Category Archives: 1950 – 1969
1951-52 OHA Jr. “C” Champions – Collingwood Greenshirts
1950-51 OHA Intermediate A Champions
1950-51 OHA Jr. “C” Champions – Collingwood Greenshirts
1949-50 OHA Junior “C” Champions
JACK “DUTCH” WHEELER
The hockey career of the colourful Dutch Wheeler covers a quarter of a century and his natural ability can be compared with any of the great players spawned in his ” hockey hot bed” that is Collingwood.
Learning to skate the day after he took his first walking step, Dutch was starring for the old Central Tigers in the Junior Town League at the age of then, and before he turned fourteen he earned himself a spot on the 1934 Collingwood O.H.A. Junior “A” division. Collingwood’s Charlie Sandell also made the team.
Dutch starred with the Biltmores for three years in 1938, 39 and 40.
From Guelph, he went to the Barrie Colts with another Collingwood Boy, Robbie Sandell.
He enlisted with the Canadian Army in 1941 and played out of Newmarket for three years with the Canadian Army team. That team won the interservice championship against the Royal Canadian Navy in 1944. His team mates included Bill Taylor, Bep Guindon, Check Shannon, Bill McComb and Johnny Callaghan.
It was back to Collingwood after the war in 1946. He performed for the Shipbuilders in the O.H.A. Intermediate “A” series for two years and then hopped over to Midland for one season in 1948.
The new Community Arena was built in 1948 and Dutch couldn’t stay away from the old home town with such ice facilities so close to his own back door.
About that time Eddie Bush was finishing off a great professional career and when he came back home as a coach-player, Dutch Wheeler definitely figured in Bush’s plans.
It could be said that Eddie built one of Collingwood’s greatest Intermediate teams around himself and the Dutchman.
Jack Wheeler was a key cog on a team that won two back to back O.H.A. Intermediate “A” championships in 1951 and 1952 and went to the finals against the Simcoe Gunners in 1953
Dutch and Bush both packed it up as active players the follow year.
Hockey was not his only athletic endeavour. He played a pretty fair softball game and was a member of the Trott’s Pros, twice winners of the Collingwood Senior Softball League in the fifties.
His lacrosse career lasted one season when a group tried to revive the game back in 1936.
An eight-team junior group was formed and all went well with the Collingwood team until they met the power packed Orillia club, seven times winners of the Minto Cup.
That ill fated evening in Orillia, Jack Wheeler startled the Orillia fans when he took a pass from Butch Thomson and scored ten seconds after the face-off. Then the Minto Cup holders went to work and scored thirty-two goals. The final score-32-1. That was the end of short lived Georgian Bay Junior Lacrosse League. There hasn’t been a lacrosse game played in Collingwood since.
Dutch continued his interest in hockey in an executive position with the Collingwood Senior Club during the late fifties and early sixties. This man truly earned his niche in Collingwood’s Sports Hall of Fame.
MIKE JACKSON
In his competitive golfing career, Mike has atop the leader board for more than 50 golf championships spanning the local, provincial, national and international landscape. Mike has played in national events in all ten Canadian provinces at least once.
Jackson is currently ranked in the upper tier out of more than 700 senior golfers by Golf Week Magazine in the United States. And as recently as May 2012, he won the Ontario Senior Men’s “Champion of Champions” title by two strokes in Peterborough.
His athletic roots run deep in Collingwood. He is the son of Ken “Jeep”’ Jackson, a member of the Sports Hall of Fame. Michael, who played local Junior hockey as a right-winger, tried out for the Guelph CMC’s in 1972. In 1973, he attended the training camp for the Toronto Maple Leafs arranged through local scout Donald ‘Nip’ Spooner. Mike also played a couple of years of Senior “B” Hockey for the Durham Husky’s winning a provincial championship.
An excellent right-handed golfer as a youth, Jackson was Ontario Best Ball Champion with Hugh Fraser in 1976. As an amateur, he competed numerous times at the provincial level. He took part in the 1985 British Amateur at Royal Dornoch in Scotland and was 27th out of 288 golfers before match play. His medal score was ahead of such greats as Duffy Waldorf, Jose Maria Olazabal and Colin Montgomerie. He was the 2003 mid-amateur provincial champion (played at Mad River in Stayner) and won the 2010 Ontario Senior Men’s Amateur crown at the Ambassador Golf Club in Windsor.
Locally, Jackson has been the Blue Mountain Golf and Country Club champion an unprecedented 15 times, the club’s Senior champ twice and captured the Scenic Caves Invitational on seven occasions. As a six-time champion with the Midland Golf and Country Club, he holds the course record of 63, shot in the final round of the club championship in 1979. He’s a four-time winner of both the Georgian Bay Club championship and Senior Club championship, along with being Match Play champion for three years.
Jackson, a committed community citizen, owns the GM dealership in Collingwood. A recipient of Rotary’s Paul Harris Fellowship Award, he has been the E-3 Community Living golf tournament chair for many years. He was a board member for the Collingwood Sports Hall of Fame committee from 1988 to 2002. Jackson has been on the board of the Canadian Auto Institute (CAI) at Georgian College for several years, and was its chairman of the board from 2005 to 2007.
Jackson is appreciative of the support of his family – wife Doreen, son Ryan and daughter Courtney – which has allowed him to venture far and wide in his chosen sport. He credits fellow Sports Hall of Famers Don Cook and Brian Jeffery for giving him the inspiration to compete in golf.
On October 20, 2012, the Collingwood Sports Hall of Fame welcomed Mike Jackson as an enshrined ‘Athlete’ from our sporting community.
ROBERT “BOB” STOREY
Known as “Mr. Bobsleigh” in Canada, Bob Storey was involved in the Olympics for 45+ years as an athlete, official and volunteer.
In the 1960’s, he was a young competitor that trained on rollerblade wheels given
Canada’s lack of any bobsleigh training facility. His first taste of the Olympics came during the 1976 Innsbruck games as a breakman. Subsequently, he moved to the front of the sleight piloting Canada I at the World Cup and
Championships until his retirement in 1974. He competed in the 1968 and 1972 Olympic Games in the two and four man categories finishing 17th and 19th respectively.
Following his competitive career, Bob began his second career as a representative for the sport of bobsleigh. In this role, he advised national and international sports bodies and was instrumental in the decision to allow Womens’ bobsleigh and skelton into the 2002 Olympics. He has served as a director and member of the Canadian Olympic Committee that was successful in securing the 1988 Calgary and 2010 Vancouver host bids.
In 1998, he was inducted into the Canadian Olympic Sports Hall of Fame as a builder.
MARCELLA PLATER KEITH
Marcella Keith was inducted into the Collingwood Sports Hall of Fame in July, l984 through her exploits in Track & Field and Alpine Skiing.
Marcella was a recognized Track and Field Champion in 1946, 1947 & 1948 at meets in Kitchener-Waterloo, Owen Sound, Orillia. In 1947, she was the C.C.I. Girls Champion while in 1946 & 47 Marcella was 1st in C.C.I.’s inaugural Alpine Ski meet. In 1947, 1948 & 1949, Marcella was combined champion at meets in Huntsville, Own Sound & Collingwood.
Marcella was a graduate of Blue Mountain’s first Ski Patrol class in 1949. When not patrolling the hills to assist others, Marcella was crowned Collingwood Ski Club Senior Ladies Champion in 1963 & 1964.
The sporting community was saddened when Marcella passed away in November 2021
JOANNE HOUGHTON
Joanne was one of the original founding members of the Collingwood Blue Mountain
Figure Skating Club. Her hard work and dedication to the sport of skating helped establish the Blue Mountain Figure Skating Club. In addition to designing the clubs crest and pin, she was the clubs first amateur coach. She was also the first Collingwood born member of the club to teach as it’s professional.
Joanne skated as an amateur from 1951-1959. During which time she and Pauline Piitz
were the first club members to pass Canadian Figure Skating Association tests.
In 1956, 1957, 1958 Joanne skated in the ice dance competition in the Western Ontario Sectionals. Skating with Don Pherson, Joanne placed third and had two second place finishes in Senior Dance. This qualified her and her partner for Senior Dance at Canadians. In addition Joanne also competed in the Senior Ladies singles. She managed again to qualify to skate at Canadians.
As well as skating Joanne also was certified as a low test amateur judge in
figures, free skating and ice dance.
Joanne turned professional in 1960 to teach in Collingwood with triple fold test qualifications.
Joanne taught professionally from 1960 to 1977 in Collingwood, Fergus, Stratford, Ingersoll, Tavistock and London.