Time Machine: Kingston hosted a series of pro football games

CEDAR RAPIDS - A group of businessmen formed the West Side Civic Club in May 1959 as a way to promote Cedar Rapids' west side.

The club applied to the Iowa secretary of state for a charter as a corporation and went from a pre-charter membership of 125 to over 500 members by September.

In December, the club hatched an idea for a Canadian football exhibition at Kingston Stadium, a Cedar Rapids Community School District facility. The proposal was presented to the school board for approval. Even though a date had not been chosen, the use of the stadium - for a $500 fee and another $200 to cover costs - was authorized. It was understood that a third of the game's profits would be turned over to Cedar Rapids schools.

Nearly a dozen former Hawkeyes were playing in the Canadian pro football league in 1960 when the West Side Civic Club signed the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the British Columbia Lions of Vancouver to play July 29 at Kingston Stadium. It was Iowa's first chance to see the 12-man Canadian game.

The game pitted two former Iowa quarterbacks against each other. Winnipeg's Kenny Ploen led Iowa to the Big Ten title in 1956 and a Rose Bowl win. Vancouver's Randy Duncan led the Hawkeyes to another title and Rose Bowl win two years later.

Also playing for Winnipeg were Hawkeyes Frank Gilliam, all-Big Ten end in 1956; Frank Rigney, tackle in 1957; and Curt Merz, All-American end in 1958. Vancouver's roster included Willie Fleming, all-Big Ten halfback in 1958; Hugh Drake, star guard on two Rose Bowl teams; Mitch Ogiego, Duncan's understudy in 1958; and three members of the 1959 team, halfback Bob Jeter, fullback Don Horn and end Don Norton.

Mike Swords, chairman of the civic club's sports committee, and Craig Schwab took tape measures out to Kingston. They counted 29 rows in the east and west stands and exactly 15,286 seats. A dozen or so were too close to the pressbox to provide a clear view of the field. Swords and co-chairman Tom Condon made arrangements with Boy Scout troops to stencil numbers on the seats so they could be reserved when tickets went on sale.

The Canadian teams were guaranteed a total of $37,500. With the addition of taxes and other game expenses, the civic club needed a sellout to cover all the costs.

By Jan. 22, a third of the tickets had been sold, with orders for nearly 700 more arriving in the mail. The civic club also sold advance copies of the game's program so fans could read up on Canadian football rules.

When the teams took the field July 29, 12,000 seats had been sold. A huge searchlight shone on the U.S. and Canadian flags as they were raised during the playing of both national anthems. Cheerleaders from Washington and Jefferson high schools waved their poms in front of fans, and the Cedar Rapids Drum and Bugle Corps performed at half-time. The game, in which British Columbia lost to Winnipeg, 13-7, was attended by Gov. Herschel Loveless and the premiers of British Columbia and Manitoba.

'A number of local organizations have thought about promoting this type of sports event for Cedar Rapids, but the West Side was the first group to make the grade last year when it brought the Canadian pro game here,” wrote Gazette sports editor Gus Schrader in June 1961. 'Now they have the Bears and the new Minnesota Vikings lined up for Sept. 2, and it is an exciting prospect.”

The official contract for the NFL preseason game was signed July 19 by representatives of the two NFL teams, West Side Civic Club sports committee chairman Ben Trickey and club chairman Tom Condon.

The Bears, owned and coached by George Halas, had won seven world championships. The Vikings, newest member of the 14-team NFL, had yet to play an official NFL season game. The Kingston game was the fifth in a six-game preseason schedule. Minnesota General Manager Bert Rose expected many Twin Cities fans to attend the Kingston game. The Vikings coach that year was Norm VanBrocklin, who led the Philadelphia Eagles to the NFL championship the previous year. Bill Lapham, former Iowa center, also moved from the Eagles to the Vikings. Davis Swenson was drafted from Luther College by the Vikings, and a rookie quarterback named Francis Tarkenton shared playing time with George Shaw in the exhibition game.

In 1962, the West Side Civic Club had an oral agreement with the Vikings to return for another exhibition game, but the team asked to be released to play in Atlanta. A Philadelphia Eagles-Chicago Bears contest then was scheduled for Aug. 18. Both teams had players unable to take the field, including John Nocera, the only Iowa player to start in both Hawkeye Rose Bowl games, who was sick.

The Eagles won 28-14 in front of a crowd of 11,800, slightly short of the draw of the previous two years.

'This was by far the most electrifying of the three and there were many spectacular plays,” reported The Gazette. In October, Eagles general manager Vince McNally sent Mike Swords the autographed game ball along with a note that his club was delighted with the facilities and treatment in Cedar Rapids. The Bears and Eagles each took home checks for $16,500.

The last game of the pro series in 1963 almost didn't happen. The West Side Civic Club didn't find any of the possibilities appealing. Then, in mid-July, KCRG's Bob Brooks came across an Associated Press story. The NFL champion Green Bay Packers and Washington Redskins pulled out of an exhibition game in Columbus, Ga., when they were asked to approve a segregated seating plan. When West Side Civic Club President Martin Wiley was informed, he and the sports committee set gears in motion. They called Packers Coach Vince Lombardi. The final preseason game for both teams was set for Sept. 7.

On a perfect September evening, a crowd of 13,500, the largest in the Kingston pro football series, watched as the Packers downed Washington 28-17.