Skip to main content

Boston Celtics were nearly called the Boston Yankees when team first formed



The Boston Celtics might have well been called the Boston Yankees, according to newspaper stories detailing the team's origins.

When the new Basket Ball Association of American was formed in June 1946, the Boston franchise was owned by Walter Brown, who managed the Boston Garden and was later owner of the Boston Bruins.

In an interview with Boston Globe sports reporter Harold Kaese on July 17, 1946, Brown predicted that basketball would soon be more popular than hockey in Beantown.

"There are more basket ball players and fans around here than hockey players and fans.  Hockey was the big game after the last war; basket ball game will be the big game after this one," Brown is quoted as saying.

Later in the article, Kaese reports:

"NICKNAME - Brown is looking for one.  He welcomes suggestions, may run a contest.  The first nickname offered was Boston Yankees, an extremely bright suggestion."

But Brown apparently had an epiphany to name the team the Celtics, according to Celtics yore, coming up with the name in a conversation with local publicity man Howie McHugh.  Just over a  month later, a Boston Globe article by Jack Barry on August 20, 1946,  referred to the team as the Boston Celtics.  

Another possible influence on naming the team -- Brown hired as his first coach John "Honey" Russell, who had previously coached  the Original Celtics, a legendary barnstorming basketball team out of New York City in the 1920s.

For the official history of the early Boston Celtics click here.

For more on Boston's Irish-American history, visit IrishHeritageTrail.com.

Posted by Boston Irish Tourism Association

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Boston Celtics : The Story Behind Their Irish Green Theme

Many people wonder why the Boston Celtics wear shamrocks on their green uniforms and have a giant leprechaun smoking a cigar as their team logo. And why the team mascot is a guy named Lucky who looks like he stepped out of a box of Lucky Charms? According to the Boston Celtic’s official web site, the name came about in 1946 when owner Walter Brown started the team. He and his public relations guy, Howie McHugh, were throwing out potential nicknames, including the Whirlwinds, Unicorns and Olympics. It was Brown who had the epiphany, saying, “Wait, I’ve got it – the Celtics. The name has a great basketball tradition from the old Original Celtics in New York (1920s). And Boston is full of Irishman. We’ll put them in green uniforms and call them the Boston Celtics.” Red Auerbach , the now legendary coach of the early Celtics, then commissioned his brother Zang, a graphic designer in the newspaper business, to come up with the famous Celtics logo in the early 1950s. The logo m

Boston's Airport Named for Edward L. Logan, South Boston Leader with Galway Roots

Statue of General Edward L. Logan Boston ’s Logan InternationalAirport was named for General Edward L. Logan (1875-1939), a first generation Irish-American, military leader, civic leader and municipal judge with family roots in Galway and South Boston .  Logan was the son of Lawrence Logan and Catherine O'Connor from Ballygar, County Galway, according to historian Michael J. Cummings .  The Logan family lived on East Broadway in South Boston.   Read a full profile of Edward L. Logan on IrishMassachusetts.com . The Logan statue is part of Boston's Irish Heritage Trail , a collection of public landmarks, memorials, buildings and statues that tell the story of the Boston Irish from the 1700s to the present.  Find year round information on Boston's Irish community at IrishBoston.org . 

Boston Mayors of Irish Descent, 1885-2021

(Originally published in 2013, this post was updated in 2021) Here are the Mayors of Boston Claiming Irish Heritage:  Hugh O’Brien 1885–88 Patrick Collins 1902–05 John F. Fitzgerald 1906–07, 1910–13 James M. Curley 1914–17, 1922–25, 1930–33, 1946–49 Frederick W. Mansfield 1934–37 Maurice Tobin 1938–41, 1941-44 John Kerrigan 1945 John B. Hynes 1950–59 John Collins 1960–68 Kevin H. White 1968–83 Raymond L. Flynn 1984–93 Martin J. Walsh   2014- 2021 The lineage of Boston mayors with Irish ancestry dates back to 1885, when Irish immigrant Hugh O'Brien of County Cork assumed office and became the first Irish-born mayor elected in Boston, serving four one-year terms (1885-88).   O'Brien was followed by Irish-born Patrick Collins (1902-05), also of County Cork, who died in office in 1905. He was replaced by John F. Fitzgerald, who became the first American-born mayor of Irish descent, serving two terms.  A noteworthy mayor was James