On This Day

Year 1915 in Sports History

Events in Sport

  • Jan 11 Jacob Ruppert and Colonel Tillinghast Huston purchase the New York Yankees for $460,000, Ruppert pays his portion in cash
  • Mar 13 Dodgers manager Wilbert Robinson tries to catch a baseball dropped from an airplane, but the pilot substitutes a grapefruit
  • Mar 19 VI Summer (Modern) Olympic Games: IOC President Pierre de Coubertin writes to Associated Press indicating 1916 Berlin Games won't take place because of WWI
  • Mar 26 Stanley Cup Final, Denman Arena, Vancouver, BC: Barney Stanley scores 5 goals as Vancouver Millionaires beat Ottawa Senators, 12-3 for a 3-0 sweep of first non-challenge series; Vancouver first PCHA champions
  • Mar 26 77th Grand National: legendary jockey Jack Anthony wins his second of 3 GN's aboard 100/8 bet Ally Sloper
  • Apr 5 Jess Willard KOs Jack Johnson in 26 for heavyweight boxing title
  • Apr 19 19th Boston Marathon won by Canadian Édouard Fabre in 2:31:41.2
  • Apr 22 NY Yankees don pinstripes & hat-in-the-ring logo for 1st time

Sports record brokenBaseball Event

May 6 Future Baseball Hall of Fame slugger Babe Ruth hits his first MLB home run; pitches 12 frames in Boston Red Sox 4-3 extra innings loss to New York Yankees

Baseball Legend Babe Ruth
Baseball Legend
Babe Ruth
  • May 8 41st Kentucky Derby: Joe Notter aboard Regret wins in 2:05.4
  • May 17 40th Preakness: Douglas Hoffman aboard Rhine Maiden wins in 1:58
  • May 17 Cubs George "Zip" Zabel relieves with 2 outs in 1st & winds up with 4-3 19-inning win over Brooklyn in longest relief job ever
  • May 31 Indianapolis 500: Italian-born American driver Ralph DePalma accompanied by riding mechanic Louis Fontaine wins from Englishman Dario Resta
  • Jun 5 47th Belmont: George Byrne aboard The Finn wins in 2:18.6
  • Jun 13 US National Championship Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: American based Norwegian Molla Bjurstedt beats Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman 4-6, 6-2, 6-0 for her first of 4 straight US singes titles
  • Jun 18 US Open Men's Golf, Baltusrol GC: 4-time US Amateur champion Jerome Travers captures his only Open title, 1 stroke ahead of runner-up Tom McNamara

  • Jun 23 Yanks get record 16 walks & 3 wild pitches beat A's Bruno Hass, 15-0
  • Jul 18 Boston Braves start move from last place to become world series champs

Event of interestEvent of Interest

Jul 29 Pirate Honus Wagner at 41, hits a grand slam HR

MLB Shortshop Honus Wagner
MLB Shortshop
Honus Wagner
  • Aug 7 Dario Resta, driving a Peugeot, wins the first Champ Car race ever to average over 100mph at a 100-mile race in Chicago; average speed 101.8mph
  • Aug 18 Braves Field opens in Boston to see Braves beat St. Louis Cardinals, 3-1
  • Aug 20 Chicago White Sox obtain 'Shoeless' Joe Jackson from Cleveland for Robert Roth, Larry Chappell, Ed Klepfer & $31,500; Jackson involved in 'Black Sox Scandal' 1919
  • Aug 21 Australasian Championships Men's Tennis, Brisbane: Englishman Gordon Lowe beats Horace Rice of Australia 4-6, 6-1, 6-1, 6-4
  • Aug 31 Chicago White Sox Jimmy Lavender no-hits NY Giants, 2-0
  • Sep 1 Jerome Travers establishes a US Amateur Golf Championship record by downing George Crump, 14 & 13, in a 1st-round match at the Country Club of Detroit in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan
  • Sep 8 US National Championship Men's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: William Johnston beats Maurice McLoughlin 1-6, 6-0, 7-5, 10-8 in first US event held at West Side Tennis Club, Forest Hills, New York
  • Sep 22 Boston Red Sox ask Boston Braves for use of Braves Field (10,000+ capacity) for Baseball World Series against Philadelphia Phillies
  • Sep 29 Philadelphia Phillies clinch their 1st pennant
  • Sep 30 Red Sox clinch AL pennant by beating Detroit

Sports record brokenBaseball Record

Oct 5 Detroit Tigers speedster Ty Cobb steals his 96th base of the season in 5-0 loss to Cleveland Indians; stands as MLB record until 1962 (Maury Wills, 104)

MLB Legend Ty Cobb
MLB Legend
Ty Cobb
  • Oct 8 Phillies win their 1st & only World Series game before 1980, beating Red Sox, 3-1, with an 8th inning 2 run rally

Event of interestEvent of Interest

Oct 9 Woodrow Wilson becomes first US President to attend a World Series game

28th US President Woodrow Wilson
28th US President
Woodrow Wilson
  • Oct 13 Boston Red Sox beat Philadelphia Phillies, 4 games to 1 in 12th World Series
  • Nov 20 CFL Grey Cup, Varsity Stadium, Toronto: Hamilton Tigers win 2nd title; beat Toronto Rowing Association, 13-7
  • Dec 22 Organized baseball and Federal League sign a peace treaty at Cincinnati; Federal Baseball League dissolves

Birthdays in Sport

  • Jan 3 Sid Hudson, American baseball pitcher (MLB All Star 1941, 42; Washington Senators, Boston Red Sox), born in Coalfield, Tennessee (d. 2008)
  • Jan 8 Walker Cooper, American baseball catcher (MLB All-Star 1942–44, 46–50; World Series 1942, 44; St. Louis Cardinals), born in Atherton, Missouri (d. 1991)
  • Jan 22 Tom Burtt, cricketer (slow left-armer took 33 wickets for NZ)
  • Jan 23 Herma Bauma, Austrian javelin thrower (Olympic gold 1948), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 2003)
  • Feb 1 Stanley Matthews CBE, English soccer forward (54 caps; Stoke City, Blackpool; 1st British player to be knighted), born in Stoke-on-Trent, England (d. 2000)
  • Feb 1 Gus Tinsley, American College Football Hall of Fame end and coach (All-American 1935, 36; coach LSU 1948-55; NFL: Chicago Cardinals), born in Ruple, Louisiana (d. 2002)
  • Feb 2 Stan Leonard, Canadian golfer (3 PGA Tour titles), born in Vancouver, BC (d. 2005)
  • Feb 20 Chick Harbert, American golfer (PGA C'ship 1954), born in Dayton, Ohio (d. 1992)
  • Feb 21 Godfrey Brown, British athlete, 4 X 400m runner (Olympic gold 1936), born in Bankura, India (d. 1995)
  • Feb 22 Gus Lesnevich, light heavyweight boxing champ (1947 fight of year)
  • Feb 24 Jim Ferrier, Australian golfer (PGA C'ship 1947), born in Sydney, NSW (d. 1986)
  • Mar 3 George Brian Snape, businessman/rugby league entrepreneur
  • Mar 6 Leonard Tose, owner NFL Philadelphia Eagles 1969-85, born in Bridgeport, Pennsylvania (d. 2003)
  • Mar 6 Pete Gray [Wyshner], MLB one-armed outfielder (St Louis Browns), born in Nanticoke, Pennsylvania (d. 2002)
  • Mar 8 Tapio Rautavaara, Finnish athlete, actor, and singer (Me tulemme taas, Rion yö), born in Pirkkala, Finland (d. 1979)
  • Mar 11 Vijay Hazare, cricketer (prolific Indian batsman 1946-54)
  • Mar 17 William "Bill" Roycroft, Australian equestrian 3 day (Olympic bronze 1976), born in Melbourne, Australia (d. 2011)
  • Mar 19 Norman Yardley, English cricket batsman and captain (20 Tests; Wisden Cricketer of the Year 1948), born in Barnsley, Yorkshire (d. 1989)
  • Mar 20 Stan Spence, American baseball center fielder (MLB All-Star 1942, 44, 46, 47; Boston Red Sox, Washington Senators, St. Louis Browns), born in South Portsmouth, Kentucky (d. 1983)
  • Mar 22 George Cresswell, New Zealand cricketer (3 Tests for NZ aged 35)
  • Mar 28 Ray Emery, New Zealand cricketer (NZ Test batsman vs West Indies 1952), born in Auckland (d. 1982)
  • Apr 1 Jeff Heath, Canadian baseball outfielder (MLB All Star 1941, 43, 45; Cleveland Indians), born in Fort William, Ontario (d. 1975)
  • Apr 2 Al Barlick, American Baseball Hall of Fame umpire (7 x World Series; 7 x MLB All Star games), born in Springfield, Illinois (d. 1995)
  • Apr 11 Pat Hanlon, British cyclist, born in Newport, Cardiganshire (d. 1997)
  • Apr 13 Bob Devaney, American College Football Hall of Fame coach (National C'ship, University of Nebraska 1970, 71; University of Wyoming; career record 136–30–7), born in Saginaw, Michigan (d. 1997)
  • Apr 17 Joe Foss, American fighter ace, football executive (Medal of Honor-1943; first commissioner American Football League) and politician, born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota (d. 2003)
  • Apr 19 Harry Craft, American MLB baseball player and manager, born in Ellisville, Mississippi (d. 1995)
  • May 1 Archie Williams, American athlete (Olympic gold 400m 1936), born in Oakland, California (d. 1993)
  • May 6 Freddie Cochrane, American boxer (World Welterweight champion 1941-1946), born in Elizabeth, New Jersey (d. 1993)
  • May 30 Larry Kelley, American College Football Hall of Fame tight end (Heisman Trophy 1936; Unanimous All-American 1936; Yale), born in Hightstown, New Jersey (d. 2000)
  • Jun 4 Walter Hadlee, New Zealand cricket batsman (11 Tests; father of Richard & Dayle), born in Lincoln, Canterbury (d. 2006)
  • Jun 13 Don Budge, American tennis player (6 Grand Slam singles titles, Grand Slam 1938), born in Oakland, California (d. 2000)
  • Jun 18 Arthur Fagg, English cricket batsman (5 Tests; dual double-centuries for Kent v Essex 1938) and umpire (18 Tests, 7 ODIs), born in Chartham, England (d. 1977)
  • Jun 30 Gordon Rowe, New Zealand cricketer (scored a pair in only Test (NZ v Aust 1946)), born in Glasgow, Scotland (d. 1995)
  • Jul 5 John Woodruff, American athlete (Olympic gold 1936), born in Connellsville, Pennsylvania (d. 2007)
  • Jul 17 Dorothy Poynton-Hill, American platform diver (Olympic gold 1932)
  • Jul 27 Jack Iverson, Australian cricket mystery spinner (late 40's), born in St Kilda, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia (d. 1973)
  • Aug 12 Alex Wojciechowicz, NFL center (Lions, Eagles)
  • Aug 18 Max Lanier, American baseball pitcher (MLB All Star 1943-44; World Series 1942, 44; St. Louis Cardinals), born in Denton, North Carolina (d. 2007)
  • Aug 28 Max Robertson, British sports commentator, born in Dacca, Bengal (d. 2009)
  • Aug 31 Pete Newell, American Basketball Hall of Fame coach (Uni of San Francisco, Michigan State Uni; NCAA Men's C'ship 1959, Cal Berkeley; Olympic gold 1960), born in Vancouver, Canada (d. 2008)
  • Sep 8 Frank Pullen, English businessman and racehorse owner, born in London (d. 1992)
  • Sep 13 Clint Frank, American College Football Hall of Fame halfback (Heisman Trophy 1937; Yale), born in St. Louis, Missouri (d. 1992)
  • Oct 26 Golfredo Corradetti, Canadian conductor and composer, born in Calgary, Alberta; (d. 1995)
  • Oct 26 Joe Fry, British racing driver, born in Winterbourne, Gloucestershire, England (d. 1950)
  • Oct 29 Dennis Brookes, English cricketer (one Test England v WI 1948, scored 10 & 7), born in Leeds, Yorkshire, England (d. 2006)
  • Nov 15 Bea Barrett, American golfer (Western Open 1938), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 2002)
  • Nov 18 Ken Burkhart, American baseball player (St. Louis Cardinals) and umpire, born in Knoxville, Tennessee (d. 2004)
  • Nov 19 Anita Lizana, Chilean tennis player (US Nat C'ships 1937; first Latin American major winner), born in Santiago, Chile (d. 1994)
  • Nov 25 George Mudie, cricketer (WI all-rounder in one Test 1935, 5 & 3-40)
  • Nov 25 Ron Hamence, cricketer (Australian batsman post-WWII)
  • Dec 9 Colin McCool, Australian cricketer (Australian leg-spin all rounder late 40s), born in Paddington, New South Wales, Australia (d. 1986)
  • Dec 18 Dario Mangiarotti, Italian fencing, gold, 2 silver (Olympic-1948, 52)
  • Dec 27 Gyula Zsengellér, Hungarian footballer (d. 1999)
  • Dec 29 Bill Osmanski, American football player & coach, born in Providence, Rhode Island (d. 1996)

Deaths in Sport

  • Jan 6 Reginald Wood, cricketer (one Test England v Australia 1886), dies
  • Feb 5 Ross Barnes, American baseball player, dies at 64
  • Mar 31 Wyndham Halswelle, Scottish athlete (Olympic gold 1908), dies at 32
  • Apr 3 Andrew Stoddart, English cricketer (England captain) and ruby union player, commits suicide by firearm at 52

Person of interestAlfred Gwynne Vanderbilt

May 7 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Sr., American businessman and sportsman (New York Central Railway), dies aboard the RMS Lusitania during World War I at 37

Business Magnate Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt
Business Magnate
Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt
  • May 9 François Faber, Luxembourgian cyclist (Tour de France 1909), dies of gunshot wounds at 28
  • May 9 Anthony Wilding, New Zealand tennis player (Wimbledon 1910-13), dies on the Western Front at 31
  • May 19 Bob Ferguson, Scottish golfer (British Open 1880-82), dies at 69
  • Jun 28 Victor Trumper, Australian Cricket Batsman (48 Tests, top score 214; key figure foundation of rugby league in Australia), dies of Bright's disease at 37
  • Sep 9 A. G. Spalding, American Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher, manager and executive (NL wins leader 1871–76; co-founder of Spalding sporting goods company), dies at 66

Person of interestW. G. Grace

Oct 23 W. G. Grace, English cricket all-rounder and captain (22 Tests; 54,896 runs over record 44 first class seasons; Gloucestershire), dies of a heart attack at 67

Cricketer W. G. Grace
Cricketer
W. G. Grace
  • Oct 30 Gervys Rignold Hazlitt, cricketer (9 Tests for Aust 1907-12), dies
  • Dec 29 Thomas Shelvin, College Football Hall of Fame defensive end (Yale), dies of pneumonia at 32
  • Dec 29 Tom Shevlin, American College Football Hall of Fame end (Consensus All-American 1902, 04, 05; National C'ship 1902, 05; Yale University), dies of pneumonia at 32