A Guide to the Buckeyes Athletic Association (San Antonio, Tex.) Records, 1920-1996

Historical Note

Formed on 1920 September 28 by eight boys living in the Beacon Hill neighborhood of San Antonio, Texas, the Buckeyes Athletic Association provided organized activities for local youth for the next fifteen years. Association with the group remained an important bond for former members, who remained in contact throughout their lives.

The primary organizer of the Association was Herbert C. “Unc” Hammons, then fourteen years old. Its stated purpose was “to encourage and sponsor athletic activities; to insure friendship and fraternalism among the members; to promote cooperation between the parents and the members.” Collecting dues and holding regular meetings, the Buckeyes organized teams and competed in football, basketball, baseball, and track against teams from other neighborhoods and local schools. The teams enjoyed several successful years, capturing the San Antonio Junior football championship on several occasions.

Membership grew to over thirty boys and the group collected money to pay for athletic equipment, awards, and charitable contributions.

Hammons continued his association with the Buckeyes, serving as president and coach throughout its active years. Many team members continued their athletic activities at nearby Main Avenue High School.

The Buckeyes disbanded as a youth organization in 1935, but former members remained in contact and began to meet again in the 1970s. Dues and contributions were once again collected, and the first reunion of the group was held in 1975, drawing about one hundred people, including thirty-six of over eighty former members. Another successful reunion was held the following year, and members remained active in ensuing years, meeting and making charitable donations in memory of deceased members and their families. Upon the 75th anniversary of its founding, the remaining Buckeyes decided to cease organized activities and donate their remaining funds to charity.

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Scope and Content Note

Correspondence, financial records, printed material, photographs, and artifacts are part of the Buckeyes Athletic Association Records, representing its activities as a youth organization in the 1920s and 1930s and gatherings of former members in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

No restrictions. The collection is open for research.

Usage Restrictions

Please be advised that the library does not hold the copyright to most of the material in its archival collections. It is the responsibility of the researcher to secure those rights when needed. Permission to reproduce does not constitute permission to publish. The researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming to the laws of copyright, literary property rights, and libel.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Buckeyes Athletic Association (San Antonio, Tex.) Records, 1920-1996, Col 8742, Daughters of the Republic of Texas Library, San Antonio, Texas.

Acquisition Information

Gift of Ferdinand F. Arredondo, secretary of the Buckeyes Athletic Association, 1996 March.

Processing Information

Processed by Warren Stricker, 1997 April.

Finding aid edited and encoded by Caitlin Donnelly, 2010 October.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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