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97462819/the-courier-journal/ The Courier-Journal Louisville, Kentucky November 28, 1897 8 March 12, 2022 Newspapers.com https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/schools/carlisle/1897-schedule.html 1897 Carlisle Indian Schedule and Results References Carlisle Category:Carlisle Indians football seasons Carlisle Indians football