|
The Rock Island Independents website was created by and is maintained by Simon Herrera.
The idea for the website came about when I heard that the Quad Cities used to have a NFL team. In my initial research I decided to take a look at Ebay and there happened to be an old photograph of a 1920's football team for sale. The owner of the photo was unsure of what team it was but he thought it was from Iowa. After taking a closer look I was able to recognize Jim Thorpe and Duke Slater.
I looked all over the internet and with the help of the Professional Football Researchers Association and specifically Bob Carroll I was able to identify the photo as the 1924 Rock Island Independents. Soon after, I discovered that the Independents were not only part of the NFL, but a founding member, I needed to know more.
Next I contacted many individuals at the PFRA and they were willing to send me all of their research on the team. I then took several trips to the library and made hundreds of copies of articles on the team and soon I had enough information to start building the website.
My view from the start was this... These men did something that nobody had written a script for and because of them (and others), the NFL has become what it is today. The men on this team sacrificed everything they had for the game they loved and their story was all but forgotten, it had to be told.
If you have any thoughts about the site or have any items or stories to contribute, please contact me now so I can share the information on the site.
Below - Simon in 2011 on a trip to Douglas Park - Home of the Rock Island Independents |
|