Walter M. Clago (June 28, 1899 – January 16, 1955) was an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

end End, END, Ending, or ENDS may refer to: End Mathematics *End (category theory) * End (topology) * End (graph theory) * End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) * End (endomorphism) Sports and games *End (gridiron football) *End, a division ...

who played two seasons in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) with the

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

(

1921 Events January * January 2 ** The Association football club Cruzeiro Esporte Clube, from Belo Horizonte, is founded as the multi-sports club Palestra Italia by Italian expatriates in First Brazilian Republic, Brazil. ** The Spanish lin ...

) and

Rock Island Independents The Rock Island Independents were a professional American football team, based in Rock Island, Illinois, from 1907 to 1926. The Independents were a founding National Football League franchise. They hosted what has been retrospectively designated ...

(

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...

). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

University of Detroit The University of Detroit Mercy is a private Catholic university in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is sponsored by both the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and the Sisters of Mercy. The university was founded in 1877 and is the largest Catho ...

Titans football team in

1919 Events January * January 1 ** The Czechoslovak Legions occupy much of the self-proclaimed "free city" of Pressburg (later Bratislava), enforcing its incorporation into the new republic of Czechoslovakia. ** HMY ''Iolaire'' sinks off th ...

and also served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

(1916–1919),

Detroit Police Department The Detroit Police Department (DPD) is the primary law enforcement agency of the city of Detroit, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1865, it has nearly 2,630 officers, making it the largest law enforcement organization in the state. In additio ...

(1920–1945), and

Pima County Sheriff's Department The Pima County Sheriff's Department (PCSD) is an American law enforcement agency that serves the unincorporated areas of Pima County, Arizona. It serves the seventh largest county in the nation. It operates six district offices and three small ...

(1951–1955).

Early years

Clago was born in

Gibraltar, Michigan Gibraltar is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 4,997 at the 2020 census. Gibraltar is a southern city of Metro Detroit and is about south of the city of Detroit. The city is bordered by the Detroit Rive ...

, in 1899. His parents were Bezallet Burton "Zalie" Clago and Catherine (Manausan) Clago. He attended

Cass Technical High School Cass Technical High School (simply referred to as Cass Tech) is a four-year Public magnet high school in Midtown Detroit, Michigan, United States. from the University Cultural Center Association, retrieved June 9, 1001 It was established in 19 ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. Clago enlisted in the

on June 1, 1916, shortly before his 17th birthday.Application for Headstone or Marker for Walter M. Clago, dated Jan. 24, 1955. Ancestry.com. U.S., Headstone Applications for Military Veterans, 1925-1963 atabase on-line He served on the Mexican border prior to the United States entry into

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. When the United States entered the war, Clago was sent to France where he was injured, received the Purple Heart, and reached the rank of sergeant. He was discharged from the military on June 1, 1919. After his discharge from the Army, Clago enrolled at the

and became a star football player in 1919.

Professional football

In August 1920, Clago joined the

. While serving with the police department, he also played two seasons of professional football in the early years of the NFL. He appeared in seven games as a left end for the 1921 Detroit Tigers and seven games as a right end for the 1922 Rock Island Independents.

Policing career

After his football career ended, Clago remained with the Detroit Police Department until 1945. He was commander of the department's motor division when he retired. After retiring from the Detroit Police Department, Clago moved to

Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

, where he had served in the Army prior to World War I. In 1951, he joined the

as a night captain. He lived in the Tucson mountains and was promoted to undersheriff in June 1953.

Family and death

Clago was married twice. He married Gertrude Richwine in April 1920. They had a daughter (Joyce Lee) and two sons (Laurence and Walter). Gertrude died in September 1953, and Clago married his second wife, Phyllis, in December 1953. In January 1955, Clago died at age 55 from a cerebral hemorrhage at a Phoenix hospital.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clago, Walt 1899 births 1955 deaths Players of American football from Detroit American football ends Cass Technical High School alumni Detroit Titans football players Detroit Tigers (NFL) players Rock Island Independents players People from Wayne County, Michigan Detroit Police Department officers United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army non-commissioned officers