Joe Smith

Joe Smith
Position:Team Manager
Height: ' '' Weight:
Born: 2/6/1889, in Rock Island, IL, USA
College: Notre Dame & University of Michigan

RII: 1912 Independents Manager

Was elected manager of the 1912 Independents. Dick Liitt served as the coach under Smith, the team went 8-0 while scoring 212 point and giving up 0.

Joe played 4 years of high school football in Rock Island and was the captain of the 1908 state champion team. He later attended both Notre Dame and the University of Michigan.

After college he held several newspaper advertising positions. Prior to joining the service in 1917 he was a manager for the Greenville Dry Goods company in Texas.

Joe joined the service in the spring on 1917 and received his training at Camp Dodge near Des Moines. He was a member of the Company B, Three Hundred and Thirteenth Field Signal Corps. He was quickly promoted to Corporal and then to Sergeant.

Joe was tragically killed in an auto accident at Camp Dodge. He passed away on December 1st (1917) just a few days after the accident. He was very popular amongst the soldiers. 280 men marched his casket from the funeral home to the train station for his journey back to Rock Island. Shots were fired and taps sounded as the train departed the station.

Information found in the Rock Island Argus - December 3rd 1917

Rock Island Argus - December 3rd, 1917

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