Charles Francis Donnelly (February 4, 1885 – May 1967) was an American educator,

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

er, and

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 ...

and golf coach. He served as the head football coach at Maryland Agricultural College—now known as the

University of Maryland, College Park The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD i ...

—in 1911 and

Worcester Polytechnic Institute The Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) is a Private university, private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1865, WPI was one of the United States' first engineering and technology universities and now h ...

in 1913. Donnelly was also the head golf coach at the

College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by educators Benedict Joseph Fenwick and Thomas F. Mulledy in 1843 under the auspices of the Society of Jesus. ...

from 1934 to 1948.

Life and career

A native of

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Massachusetts, second-most populous city in the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the list of United States cities by population, 113th most populous city in the United States. Named after Worcester ...

, Charley was the third child of John and Mary Ellen (Corcoran) Donnelly and the younger brother of James C. Donnelly, a standout football player and coach. His youngest brother, Ralph E. Donnelly, was also a notable football player and war hero. He attended Worcester High School, where he played on a championship football team. He attended the

, and played as a substitute

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

on the

football team A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an All-st ...

in 1907. After college, he began selling insurance and had an office out of 311 Main Street. In 1910, he moved to Washington, D.C., and he coached Eastern High School on

Capitol Hill Capitol Hill is a neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., neighborhood in Washington, D.C., located in both the Northeast, Washington, D.C., Northeast and Southeast, Washington, D.C., Southeast quadrants. It is bounded by 14th Street SE & NE, F S ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, and '' The Washington Herald'' considered that team "one of the best football elevens in the history of the institution". Donnelly also coached the Eastern High baseball team to success.Donnelly, Eastern High Coach, Signed by Maryland Aggies: Will Be Full-fledged Member of the Faculty and Coach Baseball Nine, Also Football Eleven.
''The Washington Herald'', June 26, 1911. In June 1911, while he worked as a clerk for the

Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

,Morris Allison Bealle, ''King of American Football: The Story of Football at Maryland Agricultural College, Maryland State College and the University of Maryland: 1890–1952'', p. 66, Columbia Publishing Co., Washington, D.C., 1952. Maryland Agricultural College—now known as the

—hired him as an assistant English instructor and head coach for its

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

and

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 beginning when a player on the fielding team, called ...

s. Donnelly resigned as coach midseason after the football team compiled a 2–4–2 record, including an embarrassing 14–0 loss to Central High School. Maryland turned to alumnus

Curley Byrd Harry Clifton "Curley" Byrd (February 12, 1889 – October 2, 1970) was an American university administrator, educator, athlete, coach, and politician. Byrd began a long association with the University of Maryland as an undergraduate in 1905, and ...

, high school coach at Western High School, as his replacement. He returned to Worcester in 1912 and by 1917, he was listed as the assistant state actuary. He soon was selling insurance again and eventually he became a partner in the local agency Sullivan, Garrity & Donnelly. Charles married Ethel (Estes) Donnelly and they had no children. In 1913, he returned to coaching football for one season when he was head coach at

. During the 1940s, Charles was the head of the License Commission for the City of Worcester. At the end of his life he lived at the apartment on 46 Elm Street in Worcester. He died on May 1, 1967, at age 82. Donnelly was an accomplished golfer. On August 1, 1926, he set records for nine and 18 holes at the

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

Country Club. In 1927, he won the Worcester Municipal golf championship. In 1932, he finished second in the Northeastern District

Knights of Columbus The Knights of Columbus (K of C) is a global Catholic Church, Catholic Fraternal and service organizations, fraternal service order founded by Michael J. McGivney, Blessed Michael J. McGivney. Membership is limited to practicing Catholic men. ...

golf tournament in

Longmeadow, Massachusetts Longmeadow is a town in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 15,853 at the 2020 census. History Longmeadow was first settled in 1644, and officially incorporated October 17, 1783. The town was originally farmland wit ...

. Donnelly served as the coach of the golf team at his alma mater, Holy Cross, between at least 1934 and 1948. While there, he coached future professional golfers Paul Harney and Willie Turnesa. In 1943, Donnelly captured the

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

senior golf championship at Newtonville in an 18-hole playoff with a score of 79 strokes. From 1951 to 1954, Donnelly was the president of the New England Senior Golfers' Association.Past President
, New England Senior Golfers' Association, Inc., retrieved October 11, 2011.

Head coaching record

College football

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Donnelly, Charley 1885 births 1967 deaths American football quarterbacks Holy Cross Crusaders football players Maryland Terrapins football coaches WPI Engineers football coaches College golf coaches in the United States High school football coaches in Washington, D.C. Coaches of American football from Massachusetts Players of American football from Worcester, Massachusetts College of the Holy Cross alumni