Kanaweola Athletic Club
Encyclopedia
The Kanaweola Athletic Club was a bicycling club, which later fielded a professional football
team, based in Elmira, New York
. The club operated an indoor bicycling track inside the Steele Memorial Library building
. However the club is best known for the historical first of its football team.
On Friday November 21, 1902 at 8:00pm (EST
), Kanaweola took part in the first ever professional game to be played at night. The game took place in Elmira at the Maple Avenue Driving Park (now called Dunn Field
). That night Kanaweola was defeated by the Philadelphia Athletics
of the first National Football League
, 39-0.
The historical significance of the game was initially lost. The town's newspaper, Elmira Daily Advertiser and Free Gazette, only reported on the score of the game, with the headline “Kanaweola Eleven was Brushed Aside, Great Game Just the Same.” It wasn't until decades later that the game was recognized as the first pro football game to be played at night.
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...
team, based in Elmira, New York
Elmira, New York
Elmira is a city in Chemung County, New York, USA. It is the principal city of the 'Elmira, New York Metropolitan Statistical Area' which encompasses Chemung County, New York. The population was 29,200 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Chemung County.The City of Elmira is located in...
. The club operated an indoor bicycling track inside the Steele Memorial Library building
Joel Dorman Steele
Joel Dorman Steele was an American educator. He and his wife Esther were important textbook writers of their period, on subjects including American history, chemistry, human physiology, physics, astronomy, and zoology...
. However the club is best known for the historical first of its football team.
On Friday November 21, 1902 at 8:00pm (EST
Eastern Standard Time
Eastern Standard Time may refer to:*North American Eastern Time Zone, UTC-5*Australian Eastern Standard Time, UTC+10*An album by Hip Hop group Kooley High...
), Kanaweola took part in the first ever professional game to be played at night. The game took place in Elmira at the Maple Avenue Driving Park (now called Dunn Field
Dunn Field (Elmira)
Dunn Field is a stadium in Elmira, New York primarily used for baseball. Located on the banks of the Chemung River at the end of Luce St, it has been the home of various incarnations of the Elmira Pioneers since its opening in 1939.-History:...
). That night Kanaweola was defeated by the Philadelphia Athletics
Philadelphia Athletics (NFL)
The Philadelphia Athletics were a professional American football team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1902. The team was member of what was referred to as the National Football League. This league has no connection with the National Football League of today. The whole "league" was a curious...
of the first National Football League
National Football League (1902)
The National Football League was the first attempt at forming a national professional football league in 1902. The league has no ties with the modern National Football League. In fact the league was only composed of teams from Pennsylvania, which was hardly "national". Two of the teams were based...
, 39-0.
The historical significance of the game was initially lost. The town's newspaper, Elmira Daily Advertiser and Free Gazette, only reported on the score of the game, with the headline “Kanaweola Eleven was Brushed Aside, Great Game Just the Same.” It wasn't until decades later that the game was recognized as the first pro football game to be played at night.