There’s no video of the great Jim Thorpe playing football in a snowstorm (wouldn’t that be something?) but thanks to a rare image, we do get a glimpse of late-season weather during Thorpe’s time with the Canton Bulldogs nearly 98 years ago.
The RMY Auctions Photo of the Day captures a reunion of sorts for a trio of former Carlisle football stars who were participating in the fledgling sport of professional football.
Thorpe is flanked by Pete Calac and Joe Guyon, his Canton backfield mates as they pose in a driving snowstorm late in the 1919 season.
The 4×5” silver gelatin, double weight image has never been sold at auction before and is believed to be the only original known in the hobby. The online auction catalog calls it “one of the top images of early professional football that exists.”
Led by Thorpe, Canton outscored its opponents 47-0 after a mid-season tie with the Hammond Pros that served as the only blemish on an undefeated 1919 season. In their final year of play in the Ohio League before joining what would eventually become the NFL, Thorpe’s Bulldogs captured their third league championship in four years.
The photo is among the top items in the auction, which runs through July 22 at RMYAuctions.com.
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