Percy Haughton may or may not have invented the mousetrap, but he surely helped refine and popularize it. Here's what Percy said about the mousetrap, as quoted in (shameless plug alert!) my book "The Coach Who Strangled the Bulldog: How Harvard's Percy Haughton Beat Yale and Reinvented Football":
"Grantland Rice recalled that before one Yale game, he mentioned that the Elis had a big, hard-charging line. 'I only wish they were twice as fast,' Haughton responded. 'We'll let them through and then cut them down.'"
Great Harvard question! I wrote about the origins of the rat trap, mousetrap, or trap play in Hut! Hut! Hike: "Some argue that Pop Warner developed trap blocking or that it originated with Yale's "tackles back" formation. However, the evidence points to Harvard player and coach Percy Haughton, who learned a version of the mousetrap as a player under Guy Ayrault at Groton School in the early 1890s. Haughton popularized trap blocking during his time as Harvard's coach from 1908 to 1916."
This isn’t right. Jarvis Field was very close to Harvard Yard, on the site of what is now Langdell Hall, basically the law school area. So it was right on the classic campus, and some distance from Soldiers Field. Love your stuff!
There was an article published in the last year saying the law school now occupies the old Jarvis Field, but all the older sources point to the Kennedy school area. Whichever location it was, it had tennis courts, since there are tons of old news article referencing the Jarvis Field tennis courts.
An old campus map showed Jarvis Field at the corner of Everett and Oxford Streets. Jarvis Street (no longer existing) separated it from Holmes Field to the south.
The building on the right of the old photos still exists. It’s the Harvard Natural History Museum. Here are two links which will prove my case. From 1935, the Jarvis Field tennis courts.
The links don't take me to a specific map so I'm not sure which map you are pointing to. Per James below, the intersections of Everett and Oxford are nowhere near the Kennedy School. So, there are Harvard athletics sites that have it wrong as well.
Jarvis Field came up in my history of football fields when it was mentioned that the field in 1881 could completely fit within in the Jarvis Field track. However, for reasons not known to me Harvard didn't use Jarvis Field in 1881, instead using Holmes Field and Boston Baseball Grounds (Wikipedia).
Percy Haughton may or may not have invented the mousetrap, but he surely helped refine and popularize it. Here's what Percy said about the mousetrap, as quoted in (shameless plug alert!) my book "The Coach Who Strangled the Bulldog: How Harvard's Percy Haughton Beat Yale and Reinvented Football":
"Grantland Rice recalled that before one Yale game, he mentioned that the Elis had a big, hard-charging line. 'I only wish they were twice as fast,' Haughton responded. 'We'll let them through and then cut them down.'"
I’d ask what it was like seeing Percy Haughton engineer the very first trap play, appropriately called the “mouse trap.”
Great Harvard question! I wrote about the origins of the rat trap, mousetrap, or trap play in Hut! Hut! Hike: "Some argue that Pop Warner developed trap blocking or that it originated with Yale's "tackles back" formation. However, the evidence points to Harvard player and coach Percy Haughton, who learned a version of the mousetrap as a player under Guy Ayrault at Groton School in the early 1890s. Haughton popularized trap blocking during his time as Harvard's coach from 1908 to 1916."
What is the building in the background of the 1874 photo?
It is a Natural History Museum. It still stands and is part of the reason commenters knew I was wrong about original location I described.
This isn’t right. Jarvis Field was very close to Harvard Yard, on the site of what is now Langdell Hall, basically the law school area. So it was right on the classic campus, and some distance from Soldiers Field. Love your stuff!
There was an article published in the last year saying the law school now occupies the old Jarvis Field, but all the older sources point to the Kennedy school area. Whichever location it was, it had tennis courts, since there are tons of old news article referencing the Jarvis Field tennis courts.
An old campus map showed Jarvis Field at the corner of Everett and Oxford Streets. Jarvis Street (no longer existing) separated it from Holmes Field to the south.
This is right.
The building on the right of the old photos still exists. It’s the Harvard Natural History Museum. Here are two links which will prove my case. From 1935, the Jarvis Field tennis courts.
https://www.google.com/search?q=harvard+map+1914&rlz=1C9BKJA_enUS1092US1092&oq=harvard+map+1914&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRigATIHCAIQIRigATIHCAMQIRigATIHCAQQIRigATIHCAUQIRigATIHCAYQIRifBdIBCDUzNjNqMGo0qAITsAIB4gMEGAEgX_EFKpEWOjqR7sI&hl=en-US&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#imgrc=VdW_Ut1uewtN4M&imgdii=_bYN9iwqGb3E1M
https://www.google.com/search?q=harvard+map+1914&rlz=1C9BKJA_enUS1092US1092&oq=harvard+map+1914&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRigATIHCAIQIRigATIHCAMQIRigATIHCAQQIRigATIHCAUQIRigATIHCAYQIRifBdIBCDUzNjNqMGo0qAITsAIB4gMEGAEgX_EFKpEWOjqR7sI&hl=en-US&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#vhid=r1yAHRIyTM9wvM&vssid=_TXgJaM3cHZnCkPIPk47diAY_27
The anniversary of the McGill game was just last year.
Yikes, wish I could send a photo. But you can Google.
The links don't take me to a specific map so I'm not sure which map you are pointing to. Per James below, the intersections of Everett and Oxford are nowhere near the Kennedy School. So, there are Harvard athletics sites that have it wrong as well.
Can I send you two pics via email? Address?
Check your DM.
Jarvis Field came up in my history of football fields when it was mentioned that the field in 1881 could completely fit within in the Jarvis Field track. However, for reasons not known to me Harvard didn't use Jarvis Field in 1881, instead using Holmes Field and Boston Baseball Grounds (Wikipedia).