George Jewett
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George Henry Jewett II (April 1870 – August 12, 1908) was an American athlete who became the first
African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...
football player at both the
University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
and
Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...
, and in the
Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
. He played for the Michigan Wolverines as a fullback, halfback, and field goal kicker in 1890 and 1892 and was considered one of Michigan's greatest players in the pre-
Fielding H. Yost Fielding Harris Yost (; April 30, 1871 – August 20, 1946) was an American football player, coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at: Ohio Wesleyan University, the University of Nebraska, the University ...
era.


Early years

Jewett grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the son of a successful
blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, gr ...
. At the time of the 1870 United States Census, he was listed as being one month old.1870 US Census; Census Place: Ann Arbor Ward 6, Washtenaw, Michigan; Roll: M593_707; Page: 108A; Image: 220; Family History Library Film: 552206. His father was George Jewett, a blacksmith born in Kentucky in approximately 1845, and his mother was Letty Jewett, born in Michigan to parents from Missouri in approximately 1848. He had an older sister, Mary, born in approximately 1868. The family was residing in Ann Arbor at the time of both the 1870 and 1880 Censuses.1880 Census; Census Place: Ann Arbor, Washtenaw, Michigan; Roll: 608; Family History Film: 1254608; Page: 91C; Enumeration District: 225; Image: 0487. Jewett attended
Ann Arbor High School Pioneer High School is a public school in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1856, the school was previously called the Union School and Ann Arbor High School. In 2010, Pioneer was listed as a "Silver Medal School" by the '' U.S. News & World R ...
where he was the class
valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the highest-performing student of a graduating class of an academic institution. The valedictorian is commonly determined by a numerical formula, generally an academic institution's grade point average (GPA ...
in 1889. In high school, he was the captain of the debate, football and baseball teams. He was also the fastest sprinter in the Midwest, having won the
Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...
100-yard dash 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length&nb ...
competition, and was fluent in German, Italian and French.


College football


University of Michigan

Jewett attended the
University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
from 1890 to 1893, where he became the first African American in the school's history to
letter Letter, letters, or literature may refer to: Characters typeface * Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech; any of the symbols of an alphabet. * Letterform, the graphic form of a letter of the alphabe ...
in football. In 1890, Jewett was the starting fullback for the Michigan team that went 4-1 and outscored opponents 129-36. In 1892, Jewett was the starting halfback on a Michigan team that beat
Amos Alonzo Stagg Amos Alonzo Stagg (August 16, 1862 – March 17, 1965) was an American athlete and college coach in multiple sports, primarily American football. He served as the head football coach at the International YMCA Training School (now called Springfiel ...
's
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...
team, went 7-5 and scored 298 points. At Michigan, he was the leading rusher, scorer and kicker. Jewett was regarded as "one of the greatest stars" in Michigan football in the pre-
Fielding H. Yost Fielding Harris Yost (; April 30, 1871 – August 20, 1946) was an American football player, coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at: Ohio Wesleyan University, the University of Nebraska, the University ...
era. In addition to playing as fullback and halfback, Jewett was also the team's field goal kicker and has been called "the Afro-American phenomenon of the University of Michigan." Oberlin College coach John Heisman described Jewett as a "superior athlete," and
University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...
coach
Amos Alonzo Stagg Amos Alonzo Stagg (August 16, 1862 – March 17, 1965) was an American athlete and college coach in multiple sports, primarily American football. He served as the head football coach at the International YMCA Training School (now called Springfiel ...
referred to him as "a very tough opponent."


Oberlin College game against John Heisman

In 1892, Jewett played a central role in a memorable game against an Oberlin College team coached by John Heisman. Michigan met Oberlin at Ann Arbor in November 1892. Jewett scored four touchdowns in the game, including an unopposed 45-yard touchdown run after Oberlin thought time had been called. After Oberlin went ahead, 12-6, Jewett scored his second touchdown on a run from 25 yards out, but his kick failed, so the Wolverines trailed 12-10. Oberlin scored again to make it 18-10. A few minutes later, Jewett ran to "within a foot of the goal line," and the umpire (a former Michigan player) ruled that Jewett had scored a touchdown. Jewett completed the kick after touchdown and the score was 18-16. Jewett also made a touchdown-saving tackle in the Oberlin game, catching up with Charles Savage from behind at the five yard line after a 90-yard run. After Oberlin scored to go ahead 24-22, the referee (an Oberlin player acting as referee in the second half) announced that time had run out and called the game. The umpire (a Michigan man) ruled that four minutes remained on the game clock owing to timeouts that Oberlin's timekeeper had not recorded. As the Oberlin team left the field claiming victory, Michigan lined up, snapped the ball, and Jewett walked the ball across the goal line for Michigan's fifth touchdown. The next day, the ''
Michigan Daily ''The Michigan Daily'' is the weekly student newspaper of the University of Michigan. Its first edition was published on September 29, 1890. The newspaper is financially and editorially independent of the University's administration and other st ...
'' reported: "Oberlin compromised herself by leaving the field before time was up.... Referee Ensworth, an Oberlin substitute, lost all tab of time, and called the game at 14 minutes to 5, while the captain of each team had agreed to play until 10 minutes of that hour." Both schools still record the game as a victory.


Northwestern University

Jewett studied medicine at Michigan, but reportedly left abruptly after a run-in with the dean of medicine. He transferred to
Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...
in 1893 where he received his medical degree and also became the first African American to play for the
Northwestern Wildcats football The Northwestern Wildcats football team represents Northwestern University as an NCAA Division I college football team and member of the Big Ten Conference based near Chicago in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern began playi ...
team. Jewett was not only the first African-American football player at both Michigan and Northwestern, he was also the first African-American athlete to letter in football for any of the schools that formed the
Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
. After breaking the barrier at Michigan in 1890, Jewett was followed in the Big Ten programs by Fred Patterson at
Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...
, Preston Eagleson at
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...
, and then Jewett again at Northwestern. Jewett missed being the first African American in college football by one year. In 1889, William Henry Lewis and William Tecumseh Sherman Jackson played for Amherst. Eight years before Jewett's debut for the Michigan football team,
Moses Fleetwood Walker Moses Fleetwood Walker (October 7, 1856 – May 11, 1924) was an American professional baseball catcher who, historically, was credited with being the first black man to play in Major League Baseball (MLB). A native of Mount Pleasant, Ohio, an ...
became the first African American to letter for Michigan, doing so on the
baseball team Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding te ...
.


Later years and family

Jewett went on to practice medicine in the
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
area. Jewett returned to Ann Arbor in 1899. At the time of the 1900 Census, he was living in Ann Arbor with his parent. He listed his occupation at that time as janitor, while his sister Mary was a music teacher, and his father continued to be employed as a blacksmith. Jewett later opened a business in Ann Arbor called The Valet, referred to in some sources as a dry cleaning shop and in others as a cleaning and pressing shop. Jewett's shop was located on State Street, between th
Congregational Church
an
Newberry Hall
Jewett delivered finished work by horse and carriage. Jewett was married on November 4, 1901, to Lillian Zebbs. They had two children, George H. Jewett (1902–1977) and Richard Jewett (born 1908). Jewett died suddenly in 1908 at the age of 38, leaving his wife, Lillian, and two sons; his son Richard was eight days old when his father died. Richard was the father of Coleman Jewett, well known Ann Arbor athlete, educator and craftsman, and grandfather of Michael Jewett, the host of 89.1 Jazz heard on weekday afternoons on
WEMU WEMU (89.1 MHz) is a public radio station owned by Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan. On weekdays, it carries NPR News and Information shows in morning and afternoon drive time, with jazz programs heard the rest of the day. On ...
radio. Jewett is buried at Forest Hill Cemetery in Ann Arbor. He was inducted into the Pioneer High School Hall of Fame in March 2004.


Legacy

Since 2021, the winner of the Michigan–Northwestern rivalry game receives the
George Jewett Trophy The George Jewett Trophy is an American college football rivalry trophy that was established in 2021 to be awarded to the winner of the Michigan– Northwestern football game. History Establishment of trophy In 2021, the two universities annou ...
, the first FBS rivalry trophy named after an African-American player.


References


Further reading

*
Arthur Ashe Arthur Robert Ashe Jr. (July 10, 1943 – February 6, 1993) was an American professional tennis player who won three Grand Slam singles titles. He started to play tennis at six years old. He was the first black player selected to the Un ...
, Jr., ''A Hard Road to Glory—Football: The African American Athlete in Football'' (New York: Amistad Press, 1993), , 71–72. * Charles H. Martin, "The Color Line in Midwestern College Sports, 1890–1960," ''Indiana Magazine of History'' 48 (June 2002), pp. 88–92. *
Manning Marable William Manning Marable (May 13, 1950 – April 1, 2011) was an American professor of public affairs, history and African-American Studies at Columbia University.Grimes, William"Manning Marable, Historian and Social Critic, Dies at 60" ''The Ne ...
, Review of ''Hail to the Victors! Black Athletes at the University of Michigan'', ''The Journal of Negro History'', Vol. 60, No. 4 (October 1975), pp. 552–556 * John R. Behee, ''Hail to the Victors'' (J & J Books, Incorporated: March 1974), , 140pp. * Rashid Faisal, "Touchdown For Equality." ''Michigan History'', Jan/Feb 2020, pp. 28–32. Lansing, Michigan:
Historical Society of Michigan The Historical Society of Michigan (HSM) is the official historical society of the State of Michigan. It was founded in 1828 by Territorial Governor Lewis Cass. References Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great La ...
. Retrieve
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Jewett, George 1870 births 1908 deaths 19th-century players of American football American football fullbacks American football halfbacks Michigan Wolverines football players Northwestern Wildcats football players Players of American football from Ann Arbor, Michigan African-American players of American football 20th-century African-American people