Amesbury High School football team--1938 yearbook photo

Item Information

Title:
Amesbury High School football team--1938 yearbook photo
Description:
'On 10/2/1937, this team was invited to play in Port Chester, New York. The game was the only game AHS every played out of New England. Most of these men were WWII heroes and outstanding Amesbury leaders. The players on the 1937 Amesbury High School football team that played in the Port Chester game on October 2, 1937. The NBPT News of October 1, 1937 listed the lineup for the game as follows: Justin (RE), Gould (RT), Rossi (RG), Frost (C), Dondero (LG), Verdrani (LT), Antell (LE), Roy (QB), Pickard (RHB), Drew (LAB), and Tessimond (FB). The captain of the team was fullback Earl Tessimond. Many of us remember him as a respected member of the Amesbury Police Department. I requested an interview with him as part of a column I used to write called, 'Amesbury Pride.' I had been told by a proprietor of Ralph's Mobil (also referred to as control center at the time) that Earl had a distinguished World War II war record as a member of the famous Flying Tigers. So with Ralph's help, Earl invited me to his home for the interview. Like most veterans, Earl kept repeating, 'I just did my part,' but as a former Naval Combat Aircrewman I noticed his medals on the wall and told him jokingly that in my day the military didn't usually give the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) to guys that 'just did their part.' He then opened up with details about how he earned the DFC and several other Flying Tigers stories, but then requested that I only mention the receipt of the medal in my column. Talk about a fine example of humility. The second member of the team that did Amesbury proud was right tackle Robert 'Bud' Gould. Bud served Amesbury for many years as the owner of Gould Insurance. Bud and I became friends for years and I was very humbled to deliver a eulogy at Bud's funeral. Bud had passed the torch of the Amesbury Charitable Trust to George French and I, which was a daunting responsibility. But as close to Bud as I was, he was reluctant to talk about his World War II experiences. He did tell me one anecdote. Bud was Commanding Officer of a patrol boat in the Pacific. When the war ended, Bud knew he couldn't carry his .45 caliber pistol back home so he left it hanging in the bridge. He often later wondered what happened to his favorite firearm. The third member of this proud team is Bob Antell. Bob was the coxswain (driver) pof a small craft at the time of the Pearl Harbor attack. He spent that fateful day ferrying people around the harbor and recovering many bodies of brave Americans. He later served gallantly on several ships. His exploits are referred to in a very good WWII book titled, 'Brave Ships, Brave Men.' In the book, Bob is referred to as 'Moose.' A very good read for us history buffs. Bob is a true Amesbury hero of WWII and went on to serve Amesbury as a proud member of the Amesbury Police Department. I call on other 'Amesburyites' to submit their stories of the exploits of the other players. I'm confident the all served with honor during WWII and thereafter. I believe that all players on that team became shiny examples of the value of participation in high school sports. Pictured, from back to front, left to right: (back row, second from left) Bob Antell, (fifth from left) Earl Tessimond, (bottom row, third from left) Bud Gould. Location: Amesbury High School.'
Contributor:
Carter, John R.
Date:
1938
Format:
Photographs
Location:
University of Massachusetts Boston, Joseph P. Healey Library
Collection (local):
Mass. Memories Road Show
MMRS-0074
Series:
Amesbury Mass. Memories Road Show
Subjects:
Antell, Bob
Tessimond, Earl
Gould, Robert
Places:
Massachusetts > Essex (county) > Amesbury
Link to Item:
http://openarchives.umb.edu/cdm/ref/collection/p15774coll6/id/11504
Terms of Use:
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Contact host institution for more information.
Language:
English
Identifier:
UASC-0140-0074-0008-0001