Art Ranney
![]() 1920 Akron championship team photo. Ranney is in the top row, furthest left. | |
Born: | Lima, Ohio, U.S. | August 14, 1894
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Died: | April 22, 1970 Volusia County, Florida, U.S. | (aged 81)
Career information | |
Position(s) | Owner |
College | Buchtel |
Career history | |
As owner | |
1919–1925 | Akron Pros |
1926 | Akron Indians |
Career highlights and awards | |
|
Arthur Fobare Ranney (February 17, 1889 – April 22, 1970) was a co-founder of the American Professional Football Association (later renamed the National Football League in 1922), as an owner of the Akron Pros, one of the league's charter teams. The Pros were renamed the Akron Indians in 1926.
Purchasing the Indians
In 1920, Ranney was a local businessman in Akron, Ohio, as well as an ex-football player for the University of Akron. After experiencing financial losses from 1912 to 1919, the Akron Indians, of the "Ohio League", was sold to Ranney and Frank Nied, a local cigar store owner. The 1919 Indians finished the season 5–5–0 and suffered financial losses, despite the presence of one of the country's best breakaway runners, Fritz Pollard. As the team's new owners, Ranney and Neid dropped the Indian moniker and adopted a new name, the "Akron Pros," hoping to inspire better results, or at least better attendance.
Founding of the NFL
Ranney and Neid attended the August 20, 1920, and September 17, 1920, meetings, at Ralph Hay's Hupmobile dealership, which established the NFL. The original copy of the minutes for the September 17, 1920, league meeting were recorded on a piece of Akron Pros stationary by Ranney. He was then elected secretary and treasurer of the league.
1920 Championship
The Pros won the very first APFA/NFL championship. In April 1921, the league voted to award the title and the
After a third-place finish in 1921, the Pros began to decline. In 1926, their name was changed back to the Indians, but that didn't help. Neid coached the team for six games that ended in a 1–3–2 record. Due to financial issues, Neid and Ranney suspended team operations in 1927 and surrendered the franchise the following year.
Race and the NFL
In the 1940s, Fritz Pollard allegeded that several of the owners attempted to raise the issue of a
Pollard also stated that Neid and Ranney befriended him and feared for his safety as an
Later life
Ranney later lived in Summit County, Ohio, where he was the county engineer.[1][2] He later retired to Florida, where he died in Volusia County on April 22, 1970.[3] He was buried in Daytona Beach, Florida.
References
- ^ Sandusky Register Star News, Saturday, January 31, 1948, Sandusky, Ohio, United States Of America
- ^ Family search
- ^ Family search
- Carroll, Bob (1982). "Akron Pros 1920" (PDF). Coffin Corner. 4 (12). Professional Football Researchers Association: 1–4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-11.
- "Once More, With Feeling" (PDF). AFPA Research. 4. Professional Football Researchers Association: 1–8.
- "Happy Birthday NFL?" (PDF). Coffin Corner. 2 (8). Professional Football Researchers Association: 1–4. 1980. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-11.
- "Twilight 1919" (PDF). Coffin Corner. Professional Football Researchers Association: 1–10. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-03-11.
- Ross, Charles (1997). Race and Sport. ISBN 978-1-57806-897-5.
- Carroll, John M. (1992). Fritz Pollard: Pioneer in Racial Advancement. ISBN 0-252-06799-1.
- New York Times News Service (1978). "Pollard Doesn't Look Like a Legend". The Virgin Islands Daily News: 15.
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