Throwback Thursday

To celebrate this beautiful season when two of America’s favorite traditions are in full swing, we are featuring two Throwback Thursday pictures.

The first is of the Arlington High School Baseball team circa 1910.

Though they are not pictured, Arlington High School produced some very talented players.

Dick Bokelmann, born in 1926, was a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1951-1953.

Fritz Peterson played for the New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, and the Texas Rangers from 1966-1976. His best year was in 1970 when he went 20-11 with the Yankees and pitched in the All-Star game.

Paul Splittorff, also a starting pitcher, played for the Kansas City Royals from 1970-1984. I bet he’d love to see their current play-off run.

George Vukovich was an outfielder who played for the Philadelphia Philllies and the Cleveland Indians from 1980-1985.

The second photo is of the Arlington High School football team from 1938. There a quite a few notable alumni from this program as well.

Doug Betters was a defense end for the Miami Dolphins from 1978-1987. This sixth round draft pick helped the Dolphins make it to the Super Bowl in 1983 & 1985. Unfortunately, they lost both times, but Betters was named the “NFL Defensive Player of the Year” in 1983.

George Bork is another notable graduate of the Arlington High School Football program. Though he never made it to the NFL, he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame for 1963 season at Northern Illinois University when he became the first college quarterback, at any level, to throw for 3,000 yards in one season.

Photographs like this are great to share the strong heritage that is present in Arlington Heights. Reproductions of these photos, as well as many more, are available at the Museum’s Heritage Gallery store.