As I was writing yesterday’s post #184, I realized that I had not yet told the story of the Decatur Staleys.  I lived in Decatur, Illinois in 2007 when the Chicago Bears played the Indianapolis Colts in Superbowl XLI.   A friend of mine worked for Tate & Lyle, a British sugar company founded in 1859.  In 1988, they acquired Decatur’s A.E. Staley Manufacturing Company and took steps to become the sole manufacturer of SPLENDA.  In a tour of the plant, I was shown a framed document that established the formation of the modern-day Chicago Bears under “Papa Bear” George Halas.

George Halas was a member of the 1918 Illinois Big Ten football championship team, and while at Great Lakes Naval Training Station was named MVP of the 1919 Rose Bowl.  As a great athlete, he also played for the New York Yankees in 1919 before a hip injury ended his baseball career, but went on to star for the Hammond Pros. After a year with the Pros, he moved to Decatur to work for the A.E. Staley Company, then a starch manufacturer, as a sales representative.  The company’s general superintendent, George Chamberlain, made the hire and A.E. Staley’s direction.  Chicago-born Halas also played outfield for the company sponsored baseball team and served as player/coach for the Staleys football team.  He personally selected the orange and navy blue uniform colors of the team, based on his University of Illinois alma-mater.

In 1920, the American Professional Football Association was formed consisting of eleven teams:  The Canton Bulldogs, Rock Island Independents, Muncie Flyers, Decatur Staleys, Massillon Tigers, Chicago Cardinals, Hammond Pros, Dayton Triangles, Cleveland Indians, Akron Pros, and Rochester Jeffersons.   Jim Thorpe was elected president and a $100 franchise fee was established but apparently never collected. The league formation might have been influenced by a letter from George Halas, expressing the need for organization and scheduling. The first Staley’s game against the Moline Tractors was set for October 3, 1920.

The Staleys finished that inaugural 1920 season in 2nd place at 10-1-2, their only loss to the Chicago (Racine) Cardinals 7-6.  They had a chance to win the championship in a season-ending game against the Akron Pros, but time ran out in a scoreless tie.  George Halas had relocated this game to Cubs Park in Chicago, attracting a record 12,000 fans, compared to the 3,000 typically drawn at Staley Park, and this led to a move of the team to Chicago in 1921.  They were called the Chicago Staleys during that first year of transition, out of respect for their roots.

The Chicago Staleys played the majority of the 1921 season at Wrigley Field, and were renamed the Bears by Halas following a historic championship season at 9-1-1,  The Great Depression had its economic impact on the company, and Eugene Staley had to dig deep to salvage the company and his teams.  His offer of the team franchise to Halas that I saw displayed on the wall of Tate & Lyle, included $5,000 to help cover expenses that first year. Other sources state that Halas paid Staley $100 for the rights to the team, but it was probably Staley’s money anyway and just a formality.  I liken it to paying someone to haul away your gallery of original Monet paintings.  To this day, “Staley the Bear” continues to be the Bears Mascot, perhaps the only remaining connection to the Staley name.

My personal opinion is that A.E. Staley should probably be known as “Papa Bear.”  He died in 1940, and his family in Decatur has restored his mansion to include a museum.  The Decatur corporate location  was originally an abandoned starch plant that was purchased and retooled in 1909.  It produced the famous American brand, Staley Starch, that now belongs to a British sugar giant.   The city of Decatur should have taken steps to establish the Football Hall of Fame before Canton, Ohio stole the thunder.  All that’s left in Decatur is a welcome sign that says, “Original home of the Chicago Bears.”  It’s interesting to note that most early football and baseball franchises started in small communities, but eventually migrated to the big cities to attract larger crowds. However, the Football Hall of Fame is still in Canton, while the Baseball Hall of Fame is in Cooperstown. I applaud these small towns for bucking the trend.   Go Bears!