The Bears are ready to embark on another bruising NFL season. Every Chicago sports fan knows the stellar history of their team, but did you know of the connection between Bears founder George Halas and the Hawthorne Works, and how, but for a twist of fate, he nearly didn’t survive to become a sports legend?
George Halas was born in Chicago in 1895, the son of Bohemian immigrants. At Crane Tech High School, he played baseball and football. After graduation, he found a job in the Hawthorne Works payroll department. He attended the University of Illinois in the fall of 1914, but his lack of size (only 120 pounds) kept him from playing first-string football. He returned to work at Hawthorne in 1915 and set about adding weight to his small frame. In July, George was set to join his co-workers on the company excursion across Lake Michigan aboard the steamer Eastland. As he was about to leave the house that Saturday morning, his older brother Frank stopped him to jump on the scales for a quick weight check. This brief delay may well have saved George’s life. By the time he arrived downtown, the Eastland had overturned in the Chicago River, killing hundreds, and Halas was among the throng who witnessed the tragic aftermath. Early casualty lists mistakenly included George among the victims. Friends came to the Halas home to offer condolences, only to be met by George himself.
The young survivor made the most of his second chance at life. He finished college, played pro baseball briefly for the New York Yankees, and married a Hawthorne co-worker, Minnie Bushing. Finally, he combined his athletic ability with the keen money skills acquired in the Hawthorne payroll department to establish the Bears franchise and help found the National Football League. So, it’s not too much to say that the multi-billion dollar enterprise football has become carries a touch of the Hawthorne Works legacy.
Hawthorne Works Museum 