Pete Overfield
Encyclopedia
Peter Delome "Pete" Overfield (1875 - c. 1960s) was an All-American and professional football player, federal judge and rancher. Overfield played center for the University of Pennsylvania
and was a first-team All-American in 1898 and 1899. He served as a federal district judge in Alaska from 1909-1917. In 1917, he moved to Casa Grande, Arizona
where he lived for the remainder of his life, owning a large ranching operation.
After graduating from Penn, Overfield remained active in football. He was a football coach for a time at Multnomah College
and also remained active as a professional football player. Overfield played a total of nine years of college and professional football without ever suffering an injury. In 1901, Overfield played on the famed 1901 Homestead Library & Athletic Club football team
in Pittsburgh. The 1901 Homestead team consisted of former college football All-Americans, including Overfield, Bemus Pierce
(Carlisle) and Arthur Poe
(Princeton). The team beat Lafayette 66-0 in two ten-minute halves. On November 23, 1901, the Homestead Library team featuring Overfield defeated the Blondy Wallace
's Philadelphia professionals for the professional football championship of the United States. The game was played at the Philadelphia park, and Homestead won by a score of 18 to 0. The New York Times reported on the game as follows:
In 1903, Overfield played in a Thanksgiving Day game in Denver on a team composed of old stars of the Sigma Chi
fraternity. The 1903 Sigma Chi All-Star team was made up of former All-Americans, including Overfield, Thorpe, Hernstein, Stahl, Starbuck, Van Valken, and Van Hoevenberg.
In 1923, Princeton head coach W.W. "Bill" Roeper named Overfield as the center on his All-Time All-Eastern football team. Roeper wrote, "Pete Overfield would be ideally equipped to act as pivot on any team today just as he was when he played for Pennsylvania twenty-odd years ago. If my recollection is correct Overfield was down the field on kicks with the ends. He was a sure passer and a wonderful defensive man. He played in a day of a tight line, with the center on the line of scrimmage on every play, but his physique, speed and ability would make him readily adaptable to the present day game ..."
where he practiced law from 1906-1909. In 1909, Overfield was appointed by President William Howard Taft
as a federal district judge serving in the third judicial district of Alaska. Overfield later went into the mining business in Alaska and served as a director of Oatman Revenue Mines Co.
. He was a pioneer of the Casa Grande Valley and was a leader in the fight to bring water to the valley. He pioneered the Picacho and San Carlos Dam projects and was a long-time supporter of the Central Arizona Project.
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
and was a first-team All-American in 1898 and 1899. He served as a federal district judge in Alaska from 1909-1917. In 1917, he moved to Casa Grande, Arizona
Casa Grande, Arizona
Casa Grande is a city in Pinal County, approximately halfway between Phoenix and Tucson in the U.S. state of Arizona. According to 2010 Census, the population of the city is 48,571...
where he lived for the remainder of his life, owning a large ranching operation.
Football player
Overfield played center for the Penn Quakers from 1897–1899 and was selected as a first-team All-American in both 1898 and 1899. Overfield was known as a fierce competitor. After Harvard defeated Penn 16-0 in 1899, Overfield tried to prevent Harvard from securing the ball as a trophy in accordance with a custom. A scuffle spread into the stands, and Penn's coach ultimately secured the ball from Overfield and made Overfield apologize to the Harvard players.After graduating from Penn, Overfield remained active in football. He was a football coach for a time at Multnomah College
Multnomah College
Multnomah College, originally established in 1897 as the Educational Department of the YMCA in downtown Portland, Oregon,was the oldest fully accredited two-year college in the U.S. Pacific Northwest at the time it was absorbed by the University of Portland in 1969...
and also remained active as a professional football player. Overfield played a total of nine years of college and professional football without ever suffering an injury. In 1901, Overfield played on the famed 1901 Homestead Library & Athletic Club football team
1901 Homestead Library & Athletic Club football team
The 1901 Homestead Library & Athletic Club football team won the professional football championship of 1901. The team was affiliated with the Homestead Library & Athletic Club in Homestead, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh...
in Pittsburgh. The 1901 Homestead team consisted of former college football All-Americans, including Overfield, Bemus Pierce
Bemus Pierce
Bemus Pierce was a Native American football guard in the 1890s and 1900s. He played for the great Carlisle Indian School teams from 1894-1898 and later played professional football for the championship teams from the Homestead Library & Athletic Club of 1900 and 1901. He also played for the...
(Carlisle) and Arthur Poe
Art Poe
Arthur "Art" Poe was an American football player and businessman, and one of six celebrated Poe brothers - second cousins, twice removed of American author Edgar Allan Poe - to play football at Princeton in the late 19th and early 20th century...
(Princeton). The team beat Lafayette 66-0 in two ten-minute halves. On November 23, 1901, the Homestead Library team featuring Overfield defeated the Blondy Wallace
Blondy Wallace
Charles Edgar "Blondy" Wallace was an early professional football player. He was a 240-pound, former Walter Camp second-team All-American tackle from the University of Pennsylvania. He also played two years at Peddie Institute, in New Jersey, winning state championships in 1896 and 1897...
's Philadelphia professionals for the professional football championship of the United States. The game was played at the Philadelphia park, and Homestead won by a score of 18 to 0. The New York Times reported on the game as follows:
"Against the well-trained, concerted team work of Homestead they were like so many pigmies. Their line could not hold the fast onslaught of the Western contingent, and after the first ten minutes of play a lack of good physical condition began to assert itself. … The 5,000 spectators present shivered through thirty minute halves and at no time during the game was a real opportunity offered to get enthusiastic over the work of Wallace's [Philadelphia’s captain] team. It was an eleven made up of stars against well-trained team work, and the latter triumphed."
In 1903, Overfield played in a Thanksgiving Day game in Denver on a team composed of old stars of the Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi
Sigma Chi is the largest and one of the oldest college Greek-letter secret and social fraternities in North America with 244 active chapters and more than . Sigma Chi was founded on June 28, 1855 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio when members split from Delta Kappa Epsilon...
fraternity. The 1903 Sigma Chi All-Star team was made up of former All-Americans, including Overfield, Thorpe, Hernstein, Stahl, Starbuck, Van Valken, and Van Hoevenberg.
In 1923, Princeton head coach W.W. "Bill" Roeper named Overfield as the center on his All-Time All-Eastern football team. Roeper wrote, "Pete Overfield would be ideally equipped to act as pivot on any team today just as he was when he played for Pennsylvania twenty-odd years ago. If my recollection is correct Overfield was down the field on kicks with the ends. He was a sure passer and a wonderful defensive man. He played in a day of a tight line, with the center on the line of scrimmage on every play, but his physique, speed and ability would make him readily adaptable to the present day game ..."
Lawyer and judge in Alaska
In 1906, Overfield moved to Nome, AlaskaNome, Alaska
Nome is a city in the Nome Census Area in the Unorganized Borough of the U.S. state of Alaska, located on the southern Seward Peninsula coast on Norton Sound of the Bering Sea. According to the 2010 Census, the city population was 3,598. Nome was incorporated on April 9, 1901, and was once the...
where he practiced law from 1906-1909. In 1909, Overfield was appointed by President William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...
as a federal district judge serving in the third judicial district of Alaska. Overfield later went into the mining business in Alaska and served as a director of Oatman Revenue Mines Co.
Pioneer and rancher in Arizona
In 1917, Overfield moved to Arizona where he became involved in farming on a large scale in the Casa Grande ValleyCasa Grande, Arizona
Casa Grande is a city in Pinal County, approximately halfway between Phoenix and Tucson in the U.S. state of Arizona. According to 2010 Census, the population of the city is 48,571...
. He was a pioneer of the Casa Grande Valley and was a leader in the fight to bring water to the valley. He pioneered the Picacho and San Carlos Dam projects and was a long-time supporter of the Central Arizona Project.
See also
- 1898 College Football All-America Team1898 College Football All-America TeamThe 1898 College Football All-America team is composed of American football players who were selected as the best players at their positions by various organizations that chose College Football All-America Teams that season...
- 1899 College Football All-America Team1899 College Football All-America TeamThe 1899 College Football All-America team is composed of college football players who were selected as All-Americans by various organizations and writers that chose College Football All-America Teams for the 1899 college football season...
- 1901 Homestead Library & Athletic Club football team1901 Homestead Library & Athletic Club football teamThe 1901 Homestead Library & Athletic Club football team won the professional football championship of 1901. The team was affiliated with the Homestead Library & Athletic Club in Homestead, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh...