Horace Greely Prettyman
Encyclopedia
Horace Greely Prettyman (November 8, 1857 – March 27, 1945) was an American football
player in the early years of the sport. Prettyman won a record eight varsity letter
s at the University of Michigan
, playing for the school's football team from 1882–1886 and 1888–1890. He was the team's captain in 1884, 1885, and 1886, and scored the first touchdown in the first game played at Michigan's first home football field in Ann Arbor
. Prettyman later became a successful businessman and civic leader, operating a boarding house, a laundry service, a power company and the Ann Arbor Press, and holding office as an Ann Arbor city councilman, postmaster and Washtenaw County, Michigan
supervisor.
, and raised in Bryan, Ohio
. He was the son of Lewis Prettyman, a farmer, and Hannah (Kintigh) Prettyman.
in 1882 at age 24 and excelled as an athlete. In addition to football, Prettyman also won competitions in the hammer throw, boxing and wrestling. In 1882, Prettyman was a "rusher" for the Michigan football team. However, the team played no intercollegiate games.
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In 1883, Michigan resumed a schedule of intercollegiate football, and Prettyman played "forward" for the team. The team played its first ever home game at the Ann Arbor Fairgrounds
in March 1883, a 40-5 win over the Detroit Independents. Prettyman scored the first touchdown at the Fairgrounds at the 14-minute mark of the "first inning" and went on to score a second touchdown before the end of the inning. The team played its remaining games as part of an Eastern trip in November 1883. The trip consisted of four road games in eight days at Wesleyan
and Yale
in Connecticut, Harvard
in Massachusetts, and Stevens Institute
in Hoboken, New Jersey
. The trip cost $3,000 and was arranged "to both represent and advertise the college among the Eastern cities and universities." Prettyman was placed in charge of the trip, and The Michigan Argonaut praised his management: "All the boys are most hearty in their commendation of Prettyman's excellent management of the financial interests of the trip and his success is seen by the fact that every expense of the trip has been paid to the last cent."
On the trip, the team lost to Yale 46–0, the worst defeat to that time in the history of Michigan football. The Yale game was played on a Saturday, and Michigan played Harvard the next day, losing 3–0. The second half was played largely in darkness, and the Boston Journal said of the play:
Late in the game, Michigan appeared to have scored the winning touchdown on a trick play, called "the time-honored fake run." Prettyman began running with teammate (and future Boston Red Sox
owner) Henry Killilea
behind him. Just before being tackled, Prettyman passed the ball to Killilea, who ran for the touchdown while Prettyman ran "head-on into the Harvard full-back." The Harvard umpire called the ball was "down" where Prettyman had been tackled, and the referee ordered it back to the midfield and called the game on account of darkness. Some claimed that the Harvard umpire had not seen the play due to the darkness, and had called Prettyman down at the urging of a Harvard player. The Michigan team arranged to stay and play another game the next day. However, according to a 1920 history of the University of Michigan, Harvard refused and instead "pleaded faculty interference and paid a $100 forfeit."
After the final game of the Eastern trip against Stevens Institute, The New York Times
noted that Killilea and Prettyman "did some of the best work for the Michigan men in the way of running and tackling."
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In 1884, Prettyman was chosen as captain of the football team. The team won both of its intercollegiate games, including an 18 to 10 win in its first match against its eventual rival, the University of Chicago
. The team beat Albion College
18 to 0 in its other game in 1884. Prettyman received his Bachelor's degree in 1885, but stayed on at the university as a graudate student from 1885-1886. In 1885, Prettyman was again selected as captain and led the football team to its second consecutive undefeated season. The 1885 team did not allow its opponents to score a single point, outscoring them 82 to 0.
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In 1886, Prettyman was selected as captain of the football team for the third straight year. No player before or since has been selected as captain of the Michigan football team more than twice. The 1886 team played two games, both against Albion College
. Michigan won the first game at Albion by a score of 50 to 0. The Michigan Argonaut credited Prettyman for his fine play in the game. The second game was played at the Ann Arbor Fairgrounds as part of a "field day" that included various athletic events. Michigan won the football game 24 to 0, and the Argonaut reported that "Prettyman's play was characterized by his usual heavy rushing."
In Prettyman's three years as captain, Michigan never lost a game, winning seven games and losing none over the three-year span, and outscoring opponents 192 to 10.
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Prettyman worked as a traveling salesman from 1886–1887, general manager of Bulles & Co. (an Ann Arbor manufacturer of gelatin capsules) in 1888, and a real estate agent and hotel manager starting in 1889. Though he was no longer a student, college football eligibility standards were loose, and Prettyman returned to play three more years for Michigan, as the team's center in 1888, and as a tackle in 1889 and 1890.
In 1888, the team was undefeated, having beaten Notre Dame twice, going into the final game of the year against the University of Chicago
. Michigan lost the game 26–4 in front of a crowd of 2,500 persons, and Prettyman was "disqualified for striking one of the U.C. team." The 1889 rematch against Chicago was played on icy grass and mud-colored snow with a 40-mile-an-hour wind. Prettyman was again involved in a fight that resulted in his expulsion from the game. One Chicago newspaper described the incident this way:
In 1890, Prettyman played as part of the first racially integrated football team at Michigan, alongside African-American teammate George Jewett
.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player in the early years of the sport. Prettyman won a record eight varsity letter
Varsity letter
A varsity letter is an award earned in the United States for excellence in school activities. A varsity letter signifies that its winner was a qualified varsity team member, awarded after a certain standard was met.- Description :...
s at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, playing for the school's football team from 1882–1886 and 1888–1890. He was the team's captain in 1884, 1885, and 1886, and scored the first touchdown in the first game played at Michigan's first home football field in Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
. Prettyman later became a successful businessman and civic leader, operating a boarding house, a laundry service, a power company and the Ann Arbor Press, and holding office as an Ann Arbor city councilman, postmaster and Washtenaw County, Michigan
Washtenaw County, Michigan
Washtenaw County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the population was 344,791. Its county seat is Ann Arbor. The United States Office of Management and Budget defines the county as part of the Detroit–Warren–Flint Combined Statistical Area...
supervisor.
Early years
Prettyman was born in Stryker, OhioStryker, Ohio
Stryker is a village in Williams County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,406 at the 2000 census.-History:Stryker is the oldest settlement in Williams County...
, and raised in Bryan, Ohio
Bryan, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 8,333 people, 3,528 households, and 2,155 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,821.7 people per square mile . There were 3,733 housing units at an average density of 816.1 per square mile...
. He was the son of Lewis Prettyman, a farmer, and Hannah (Kintigh) Prettyman.
1882 and 1883 football seasons
Prettyman attended Ann Arbor High School and subsequently enrolled in the University of MichiganUniversity of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in 1882 at age 24 and excelled as an athlete. In addition to football, Prettyman also won competitions in the hammer throw, boxing and wrestling. In 1882, Prettyman was a "rusher" for the Michigan football team. However, the team played no intercollegiate games.
Ann Arbor Fairgrounds
Ann Arbor Fairgrounds was the first home field for the University of Michigan Wolverines football team. The Wolverines played their home games at the Fairgrounds from 1883 to 1892. The first intercollegiate football game played at the Fairgrounds was a May 12, 1883, game between Michigan and the...
in March 1883, a 40-5 win over the Detroit Independents. Prettyman scored the first touchdown at the Fairgrounds at the 14-minute mark of the "first inning" and went on to score a second touchdown before the end of the inning. The team played its remaining games as part of an Eastern trip in November 1883. The trip consisted of four road games in eight days at Wesleyan
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
and Yale
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in Connecticut, Harvard
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in Massachusetts, and Stevens Institute
Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology is a technological university located on a campus in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA – founded in 1870 with an 1868 bequest from Edwin A. Stevens. It is known for its engineering, science, and technological management curricula.The institute has produced leading...
in Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 50,005. The city is part of the New York metropolitan area and contains Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub for the region...
. The trip cost $3,000 and was arranged "to both represent and advertise the college among the Eastern cities and universities." Prettyman was placed in charge of the trip, and The Michigan Argonaut praised his management: "All the boys are most hearty in their commendation of Prettyman's excellent management of the financial interests of the trip and his success is seen by the fact that every expense of the trip has been paid to the last cent."
"All that could really be called a game was the first half before the intermission, the latter half being nothing more than a scramble because of the darkness. ... [T]he pitch dark for the whole of this half prevented the teams from distinguishing friend from foe. It was one continuous scramble, and the spectators were unable to distinguish any of the actions."
Late in the game, Michigan appeared to have scored the winning touchdown on a trick play, called "the time-honored fake run." Prettyman began running with teammate (and future Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
owner) Henry Killilea
Henry Killilea
Henry J. Killilea was one the five men who founded baseball's American League as a major league in 1899. The other members of the group were his brother Matthew Killilea, Connie Mack, Charles Comiskey, and the leader of the effort, Ban Johnson. Their first meeting was held in Killilea's Milwaukee...
behind him. Just before being tackled, Prettyman passed the ball to Killilea, who ran for the touchdown while Prettyman ran "head-on into the Harvard full-back." The Harvard umpire called the ball was "down" where Prettyman had been tackled, and the referee ordered it back to the midfield and called the game on account of darkness. Some claimed that the Harvard umpire had not seen the play due to the darkness, and had called Prettyman down at the urging of a Harvard player. The Michigan team arranged to stay and play another game the next day. However, according to a 1920 history of the University of Michigan, Harvard refused and instead "pleaded faculty interference and paid a $100 forfeit."
After the final game of the Eastern trip against Stevens Institute, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
noted that Killilea and Prettyman "did some of the best work for the Michigan men in the way of running and tackling."
1884 and 1885 football seasons
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
. The team beat Albion College
Albion College
Albion College is a private liberal arts college located in Albion, Michigan. Related to the United Methodist Church, it was founded in 1835 and was the first private college in Michigan to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. It has a student population of about 1500.The school's sports teams are...
18 to 0 in its other game in 1884. Prettyman received his Bachelor's degree in 1885, but stayed on at the university as a graudate student from 1885-1886. In 1885, Prettyman was again selected as captain and led the football team to its second consecutive undefeated season. The 1885 team did not allow its opponents to score a single point, outscoring them 82 to 0.
1886 football season
Albion College
Albion College is a private liberal arts college located in Albion, Michigan. Related to the United Methodist Church, it was founded in 1835 and was the first private college in Michigan to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. It has a student population of about 1500.The school's sports teams are...
. Michigan won the first game at Albion by a score of 50 to 0. The Michigan Argonaut credited Prettyman for his fine play in the game. The second game was played at the Ann Arbor Fairgrounds as part of a "field day" that included various athletic events. Michigan won the football game 24 to 0, and the Argonaut reported that "Prettyman's play was characterized by his usual heavy rushing."
In Prettyman's three years as captain, Michigan never lost a game, winning seven games and losing none over the three-year span, and outscoring opponents 192 to 10.
1888 to 1890 football seasons
In 1888, the team was undefeated, having beaten Notre Dame twice, going into the final game of the year against the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
. Michigan lost the game 26–4 in front of a crowd of 2,500 persons, and Prettyman was "disqualified for striking one of the U.C. team." The 1889 rematch against Chicago was played on icy grass and mud-colored snow with a 40-mile-an-hour wind. Prettyman was again involved in a fight that resulted in his expulsion from the game. One Chicago newspaper described the incident this way:
"In the main, the players kept their tempers very well during the excitement of the struggle but while the second half was in, Prettyman, the big rusher of the Michigan team who was mixed up in a fracas during the game of last year, forgot himself and slugged one of the Chicago men vigorously. This came near bringing on a fight and the crowd broke into the field and surrounded the players closely while the occupants of the grand stand hissed the unexpected display. The cooler players, however, quickly brought the others to their senses, and the tempest was soon over. The police cleared the field and play was resumed, but not until Prettyman had been ruled off and Hull substituted for him."
In 1890, Prettyman played as part of the first racially integrated football team at Michigan, alongside African-American teammate George Jewett
George Jewett
George Henry Jewett II was an American athlete who became the first African American football player at both the University of Michigan and Northwestern University, and in the Big Ten Conference...
.