- FOR THE YALE CUP -

Bridgeport High School

Bridgeport Connecticut

Hartford Public High School

Hartford Connecticut

uestion...Why would I feature a high school football poster since I normally only collect ones with recognizable teams, typically colleges ones? Answer: Primarily because of the region and the time frame....First, it's from Connecticut...and Connecticut...along with Massachusetts is where American football was birthed and pioneered. Second, It's from 1895 which was early for state sanctioned high school football. Therefore this poster would be a very rare artifact of the early development of American football at the high school level from the region where it all started! That is, the land of Yale...Matter fact, as we're about to see, Yale orchestrated this game...Given those attributes I was very pleased to add it to my collection of broadsides.

The poster gives up some very interesting details. 1. It's for the Connecticut state championship. 2. It names the trophy, the Yale Cup. I don't believe I've seen a trophy referenced on a poster before!  3. The game was sanctioned by the Connecticut Interscholastic Foot Ball Association. It is interesting to note there was a governing body that early for Connecticut high school football. 4. Someone wrote on the poster in long hand the final score of the game, which is great to know!  5.  And finally, it's fully dated!...One of the most important features a broadside can have is to be dated with at least the year...In this case however, we have the year, day, and month. Having all that was invaluable for research.

Speaking of research....this has not been an easy one. However, with the assistance of retired New Haven Register Sports Editor Bob Barton, as well as Natalie Belanger, and Melissa Traub of the Connecticut Historical Society...I was able to assemble enough pieces of the puzzle to learn the background of this poster...

I got it on eBay October 4th 2015 for $279.95 with a "buy it now" option. An important aspect of this poster is that it's printed on cardstock...Please note that 22" x 14" cardstock posters from this era are very rare as they were easily broken. The larger they were the more subject to damage they were.  So for this example to survive since 1895 is incredible and a privilege to view! As a special bonus it's printed on robins egg blue cardstock, as opposed to the usual white or tan...which gives it extra eye appeal! 

Yale Field, as announced on the poster, is where Hartford High and Bridgeport played. Yale Field is located at 252 Derby Avenue, West Haven, CT. just across the city line from New Haven. Before the more famous Yale Bowl stadium's first game November 21st 1914, Yale Field was Yale's home football field. Yale Field is about a three minute drive from the Yale Bowl and about three miles from the Yale campus. 

STATE OF CONNECTICUT

THE NEW YORK, NEW HAVEN AND  HARTFORD RAILROAD CO. RAIL MAP

HARTFORD HIGH AND BRIDGEPORT HIGH MET AT YALE FIELD IN WEST HAVEN (BY NEW HAVEN) 42 miles from Hartford to West Haven   22 miles from Bridgeport to West Haven Both teams would have traveled to the game by The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad

THE BACKGROUND

To appreciate the drama of the game on this poster, let's examine what was going on in the background...First of all, it advertises a "TIE GAME" playoff. This was the second of a three game series which Hartford Public High School and Bridgeport High School played for the Championship of 1895. The Yale Athletic Association had donated a trophy, the Yale Cup, to the winning team. Yale also let them play the game on the famed Yale Field.  Also note the Connecticut Interscholastic Foot Ball Association referenced on the poster was formed in 1894 under the auspices of the Yale Football Association only a year previous to this game . The Yale Cup was also first awarded in 1894, and was awarded annually to the Connecticut State Football Champions until it was retired in 1901 and replaced with the Trinity Cup. The rules of the Yale Cup called for it to be retired to the first team to win it three times. Waterbury High of Waterbury Ct., later renamed Crosby High, won it in 1899, 1900, and 1901.

At first glance it seems admirable of Yale to put up a trophy for a championship trophy and provide Yale Field for the venue...I would speculate however, this was more than just promoting football and fostering good sportsmanship for youth...this was a recruiting exercise for the Eli. Moreover we may be witnessing the beginnings of college football recruitment...Think about it...Yale had been playing interscholastic football for twenty years...read about their beginnings here...By 1895 they would realize the value of looking ahead to the next crop of players...By promoting a state championship they were essentially getting a look at the best players in the state...I wouldn't be at all surprised if Walter Camp and other Yale football supporters were their at these last three games watching for talent!

After tying the November 16th game advertised on this poster 4 - 4,  the captains agreed to share the championship and have both teams engraved on the Yale Cup. All was settled until the Yale Athletic Association demanded only one school could win the cup and a third playoff had to be played immediately. That final game was played a week later on Thanksgiving Day. 

At the time of this game, the Connecticut Interscholastic Foot Ball Association was divided into two divisions of four high schools each, being North and South. The North was made up of Hartford, New Britain, Norwich, and Suffield. The South was made up of Bridgeport, Hopkins, Hillhouse, and King. The rules of the Association called for the best teams of each division to play each other at the end of the season for the championship and Yale Cup. It should be noted 1895 was the second year in a row Hartford and Bridgeport had battled for the championship...The two had faced off for the championship the year before in 1894. Bridgeport won it then 22 - 16.

EPILOGUE

So to connect the dots of this three game saga, let's reiterate....The same two teams on the poster had battled for same championship and trophy the year before, which Bridgeport won 22-16. Then in this 1895 battle, they played first on November 9th and tied 10 - 10...then played again on November 16th and tied again 4-4, which this poster represents...Then to break that tie...and at the demand of Yale Football Association, who sponsored Yale Cup, the two teams met on November 28th Thanksgiving Day, where Bridgeport won 16-12 and clinched the championship.

Take it from someone who has collected and studied antique sports broadsides 30 years...You can never say never in the antiques world as no one knows what's out there that has survived. But generally speaking a poster like this only comes around once! My aim is to bring you rare exceptional items you would never see if it weren't for this site, and this poster serves as an excellent example!