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Gene Autry

Orvon Grover "Gene" Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998), nicknamed the Singing Cowboy, was an American actor, musician, singer, composer, rodeo performer, and baseball team owner, who largely gained fame by singing in a crooning style on radio, in films, and on television for more than three decades, beginning in the early 1930s. During that time, he personified the straight-shooting hero — honest, brave, and true.

Autry was the owner of a television station and several radio stations in Southern California. From 1961 to 1997, he was the founding owner of the California Angels franchise of Major League Baseball (MLB).

From 1934 to 1953, Autry appeared in 93 motion pictures. Between 1950 and 1956, he hosted The Gene Autry Show television series. In many of them, he appeared with his Morgan named Champion.

Autry was also one of the most important pioneering figures in the history of country music, considered the second major influential artist of the genre's development after Jimmie Rodgers. His films were the first media vehicle to carry Western music to a nationwide audience.

In addition to his signature song "Back in the Saddle Again", as well as his recording hit "At Mail Call Today", Autry is still remembered for his association with Christmas music, having debuted the seasonal standards "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer", "Frosty the Snowman", and "Here Comes Santa Claus".

Autry is a member of both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is the only person to be awarded stars in all five categories on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, for film, television, music, radio, and live performance.

The town of Gene Autry, Oklahoma was named in his honor, as was the Gene Autry precinct in Mesa, Arizona.

Early years
Autry was born September 29, 1907, near Tioga in Grayson County in north Texas, the grandson of a Methodist preacher. His parents, Delbert Autry and Elnora Ozment, moved in the 1920s to Ravia in Johnston County in southern Oklahoma. Gene Autry worked on his father's ranch while growing up and going to school. In 1925, Autry left the family ranch. With only his high school education, Autry became a telegrapher for the St. Louis–San Francisco Railway. His talent at singing and playing guitar led to performing at local dances.

Singing career
While working as a telegraph operator in Chelsea, Oklahoma, Autry would sing and accompany himself on the guitar to pass the lonely hours, especially when he had the midnight shift. This later got him fired. One night, he was encouraged to sing professionally by a customer, humorist Will Rogers, who had heard him singing.

As soon as he could save money to travel, he went to New York. In the autumn of 1928, he auditioned for the Victor Talking Machine Company, shortly before purchase by David Sarnoff's Radio Corporation of America (RCA). According to Nathaniel Shilkret, director of Light Music for Victor at the time, Autry asked to speak to Shilkret after finding that he had been turned down. Shilkret explained to Autry that he was turned down not because of his voice, but because Victor had just made contracts with two similar singers. Autry left with a letter of introduction from Shilkret and the advice to sing on radio to gain experience and to come back in a year or two. In 1928, Autry was singing on Tulsa radio station KVOO (now KOTV) as "Oklahoma's Yodeling Cowboy". The Victor archives show an October 9, 1929, entry stating that the vocal duet of Jimmie Long and Gene Autry with two Hawaiian guitars, directed by L. L. Watson, recorded "My Dreaming of You" (Matrix 56761) and "My Alabama Home" (Matrix 56762).

Autry signed a recording deal with Columbia Records in 1929. He worked in Chicago on the WLS-AM radio show National Barn Dance for four years, and with his own show, where he met singer-songwriter Smiley Burnette. In his early recording career, Autry covered various genres, including a labor song, "The Death of Mother Jones", in 1931.

Autry also recorded many "hillbilly"-style records in 1930 and 1931 in New York City, which were certainly different in style and content from his later recordings. These were much closer in style to the Prairie Ramblers or Dick Justice, and included the "Do Right, Daddy Blues" and "Black Bottom Blues", both similar to "Deep Elem Blues". These late Prohibition-era songs deal with bootlegging, corrupt police, and women whose occupation was certainly vice. These recordings are generally not heard today, but are available on European import labels, such as JSP Records. His first hit was in 1932 with "That Silver-Haired Daddy of Mine", a duet with fellow railroad man Jimmy Long that Autry and Long co-wrote.

As Autry's movie career flourished, so did his record sales. His unofficial theme song became the Ray Whitley composition "Back in the Saddle Again". Autry made 640 recordings, including more than 300 songs written or co-written by himself. His records sold more than 100 million copies and he has more than a dozen gold and platinum records, including the first record ever certified gold.

Today's listeners associate Gene Autry with Christmas songs, which are played perennially during each holiday season. These include "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town", his own composition "Here Comes Santa Claus", "Frosty the Snowman", and his biggest hit, "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer". He wrote "Here Comes Santa Claus" after being the Grand Marshal of the 1946 Santa Claus Lane Parade (now the Hollywood Christmas Parade). He heard all of the spectators watching the parade saying, "Here comes Santa Claus!" virtually handing him the title for his song. He recorded his version of the song in 1947 and it became an instant classic.

In the late 1950s he began recording other artists, as the original owner of Challenge Records. The label's biggest hit was "Tequila" by The Champs in 1958, which started the rock and roll instrumental craze of the late 1950s and early 1960s. He sold the label soon after, but the maroon (later green) label has the "GA" in a shield above the label name.

Film career
Autry and Burnette were discovered by film producer Nat Levine in 1934. Together, Autry and Burnette made their film debut for Mascot Pictures Corp. in In Old Santa Fe as part of a singing cowboy quartet; he was then given the starring role by Levine in 1935 in the 12-part serial The Phantom Empire. Shortly thereafter, Mascot was absorbed by the newly formed Republic Pictures Corp. and Autry went along to make a further 44 films up to 1940. Most were low-budget Westerns in which he played under his own name, rode his horse Champion, had Smiley Burnette as his regular sidekick, and had many opportunities to sing in each film. His films were tremendously successful, so much so that almost every other studio tried to compete by showcasing their own singing cowboys. By 1940 Autry was Republic's biggest star, and his films became more costly and more elaborate. They played first-run in large cities, unlike the usual "B" westerns that played in neighborhood theaters.

In the Motion Picture Herald Top Ten Money-Making Western Stars poll, Autry was listed every year from the first poll in 1936 to 1942 and 1946 to 1954 (he was serving in the AAF 1943–45), holding first place 1937 to 1942, and second place (after Roy Rogers) 1947 to 1954, when the poll ceased. He appeared in the similar Boxoffice poll from 1936 to 1955, holding first place from 1936 to 1942 and second place (after Rogers) from 1943 to 1952. While these two polls are really an indication only of the popularity of series stars, Autry also appeared in the Top Ten Money Making Stars Poll of all films from 1940 to 1942, His Gene Autry Flying "A" Ranch Rodeo show debuted in 1940.

Autry served in the U. S. Army Air Corps during World War II. Part of his military service included his broadcast of a radio show for one year; it involved music and true stories. Several decades ago on an early afternoon show featuring Republic westerns, one of Gene's sidekicks said that when Gene told Republic Pictures of his intentions to join the military during World War II, Republic threatened to promote Roy Rogers as "King of the Cowboys" in Gene's absence, which it did. Republic reissued old Autry westerns during the war years, to keep his name before the public.

Autry's contract had been suspended for the duration of his military service, and he had tried to have it declared void after his discharge. The courts found in Republic's favor, and Autry returned to Republic after the war. He finished out his contract with four more features, with Autry now publicized as "King of the Singing Cowboys".

In 1947 Autry left Republic for Columbia Pictures, which offered him his own production unit. He chose a new sidekick, Pat Buttram, recently returned from his World War II service. Buttram would co-star with Gene Autry in more than 40 films and in more than 100 episodes of Autry's television show. In 1951, Autry formed his own company (Flying A Productions) to make westerns under his own control, and Columbia continued to distribute them through 1953.

Melody Ranch
Autry purchased the 110-acre Monogram Ranch in 1953, in Placerita Canyon near Newhall, California, in the northern San Gabriel Mountains foothills. He renamed it the Melody Ranch after his movie Melody Ranch. Autry then sold 98 acres of the property, most of the original ranch. The Western town, adobes, and ranch cabin sets and open land for location shooting were retained as a movie ranch on 12 acres. Numerous "B" Westerns and TV shows were shot there during Autry's ownership, including the initial years of Gunsmoke with James Arness. A decade after he purchased Melody Ranch, a brushfire swept through in August 1962, destroying most of the original standing sets and dashing Autry's plans to turn it into a museum. However, the devastated landscape did prove useful for productions such as Combat!. A complete adobe ranch survived at the northeast section of the ranch.

According to a published story by Autry, the fire caused him to turn his attention to Griffith Park, where he would build his Museum of Western Heritage (now known as the Autry Museum of the American West).

In 1990, after his favorite horse Champion Three, which lived in retirement there, died, Autry put the remaining 12-acre ranch up for sale. It was purchased by the Veluzat family in 1991 and rebuilt. It is now known as the Melody Ranch Motion Picture Studio and Melody Ranch Studios on 22 acres. The ranch has the Melody Ranch Museum open year-round; and one weekend a year, the entire ranch is open to the public during the Cowboy Poetry and Music Festival, another legacy of Autry's multiple talents.

Radio and television career
From 1940 to 1956, Autry had a huge hit with a weekly show on CBS Radio, Gene Autry's Melody Ranch. His horse, Champion, also had a Mutual radio series, The Adventures of Champion and a CBS-TV series of the same name. In response to his many young radio listeners aspiring to emulate him, Autry created the Cowboy Code, or Ten Cowboy Commandments. These tenets promoting an ethical, moral, and patriotic lifestyle that appealed to youth organizations such as the Boy Scouts, which developed similar doctrines. The Cowboy Code consisted of rules that were "a natural progression of Gene's philosophies going back to his first Melody Ranch programs—and early pictures." According to the code:
 * 1) The Cowboy must never shoot first, hit a smaller man, or take unfair advantage.
 * 2) He must never go back on his word, or a trust confided in him.
 * 3) He must always tell the truth.
 * 4) He must be gentle with children, the elderly, and animals.
 * 5) He must not advocate or possess racially or religiously intolerant ideas.
 * 6) He must help people in distress.
 * 7) He must be a good worker.
 * 8) He must keep himself clean in thought, speech, action, and personal habits.
 * 9) He must respect women, parents, and his nation's laws.
 * 10) The Cowboy is a patriot.

Beginning in 1950, he produced and starred in his own television show on [CBS through his Flying A Productions studio. In the late 1950s, Autry also made several appearances on ABC-TV's Jubilee USA.

Military career
During World War II, Autry enlisted in the United States Army in 1942, and became a tech sergeant in the United States Army Air Corps. Holding a private pilot certificate, he was determined to become a military pilot and earned his Service Pilot rating in June 1944, serving as a C-109 transport pilot with the rank of flight officer. Assigned to a unit of the Air Transport Command, he flew as part of the dangerous airlift operation over the Himalayas between India and China, nicknamed the Hump.

Rodeo
In 1941, at the height of his screen popularity, Autry had a string of rodeo stock based north of Ardmore, Oklahoma. It was known as the Flying A Ranch and encompassed 1200 acres. It served as headquarters for his traveling rodeo. The nearby town of Berwyn, then honored Autry by naming the town after him. Thirty Five thousand people attended the ceremony on November 16, 1941. A year later, he became a partner in the World Championship Rodeo Company, which furnished livestock for many of the country's major rodeos. In 1954, he acquired Montana's top bucking string from the estate of Leo J. Cremer Sr., and put Canadian saddle bronc riding champion Harry Knight in charge of the operation. A merger with the World Championship Rodeo Company in 1956 made Autry the sole owner. He moved the entire company to a 24000 acre ranch near Fowler, Colorado, with Knight as the working partner in the operation. For the next 12 years, they provided livestock for most of the major rodeos in Texas, Colorado, Montana, and Nebraska. When the company was sold in 1968, both men continued to be active in rodeo. For his work as a livestock contractor, Autry was inducted into the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association's ProRodeo Hall of Fame in 1979. Autry received several honors for his contributions to rodeo.

Honors

 * 1972: Hall of Great Western Performers of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum
 * 1979: ProRodeo Hall of Fame
 * 1980: Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Center
 * 1988: Texas Trail of Fame
 * 2013: Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame

Gene Autry comics
Gene Autry was often portrayed in the comics, primarily during the heyday of Western-themed comics, the 1940s and 1950s.

The Register and Tribune Syndicate comic strip Gene Autry Rides by Till Goodan was the first entry, lasting from 1940 to 1941. From 1941 to 1943, Autry was the subject of a comic book initially published by Fawcett Comics and then picked up by Dell Comics that ran 12 issues. Dell then published 101 issues of Gene Autry Comics from 1946 to 1955. That title was changed to Gene Autry and Champion, and ran an additional 20 issues from 1955 to 1959, making it the longest-running (by number of issues) cowboy actor comic book.

Meanwhile, Autry was the subject of an "Air-Western-Adventure Strip" comic strip syndicated by General Features from 1952 to 1955. The strip was produced in association with Whitman Publishing.

The Mexican publisher Editorial Novaro released 423 issues of Gene Autry comics from 1954 to 1984.

Toys
In 1937, Kenton Hardware Company of Kenton, Ohio, began producing Gene Autry cast-iron cap guns as a part of its line of iron toys. The toy was commissioned by Kenton vice-president Willard Bixler, who had conceptualized an iron cap revolver modeled after the pearl-handled gun used by Gene Autry. Selling at 50 cents per gun, the cap pistols were extremely popular and by 1939, two million units of the toy had been sold in the United States and abroad. Autry received a portion of all sales revenues.

Baseball
In the 1950s, Autry had been a minority owner of the minor-league Hollywood Stars. In 1960, when Major League Baseball announced plans to add an expansion team in Los Angeles, Autry—who had once declined an opportunity to play in the minor leagues—expressed an interest in acquiring the radio broadcast rights to the team's games. Baseball executives were so impressed by his approach that he was persuaded to become the owner of the franchise rather than simply its broadcast partner. The team, initially called the Los Angeles Angels upon its 1961 debut, moved to suburban Anaheim in 1966, and was renamed the California Angels, then the Anaheim Angels from 1997 until 2005, when it became the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Autry served as vice president of the American League from 1983 until his death. In 1995, he sold a quarter share of the team to the Walt Disney Company and a controlling interest the following year, with the remaining share to be transferred after his death. Earlier, in 1982, he sold Los Angeles television station KTLA for $245 million. He also sold several radio stations he owned, including KSFO in San Francisco, KMPC in Los Angeles, KOGO in San Diego, and other stations in the Golden West radio network.

The number 26 was retired by the Angels in Autry's honor. The chosen number reflected that baseball's rosters (at the time) had 25 men, so Autry's unflagging support for his team made him the "26th man" (see also the 12th man, a similar concept in football). When the Angels finally won their first (and to date, only) World Series championship in 2002, star outfielder Tim Salmon held Autry's cowboy hat aloft during the on-field celebration, and the public address system played his hit song, "Back in the Saddle Again".

Hotels
He invested in property, owning by 1964 the Mark Hopkins Hotel in San Francisco; the Hotel Continental in Hollywood; the Sahara Inn, a $12-million motel near Chicago; plus property in Palm Springs.

Retirement
Autry retired from show business in 1964, having made almost 100 films up to 1955 and over 600 records. He was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1969 and to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970. After retiring, he invested widely in real estate, radio, and television. He also invested in ownership of the KOOL-TV CBS-affiliate (now Fox affiliate KSAZ-TV) in Phoenix, Arizona, which created local shows such as the weekly bilingual children's show Niños Contentos.

Republic Pictures, its finances failing, had shut down production in 1957. By the late 1960s Republic was barely operational, managing only its film library. Gene Autry, correctly assessing the company's cash-poor situation, made a cash offer for the rights and negatives to his Republic films. The company accepted Autry's terms, and Autry now controlled the film materials for home-movie reprints and home-video tapes and discs.

Death
Autry died of lymphoma on October 2, 1998, at his home in Studio City, California. He was buried at the Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles. His epitaph read, "America's Favorite Cowboy ... American Hero, Philanthropist, Patriot and Veteran, Movie Star, Singer, Composer, Baseball Fan and Owner, 33rd Degree Mason, Media Entrepreneur, Loving Husband, Gentleman".

Personal life
In 1932, Autry married Ina Mae Spivey, the niece of Jimmy Long. During this marriage he had a sustained affair with Gail Davis, the actress who played Annie Oakley in the television series of the same name that Autry produced. After Spivey died in 1980, he married Jacqueline Ellam, who had been his banker, in 1981.

While Autry was quiet about his political views during his life, his voting records listed him as a registered Republican, and he supported the Civil Rights Movement.

Autry was raised into Freemasonry in 1927 at Catoosa Lodge No. 185, Catoosa Oklahoma. He later became a 33rd degree Scottish Rite Mason, as recorded on his headstone.

Legacy

On November 16, 1941, the town of Berwyn, Oklahoma, north of Ardmore, was renamed Gene Autry in his honor. Though Autry was born in Tioga, Texas, his family moved to Oklahoma while he was an infant. He was raised in the southern Oklahoma towns of Achille and Ravia. Autry had also worked as a telegraph operator near Berwyn. In 1939, he bought the 1,200 acre Flying A Ranch on the west edge of Berwyn, and the town decided to honor him by changing its name. Approximately 35,000 people attended the ceremonies broadcast live from the site on Autry's Melody Ranch radio show. Expectations that Autry would make his permanent home on the ranch were heightened when Autry's house in California burned down just 8 days before the name change ceremony, but dashed three weeks later with the attack on Pearl Harbor. Autry joined the military in 1942 and sold the ranch after the war.

In 1972, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Western Performers at the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and Western Heritage Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Autry was a life member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, Burbank Lodge No. 1497. His 1976 autobiography, co-written by Mickey Herskowitz, was titled Back in the Saddle Again after his 1939 hit and signature tune. He is also featured year after year, on radio and "shopping mall music" at the holiday season, by his recording of "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer". "Rudolph" became the first No. 1 hit of the 1950s. In 2003, he was ranked No. 38 in CMT's list of the 40 Greatest Men of Country Music.

In 1977, Autry was awarded the American Patriots Medal by Freedoms Foundation of Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.

Johnny Cash recorded a song in 1978 about Autry called "Who is Gene Autry?" Cash also got Autry to sign his famous black Martin D-35 guitar, which he plays in the video of "Hurt".

In 1983, Autry received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.

Autry was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 1991.

When the Anaheim Angels won their first World Series in 2002, much of the championship was dedicated to him. The interchange of Interstate 5 and State Route 134, near the Autry National Center in Los Angeles, is signed as the "Gene Autry Memorial Interchange". There is also a street named after Autry in Anaheim, California, called Gene Autry Way, and there is a street in Palm Springs, California named Gene Autry Trail.

Autry was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2003. In 2004, Starz joined forces with the Autry estate to restore all of his films, which have been shown on Starz's Encore Westerns channel on premium television on a regular basis to date since.

In 2007, he became a charter member of the Gennett Records Walk of Fame in Richmond, Indiana.

In May 2019, Warner Chappell Music acquired the Gene Autry Music Group, a music publisher comprising four smaller publishers, 1,500 compositions (including "Back in the Saddle Again", "Here Comes Santa Claus", "Just Walkin' in the Rain", and "You Belong To Me"), and several of Autry's master recordings.

California

 * (1988) Back in the Saddle Again by David Spellerberg (semi-public statue: Autry and his movie horse "Champion"); exterior courtyard, Autry Museum of the American West, Los Angeles, California
 * (1998) Gene Autry Statue by De L'Esprie (semi-public statue: Autry with hat in hand); exterior courtyard inside gate 2, Angel Stadium/Edison International Field of Anaheim, Anaheim, California
 * (2009) Gene Autry, America's Favorite Singing Cowboy by De L'Esprie (public statue: Autry seated, with guitar); Palm Springs, California

Hollywood Walk of Fame
Autry is the only person to have five stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one in each of the five categories defined by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. All of Autry's stars are located along Hollywood Boulevard: Recording at 6384, Radio at 6520, Motion pictures at 6644, Television at 6667, and Live theatre at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard. His first four stars were placed during the initial inductions of 1960 while the final one was placed in 1987, in the additional category named "Live theatre"—later renamed "Live performance"—introduced in 1984.

Museum of the American West
The Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles' Griffith Park was founded in 1988 as the Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum featuring much of Autry's personal collection of Western art and memorabilia as well as collections of his friends and other Western film stars. Since 2004, the museum is partnered with the Southwest Museum of the American Indian and is divided into two locations, eight miles apart from each other.

Discography
+ 1,000,000 units sold

Holiday 100 chart entries
Since many radio stations in the US adopt a format change to Christmas music each December, many holiday hits have an annual spike in popularity during the last few weeks of the year and are retired once the season is over. In December 2011, Billboard began a Holiday Songs chart with 50 positions that monitors the last five weeks of each year to "rank the top holiday hits of all eras using the same methodology as the Hot 100, blending streaming, airplay, and sales data", and in 2013, the number of positions on the chart was doubled, resulting in the Holiday 100. A few Autry recordings have made appearances on the Holiday 100 and are noted below according to the holiday season in which they charted there.

Filmography
From 1934 to 1953, Autry appeared in 93 films. From 1950 to 1955, he also appeared in 91 episodes of The Gene Autry Show television series. , a large number of these films and television episodes remain available via the Gene Autry Foundation on the Western Channel (a cable television station), the latter having collaborated with the Foundation to restore the Republic titles, which had been cut to a uniform 54 minutes for television release in the 1950s, to full length and to provide clean negative-based source prints for all the titles in the 1990s.

 * In Old Santa Fe (1934)
 * Mystery Mountain (1934) (serial)
 * The Phantom Empire (1935) (serial)
 * Tumbling Tumbleweeds (1935)
 * Melody Trail (1935)
 * The Sagebrush Troubadour (1935)
 * The Singing Vagabond (1935)
 * Red River Valley (1936)
 * Comin' Round the Mountain (1936)
 * The Singing Cowboy (1936)
 * Guns and Guitars (1936)
 * Ride Ranger Ride (1936)
 * Oh, Susanna! (1936)
 * The Big Show (1936)
 * The Old Corral (1936)
 * Round-Up Time in Texas (1937)
 * Git Along Little Dogies (1937)
 * Rootin' Tootin' Rhythm (1937)
 * Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge (1937)
 * Public Cowboy No. 1 (1937)
 * Boots and Saddles (1937)
 * Springtime in the Rockies (1937)
 * The Old Barn Dance (1938)
 * Gold Mine in the Sky (1938)
 * Man from Music Mountain (1938)
 * Prairie Moon (1938)
 * Rhythm of the Saddle (1938)
 * Western Jamboree (1938)
 * Home on the Prairie (1939)
 * Mexicali Rose (1939)
 * Blue Montana Skies (1939)
 * Mountain Rhythm (1939)
 * Colorado Sunset (1939)
 * In Old Monterey (1939)
 * Rovin' Tumbleweeds (1939)
 * South of the Border (1939)
 * Rancho Grande (1940)
 * Shooting High (1940)
 * Gaucho Serenade (1940)
 * Carolina Moon (1940)
 * Ride, Tenderfoot, Ride (1940)
 * Melody Ranch (1940)
 * Ridin' on a Rainbow (1941)
 * Back in the Saddle (1941)
 * The Singing Hill (1941)
 * Sunset in Wyoming (1941)
 * Under Fiesta Stars (1941)
 * Down Mexico Way (1941)
 * Sierra Sue (1941)
 * Cowboy Serenade (1942)
 * Heart of the Rio Grande (1942)
 * Home in Wyomin' (1942)
 * Stardust on the Sage (1942)
 * Call of the Canyon (1942)
 * Bells of Capistrano (1942)
 * Sioux City Sue (1946)
 * Trail to San Antone (1947)
 * Twilight on the Rio Grande (1947)
 * Saddle Pals (1947)
 * Robin Hood of Texas (1947)
 * The Last Round-Up (1947)
 * The Strawberry Roan (1948)
 * Loaded Pistols (1948)
 * The Big Sombrero (1949)
 * Riders of the Whistling Pines (1949)
 * Rim of the Canyon (1949)
 * The Cowboy and the Indians (1949)
 * Riders in the Sky (1949)
 * Sons of New Mexico (1949)
 * Mule Train (1950)
 * Cow Town (1950)
 * Hoedown (1950)
 * Beyond the Purple Hills (1950)
 * Indian Territory (1950)
 * The Blazing Sun (1950)
 * Gene Autry and the Mounties (1951)
 * Texans Never Cry (1951)
 * Whirlwind (1951)
 * Silver Canyon (1951)
 * The Hills of Utah (1951)
 * Valley of Fire (1951)
 * The Old West (1952)
 * Night Stage to Galveston (1952)
 * Apache Country (1952)
 * Barbed Wire (1952)
 * Wagon Team (1952)
 * Blue Canadian Rockies (1952)
 * Winning of the West (1953)
 * On Top of Old Smoky (1953)
 * Goldtown Ghost Riders (1953)
 * Pack Train (1953)
 * Saginaw Trail (1953)
 * Last of the Pony Riders (1953)

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Gene Autry


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Hibernian F.C.

Hibernian Football Club, commonly known as Hibs, is a professional football club in Edinburgh, Scotland. The team competes in the Scottish Premiership, the top division of Scottish football. The club was founded in 1875 by members of Edinburgh's Irish community, and the name is derived from the Latin for Ireland. The Irish heritage of Hibernian is reflected in the name, colours and badge of the club. The green main shirt colour is usually accompanied by white sleeves and shorts. Their local rivals are Heart of Midlothian, with whom they contest the Edinburgh derby.

Home matches are played at Easter Road, which has been in use since 1893, when the club joined the Scottish Football League. The name of the club is regularly shortened to Hibs, with the team also being known as The Hibees (pronounced ) and supporters known as Hibbies. Another nickname is The Cabbage, derived from the shortened rhyming slang for Hibs ("Cabbage and Ribs").

Hibernian have won the Scottish league championship four times, most recently in 1952. Three of those four championships were won between 1948 and 1952, when the club had the services of The Famous Five, a notable forward line. The club have won the Scottish Cup three times, in 1887, 1902 and 2016, with the latter victory ending a notorious drought. Hibs have also won the Scottish League Cup three times, in 1972, 1991 and 2007. Hibernian reached the semi-final of the first ever European Cup in 1955–56, becoming the first British side to participate in European competition. They reached the same stage of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1960–61.

Foundation and early history (1875–1939)

The club was founded in 1875 by Irishmen living in the Cowgate area of Edinburgh. The name Hibernian (deriving from Hibernia, an ancient name for Ireland ), the colour green, the Celtic harp and the Irish language phrase Erin go bragh (meaning Ireland Forever) were adopted as symbols early on. Founder Fr. Edward Joseph Hannan was the first president of the club and Michael Whelahan its first team captain. James Connolly, the famous socialist and Irish Republican leader, was a Hibs fan, while the club were "closely identified" with the Irish Home Rule movement during the 1880s. There was some sectarian resistance initially to an Irish club participating in Scottish football, but Hibs established themselves as a force in Scottish football in the 1880s. Hibs were the first club from the east coast of Scotland to win a major trophy, the 1887 Scottish Cup. They went on to defeat Preston North End, who had reached the semi-finals of the 1887 FA Cup, in a friendly match described as the Association Football Championship of the World Decider.

Mismanagement over the next few years led to Hibs becoming homeless and the club temporarily ceased operating in 1891. A lease on the Easter Road site was acquired in late 1892 and Hibs played its first match at Easter Road on 4 February 1893. Despite this interruption, the club today views the period since 1875 as one continued history and therefore counts the honours won between 1875 and 1891, including the 1887 Scottish Cup. The club were admitted to the Scottish Football League in 1893, although they had to win the Second Division twice before being elected into the First Division in 1895.

A significant change at this time was that players were no longer required to be members of the Catholic Young Men's Society. Hibs are not seen today as being an Irish or Roman Catholic institution, as it was in the early years of its history. For instance, the Irish harp was only re-introduced to the club badge when it was last re-designed in 2000. This design reflects the three pillars of the club's identity: Ireland, Edinburgh (the castle) and Leith (the ship). Geography rather than ethnicity or religion is now seen as the primary reason for supporting Hibs, who draw most of their support from the north and east of Edinburgh.

Hibs had some success after being reformed, winning the 1902 Scottish Cup and their first league championship a year later. After this, however, the club endured a long barren spell. The club lost its placing in the league and were relegated for the first time in 1931, although they were promoted back to the top division two years later. The notorious Scottish Cup drought began as they reached three cup finals, two in consecutive years, but lost each of them.

The Famous Five (1939–1959)

Hibs' most successful era was in the decade following the end of the Second World War, when it was "among the foremost clubs in Britain". The forward line of Gordon Smith, Bobby Johnstone, Lawrie Reilly, Eddie Turnbull and Willie Ormond, collectively known as the Famous Five, was "regarded as the finest ever seen in Scottish football". Each of the Famous Five scored more than 100 goals for Hibs. The north stand at Easter Road is now named in their honour. Smith was signed by Hibs in 1941, while Ormond, Turnbull, Reilly and Johnstone were all signed during 1946. Of the five, only Ormond cost Hibs a transfer fee, £1200 from Stenhousemuir. Reilly, Johnstone, Smith and Turnbull were all signed from youth or junior leagues.

In the first season of competitive football after the Second World War, Hibs reached the 1947 Scottish Cup final. They took an early lead in the match, but went on to lose 2–1 to Aberdeen. With Reilly added to the first team in 1947–48, Hibs won the Scottish league championship for the first time since 1903. This was achieved despite the death of team manager Willie McCartney in January 1948. McCartney was succeeded by Hugh Shaw, who added Johnstone to the first team during 1948. Hibs finished third in the league in 1948–49. In a friendly match against Nithsdale Wanderers on 21 April 1949, Hibs included all of the famous five players in the same team for the first time. They then made their collective competitive debut on 15 October 1949, in a 2–0 win against Queen of the South. They improved on their season from the year before, by finishing second in the league to Rangers by one point.

1950–51 was the high point of the Famous Five era. With other internationalists such as Tommy Younger and Bobby Combe, Hibs won the league by 10 points (when two points were awarded for each win). They reached the 1950 Scottish League Cup final. Turnbull had scored a hattrick in the semi-final but was unavailable for the final. Jimmy Bradley started at left wing with Ormond moved to inside left. Motherwell beat them 3–0. Hibs retained the league championship in 1951–52, this time winning by four points. Hibs were narrowly denied a third consecutive title in 1952–53 on the last day of the season. A late Rangers equaliser against Queen of the South took the title to Ibrox on goal average. The Famous Five forward line remained in place until March 1955, when Johnstone was sold to Manchester City.

Despite only finishing fifth in the Scottish League in 1955, Hibs were invited to participate in the first season of the European Cup, which was not strictly based on league positions at that time. Eighteen clubs who were thought would generate interest across Europe and who also had the floodlights necessary to play games at night, were invited to participate. Floodlights had been used at Easter Road for the first time in a friendly match against Hearts on 18 October 1954. Hibs became the first British club in Europe because the English Football League secretary Alan Hardaker persuaded Chelsea, the English champions, not to enter.

Hibs played their first tie against Rot-Weiss Essen, winning 4–0 in the Georg-Melches-Stadion and drawing 1–1 at Easter Road. They defeated Djurgårdens IF to reach the semi-final, but in that tie they were defeated 3–0 on aggregate by Stade de Reims, who had the famous France international player Raymond Kopa in their side. Reims lost 4–3 to Real Madrid in the final.

Turnbull's Tornadoes (1960–1989)
Hibs frequently participated in the Fairs Cup during the 1960s, winning ties against Barcelona and Napoli. However, the club achieved little domestically until former player Eddie Turnbull was persuaded to return to Easter Road as manager in 1971. The team, popularly known as Turnbull's Tornadoes, finished second in the league in 1974 and 1975 and won the League Cup in 1972. The club also won the Drybrough Cup in 1972 and 1973, and recorded a 7–0 win over Edinburgh derby rivals Hearts at Tynecastle on 1 January 1973.

Performances went into decline after the mid-1970s, as Hibs were replaced by the New Firm of Aberdeen and Dundee United as the main challengers to the Old Firm. Turnbull resigned as manager and Hibs were relegated, for the second time in their history, in 1980. They were immediately promoted back to the Scottish Premier Division in 1981, but the club struggled during the 1980s, failing to qualify for European competition until 1989.

1990s: Attempted takeover by Hearts
After mismanagement during the late 1980s, Hibs were on the brink of financial ruin in 1990. Wallace Mercer, the chairman of Hearts, proposed a merger of the two clubs, but the Hibs fans believed that the proposal was more like a hostile takeover. They formed the Hands off Hibs group to campaign for the continued existence of the club. This succeeded when a prominent local businessman, Kwik Fit owner Sir Tom Farmer, acquired a controlling interest in Hibs. The fans were able to persuade Farmer to take control despite the fact that he had no great interest in football. Farmer was persuaded in part by the fact that a relative of his had been involved in the rescue of Hibs from financial ruin in the early 1890s. After the attempted takeover by Mercer, Hibs had a few good years in the early 1990s, winning the 1991 Scottish League Cup final and finishing in the top five in the league in 1993, 1994 and 1995. Soon after Alex McLeish was appointed as manager in 1998, Hibs were relegated to the First Division, but immediately won promotion back to the SPL in 1999.

2000s: "Golden generation"
Hibs enjoyed a good season in 2000–01 as they finished third in the league and reached the 2001 Scottish Cup final, which was lost 3–0 to Celtic. Manager Alex McLeish departed for Rangers in December 2001; team captain Franck Sauzée was appointed as the new manager, despite the fact that he had no previous coaching experience. A terrible run of form followed and Sauzée was fired after being in charge for 69 days.

Kilmarnock manager Bobby Williamson was then hired, but he proved to be unpopular with Hibs supporters. However, a "golden generation" of exciting young players emerged, including Garry O'Connor, Derek Riordan, Kevin Thomson and Scott Brown. These players featured heavily as Hibs eliminated both halves of the Old Firm to reach the 2004 Scottish League Cup final, only to lose 2–0 to Livingston. Williamson departed near the end of that season to manage Plymouth Argyle and was replaced by Tony Mowbray. Hibs finished third in his first season as manager, while Mowbray won the SFWA Manager of the Year award.

Mowbray left Hibs in October 2006 to manage West Bromwich Albion, and was replaced by former player John Collins. The team won the 2007 Scottish League Cup final under his management, but the club sold Kevin Thomson, Scott Brown and Steven Whittaker for fees totalling more than £8 million. Collins resigned later that year, frustrated by the lack of funds provided to sign new players. Former Hibs player Mixu Paatelainen was hired to replace Collins, but he left after the end of his first full season.

Another former Hibernian player, John Hughes, was soon appointed in place of Paatelainen. Hughes, who made high-profile signings such as Anthony Stokes and Liam Miller, led Hibs to a good start to the 2009–10 season.

2010s: Scottish Cup success
Hibs finished fourth in 2010 and qualified for the Europa League, but a poor start to the 2010–11 season led to John Hughes leaving the club. Hughes was replaced by Colin Calderwood, who was himself sacked a year later. The club avoided relegation in 2011–12 and reached the 2012 Scottish Cup final under new manager Pat Fenlon, but this was lost 5–1 to Hearts. Fenlon largely rebuilt the team after this defeat. This resulted in an improved league position in 2012–13 and the team reaching the 2013 Scottish Cup final, which was lost 3–0 to league champions Celtic. Hibs qualified for the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League, but they suffered a Scottish record defeat in European competition (9–0 on aggregate against Malmö). Fenlon resigned on 1 November and was replaced by Terry Butcher. A run of 13 games without a win to finish the 2013–14 Scottish Premiership season meant that Hibs fell into a relegation play-off, which was lost after a penalty shootout against Hamilton Academical.

Butcher was sacked in June 2014 and was replaced by Alan Stubbs. He was unable to lead the team to promotion, but the 2015–16 season saw considerable cup success. The team reached the League Cup final, which was lost to Ross County. This was followed by victory in the Scottish Cup for the first time since 1902 with a 3–2 win in the final against Rangers. As well as ending the unwanted long-term cup record, the result helped shake off a reputation of Hibs building up expectations of success only to fail, popularised among opposing supporters and in Scottish media as having 'Hibsed it';   the club's own fans then adopted the phrase as a positive reference to the occasion though it would still be repeated in future when the club was seen as underachieving. Soon after the cup win, Stubbs resigned as Hibs manager to take charge at Rotherham United and was replaced by Neil Lennon, who led the team to promotion by winning the 2016–17 Scottish Championship. In their first season back in the top flight, Hibs finished fourth in the Premiership and qualified for the Europa League. Lennon left the club in January 2019 and was replaced by Paul Heckingbottom, who only held the post for seven months. Jack Ross was appointed on 15 November 2019.

2020s: Managerial turnover
Hibs finished seventh in a 2019–20 league season that was curtailed by the COVID-19 pandemic. In the following season they finished third in the league and reached the 2021 Scottish Cup final, but this was lost 1–0 to St Johnstone. Ross guided Hibs to the League Cup final later that year, but was sacked 10 days before the final after a run of seven defeats in nine league games. Shaun Maloney was appointed as manager in December 2021, but was himself sacked four months later, having won six games out of nineteen. His successor, Lee Johnson, was appointed manager on 19 May 2022. Hibs finished fifth and qualified for European competition under Johnson, but his "rollercoaster" 15-month spell was ended when the team lost three consecutive games to start the 2023–24 league season.

Colours and badge
The predominant club colours are green and white, which have been used since the formation of the club in 1875. The strip typically has a green body, white sleeves and a white collar. The shorts are normally white, although green has been used in recent seasons. The socks are green, usually with some white detail. Hibs have used yellow, purple, black, white and a dark green in recent seasons for their alternate kits. In 1977, Hibs became the first club in Scotland to bear sponsorship on their shirts. This arrangement prompted television companies to threaten a boycott of Hibs games if they used the sponsored kit, which resulted in the club using an alternate kit for the first time.

Hibs wore green and white hooped shirts during the 1870s, which was the inspiration for the style later adopted by Celtic. Hibs then wore all-green shirts from 1879 until 1938, when white sleeves were added to the shirts. This was similar in style to Arsenal, who had added white sleeves to their red shirts earlier in the 1930s. The colour of the shorts was changed to a green which matched the shirts in 2004, to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of a friendly win in October 1964 against Real Madrid. Green shorts were used in that match to avoid a colour clash with the all-white colours of Real Madrid. Hibs also used green shorts in the 2006–07, 2007–08 and 2008–09 seasons. For the 2012–13 season, Hibs changed the primary colour of the shirts to a darker "bottle" green, instead of the normal emerald green. A darker green had been used until the 1930s. For the 2014–15 season, Hibs removed the traditional white sleeves from their home kit, as they changed to a darker green shirt in commemoration of the Famous Five forward line.

The badge used to identify the club has changed frequently over the years, which has reflected an ongoing debate about its identity. This debate has centred on whether its Irish heritage should be proudly displayed, or ignored for fear of being accused of sectarianism. The Irish harp was first removed in the 1950s, then re-introduced to the club badge when it was last re-designed in 2000. Scottish Football Museum director Ged O'Brien said in 2001, that the current design shows that Hibs "are comfortable with all the strands of their tradition – it has Leith, Edinburgh and Ireland in it." As well as the harp representing Ireland, the present badge includes a ship (for the port of Leith) and a castle (as in Edinburgh Castle).

Stadium
Hibs played on The Meadows for the first two years of their history, before moving to grounds in Newington (Mayfield Park) and Bonnington Road, Leith (Powderhall), in different spells between 1877 and 1879. After the lease on Mayfield Park expired, Hibs moved to a ground known as Hibernian Park, on what is now Bothwell Street in Leith. Hibs failed to secure the ground lease and a builder started constructing houses on the site in 1890. Hibs obtained a lease on a site that is now known as Easter Road in 1892 and have played their home matches there since February 1893.

Before the Taylor Report demanded that the stadium be all-seated, Easter Road had vast banks of terracing on three sides, which meant that it could hold crowds in excess of 60,000. The record attendance of 65,860, which is also a record for a football match played in Edinburgh, was set by an Edinburgh derby played on 2 January 1950. Such vast crowds were drawn by the success of the Famous Five.

The pitch was noted for its pronounced slope, but this was removed in 2000. The ground is currently all-seated and has a capacity of. Easter Road is a modern stadium, with all four of its stands having been built since 1995. The most recent redevelopment was the construction of a new East Stand in 2010.

Scotland have played seven of their home matches at Easter Road, between 1998 and 2017. Scotland women played their first match at Easter Road in August 2019, a Euro 2022 qualifying match against Cyprus. The ground has hosted one international not involving the Scotland teams, a friendly played between Ghana and South Korea preceding the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Easter Road has also sometimes been used as a neutral venue for Scottish League Cup semi-final matches   and once hosted a Scottish Challenge Cup final.

Rivalry

Hibs have a traditional local rivalry in Edinburgh with Hearts; the derby match between the two clubs is one of the oldest rivalries in world football. Graham Spiers has described it as "one of the jewels of the Scottish game". The clubs first met on Christmas Day 1875, when Hearts won 1–0 in the first match ever contested by Hibs. The two clubs became distinguished in Edinburgh after a five-game struggle for the Edinburgh Football Association Cup in 1878, which Hearts finally won with a 3–2 victory after four successive draws. The clubs have met each other in two Scottish Cup finals, in 1896 and 2012, both of which were won by Hearts. The 1896 match is also notable for being the only Scottish Cup Final to be played outside Glasgow.

Both clubs have been champions of Scotland four times, although Hearts have the better record in derby matches. Hibs recorded the biggest derby win in a competitive match when they won 7–0 at Tynecastle on New Year's Day 1973. While it has been noted that religious, ethnic or political background lies behind the rivalry, that aspect is "muted" and is a "pale reflection" of the sectarianism in Glasgow. Although the clubs are inescapable rivals, the rivalry is mainly "good-natured" and has had beneficial effects.

Supporters and culture
Hibernian are one of only two full-time professional football clubs in Edinburgh, which is the capital of and second largest city in Scotland. The club had the fourth largest average attendance in the Scottish leagues during the 2022–23 season (17,469). In the period after the Second World War, Hibs attracted average attendances in excess of 20,000, peaking at 31,567 in the 1951–52 season. Since Easter Road was redeveloped into an all-seater stadium in the mid-1990s, average attendance has varied between a high of 18,124 in 2017–18 and a low of 9,150 in 2003–04. There has been a significant increase in recent seasons, inspired by the Scottish Cup victory in 2016 and promotion in 2017. In the 1980s and 1990s, a minority of the club's supporters had a reputation as one of Britain's most prominent casuals groups, known as the Capital City Service.

Literature
The works of author Irvine Welsh, particularly Trainspotting, contain several references to Hibernian. The team is often mentioned in casual conversation and is the team many of his characters support. Visual references to Hibs are noticeable in Danny Boyle's film adaptation of Trainspotting; Francis Begbie wears a Hibs shirt while he plays five-a-side football, while many Hibs posters and pictures can be seen on the walls of Mark Renton's bedroom.

In the final short story of Welsh's The Acid House, Coco Bryce, a boy from the "Hibs firm" Capital City Service, is struck by lightning while under the influence of LSD in a Pilton park. His soul is then transferred to the body of an unborn child from one of the more affluent areas of Edinburgh. The appearances by Hibs in the 2012 and 2016 Scottish Cup finals are described in Welsh's novels A Decent Ride and Dead Men's Trousers respectively.

Hibernian are also frequently referred to in the Inspector Rebus series of detective novels by Ian Rankin. Rankin has stated that Rebus is a Raith Rovers supporter but he is a Hibs fan in the 2000s television adaptation of the series. Ironically, that version of Rebus is played by a Hearts supporter, Ken Stott. DS Siobhan Clarke, his colleague in the later books, is a "loyal supporter" of Hibs.

Music
The Hibs anthem "Glory, Glory to the Hibees" was written and performed by the Scottish comedian, Hector Nicol. Former Marillion singer Fish is a Hibs fan; Easter Road is mentioned in the song "Lucky", from the album Internal Exile. The Proclaimers are lifelong Hibs fans and were heavily involved with the 'Hands off Hibs' campaign to save the club in 1990. Sunshine on Leith has become a Hibs anthem, which is traditionally played after big victories at Easter Road and the finals of cup competitions. In their song "Cap in Hand", from the Sunshine on Leith album, The Proclaimers make a reference to the Hibs player Andy Goram: I can understand why Stranraer lie so lowly They could save a lot of points by signing Hibs' goalie

The song "Joyful Kilmarnock Blues", from the first album released by The Proclaimers, is about a Hibs victory away from home. I'd never been to Ayrshire I hitched down one Saturday Sixty miles to Kilmarnock Just to see Hibernian play

Television
Hibs are featured in the TV series Succession, during episode Dundee in the second season, when Roman Roy (Kieran Culkin) purchases Hearts believing them to be his father's favourite football team. Upon receiving the gift Logan Roy reveals he is in fact a Hibs supporter. When asked if he is sure he replies "You know, maybe you're right. How would I know what team I supported my whole fucking life? I mean, maybe I support Kilmarnock. Or Fucklechester Rangers? I mean, how can I possibly fucking know?"

Ownership and finances
Although the football club was formed in 1875, it was not incorporated until 1903. The club remained a private company until 1988, when it was publicly listed on the London Stock Exchange. This public listing, combined with poor financial performance, made Hibs vulnerable to an attempted takeover in 1990 by Hearts chairman Wallace Mercer. This attempt was averted when Mercer was unable to acquire the 75% shareholding needed to liquidate the company. The club's parent company, Forth Investments plc, entered receivership in 1991 and Sir Tom Farmer acquired control of the club from the receiver for £3 million. Farmer funded redevelopments of Easter Road and financial losses made by Hibs, although he delegated control to other figures such as Rod Petrie.

In December 2014, the club said it intended to sell up to 51% ownership of the club to its supporters. By November 2017, supporters had increased their shareholding in the club to 34%. The majority ownership of the club was sold in July 2019 to Peruvian-born US-based businessman Ronald Gordon, who became the executive chairman. On 21 February 2023 Hibernian announced that Gordon had died of cancer at the age of 68, and his majority shareholding was passed to his family.

The agm held in February 2024 ratified a deal with Black Knight, the majority shareholder of English club AFC Bournemouth. The result of the deal is that the Gordon family will retain majority control (60%), with Black Knight acquiring 25% for a £6 million investment. Minority shareholders, such as fans group Hibernian Supporters Limited, saw their holdings diluted.

Women's team
The club that became the Hibernian women's team was first founded in 1997 by Iain Johnston and Paul Johnston, but for the initial two seasons of its existence the club was under the auspices of Preston Athletic. The name changed to Hibernian Ladies in 1999 and they became one of the leading women's teams in Scotland.

Hibernian won the Scottish Women's Cup in 2010, for the fifth time in eight years. Their success in the national cup competition was contrasted to the male affiliate, who went over a century without winning the equivalent competition until their victory in 2016. Hibernian Ladies won domestic cup doubles in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

Ahead of the 2020 season, the club was rebranded as Hibernian Women and players were offered their first part-time professional contracts. The women's first team was fully integrated into the men's club in July 2022, with the youth sides still being run by the Hibernian Community Foundation.

Noted players
Lewis Stevenson holds the record for most league appearances for Hibs, passing 450 in 2023, taking the place of Arthur Duncan who made 446. All of the Famous Five – Gordon Smith, Eddie Turnbull, Lawrie Reilly, Bobby Johnstone and Willie Ormond – scored more than 100 league goals for Hibs.

Hibernian players have been capped at full international level for 30 different national teams, with 68 Hibernian players appearing for Scotland. Hibernian rank fifth amongst all clubs in providing players for Scotland, behind the Old Firm, Hearts and Queen's Park. James Lundie and James McGhee were the first Hibs players to play for Scotland, in an 1885–86 British Home Championship match against Wales. Lawrie Reilly holds the record for most international caps earned while a Hibs player, making 38 appearances for Scotland between 1949 and 1957. In 1959, Hibs forward Joe Baker became the first player who had not previously played for an English club to win a cap for England.

To mark the club's 135th birthday, the club created a Hall of Fame in 2010. The first group of nominees, including 13 former players, were inducted at a dinner later that year.

Noted managers
From 1875 until 1903, Hibs were managed by a committee, although Dan McMichael, who also acted as treasurer, secretary and physiotherapist, was effectively the manager when the club won the 1902 Scottish Cup and the 1903 league championship. Willie McCartney took charge of part of the league-winning 1947–48 season, but he collapsed and died after a Scottish Cup match in January 1948. Hugh Shaw inherited that team and went on to win three league championships in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Alan Stubbs won the Scottish Cup in 2015–16, ending a 114-year drought in that competition. Eddie Turnbull, Alex Miller and John Collins all won one Scottish League Cup each. Bobby Templeton, Bertie Auld, Alex McLeish and Neil Lennon all won second tier championships.

Major honours

 * Scottish league (tier I)
 * Winners (4): 1902–03, 1947–48, 1950–51, 1951–52
 * Runners-up (6): 1896–97, 1946–47, 1949–50, 1952–53, 1973–74, 1974–75
 * Scottish Cup
 * Winners (3): 1886–87, 1901–02, 2015–16
 * Runners-up (12): 1895–96, 1913–14, 1922–23, 1923–24, 1946–47, 1957–58, 1971–72, 1978–79, 2000–01, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2020–21
 * Scottish League Cup
 * Winners (3): 1972–73, 1991–92, 2006–07
 * Runners-up (8): 1950–51, 1968–69, 1974–75, 1985–86, 1993–94, 2003–04, 2015–16, 2021–22

Other honours

 * Scottish league (tier II): 1893–94, 1894–95, 1932–33, 1980–81, 1998–99, 2016–17
 * Drybrough Cup: 1972, 1973
 * Summer Cup: 1941, 1964
 * Southern League Cup: 1943–44
 * East of Scotland Shield: 49 times
 * Rosebery Charity Cup: 22 times
 * Wilson Cup: 14 times
 * Glasgow Merchants Charity Cup: 1902
 * Edinburgh Football League: 1901–02
 * North-Eastern Cup: 1910–11
 * Dunedin Cup: 1921, 1929

Attendance

 * Highest single game attendance: 65,860 vs Hearts, 2 January 1950
 * Highest average home attendance: 31,567 in the 1951–52 season
 * Highest attendance for any match involving Hibs: 143,570 vs Rangers at Hampden Park, 27 March 1948

Single game

 * Biggest victory: 22–1 vs Black Watch Highlanders, 3 September 1881
 * Biggest competitive victory: 15–1 vs Peebles Rovers, 11 February 1961
 * Biggest league victory: 11–1 vs Airdrie, 24 October 1959 and vs Hamilton, 6 November 1965
 * Biggest defeat: 0–10 vs Rangers, 24 December 1898

Caps and appearances

 * Most competitive appearances: Gordon Smith, 636
 * Most league appearances: Lewis Stevenson, 477
 * Most capped player: Lawrie Reilly, 38 for Scotland

Goals

 * Most competitive goals: Gordon Smith, 303
 * Most league goals: Lawrie Reilly, 187
 * Most competitive goals in a season: Joe Baker, 46 in 1959–60
 * Most league goals in a season: Joe Baker, 42 in 1959–60

Transfers

 * Record fee paid: £1,250,000 for Martin Boyle to Al Faisaly in 2022
 * Record fee received: £4,400,000 for Scott Brown from Celtic in 2007

title: Hibernian F.C.


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Crowborough

Crowborough is a town and civil parish in East Sussex, England, in the Weald at the edge of Ashdown Forest in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, 7 miles (11 km) south-west of Royal Tunbridge Wells and 33 miles (53 km) south of London. It had a population 20,607 at the 2011 Census.

History
Various derivations for the town's name have been put forward. Early local documents give the names Crohbergh, Crowbergh, Croweborowghe, Crowbarrow and Crowboro. Croh in Old English meant saffron or golden-yellow colour, and berg meant hill. Gorse grows in profusion in the Crowborough Beacon area, and its yellow flowers might well have contributed to the meaning.

In 1734, Sir Henry Fermor, a local benefactor, bequeathed money for a church and charity school for the benefit of the "very ignorant and heathenish people" that lived in the part of Rotherfield "in or near a place called Crowborough and Ashdown Forest". The church, dedicated to All Saints, and primary school still survive today.

The railway arrived in 1868, leading to significant growth of the town. By 1880, the town had grown so much that the ecclesiastical parish of All Saints was separated from that of St Denys, Rotherfield.

In the late 19th century, Crowborough was promoted as a health resort based on its high elevation, the rolling hills and surrounding forest. Estate Agents even called it "Scotland in Sussex". The town's golf course opened in 1895, followed by a fire station and hospital in 1900.

From 1942 to 1982, a site near Crowborough hosted notable radio transmitters, including the Aspidistra transmitter during World War II and, after the war, the BBC External Service broadcasts to Europe transmitters.

Governance
Crowborough became an ecclesiastical parish in 1880: previously it had been part of Rotherfield. A civil parish was established on 6 April 1905; the parish council was renamed as a Town Council on 24 May 1988.

Until 2012, Crowborough shared the headquarters of Wealden District Council with Hailsham, 14 miles (22 km) to the south. The Council moved all of their operations to Hailsham in 2012 although East Sussex County Council still operates a library service from the Pine Grove building. In July 2014, the Crowborough Community Association put in a bid to buy Pine Grove to retain the library and develop the rest of the building as an "enterprise hub".

Geography
Crowborough is located in the northern part of East Sussex, around 6 km from the county border with Kent. The town is 57 km south of central London. The nearest major towns are Royal Tunbridge Wells, 12 km to the north-east; Brighton, 34 km to the south-west; and Crawley, 26 km to the west. The county town of Lewes is 24 km to the south-west.

The town is located on the eastern edge of the Ashdown Forest, an ancient area of open heathland which is protected for its ecological importance and was the setting for A. A. Milne's stories about Winnie-the-Pooh.

The highest point in the town is 242 metres above sea level. This summit is the highest point of the High Weald and second highest point in East Sussex (the highest is Ditchling Beacon). Its relative height is 159 m, meaning Crowborough qualifies as one of England's Marilyns. The summit is not marked on the ground.

The town has grown from a series of previously separate villages and hamlets including Jarvis Brook, Poundfield, Whitehill, Stone Cross and Alderbrook, Sweet Haws and Steel Cross.

Transport
The main road in Crowborough is the A26. From Crowborough, the A26 runs north-east to Mereworth via Tunbridge Wells and Tonbridge. To the south, it runs to Newhaven, via Uckfield and Lewes.

Two B roads run through the town. The B2100 starts at the junction with the A26 (Crowborough Cross) and runs east to Lamberhurst via Jarvis Brook, Rotherfield, Mark Cross and Wadhurst. The B2157 Green Lane is a short link between Steel Cross and Crowborough Hill, within the town.

Crowborough railway station is located in Jarvis Brook at the bottom of Crowborough Hill. Trains run on the Oxted line which is operated by Southern, providing a direct link with London Bridge, East Croydon, Edenbridge and Uckfield. The journey time to London Bridge is approximately one hour.

A regular, frequent bus service passes through the town, linking it with Brighton and Tunbridge Wells.

Education
Crowborough has one secondary school, Beacon Academy, and seven primary schools:
 * Ashdown Primary School, formed from the merging of Whitehill Infant School and Herne Junior School in September 2015.
 * High Hurstwood Church of England (controlled) School
 * Jarvis Brook County Primary School
 * St Johns Church of England (aided) School
 * St Mary's Roman Catholic School
 * Sir Henry Fermor Church of England School
 * Grove Park School

In addition there are two independent preparatory schools.

Media
The local paper is the Kent and Sussex Courier published in Tunbridge Wells. Owned by the regional newspaper publisher Local World, there are six editions of the paper including a Sussex edition. Local television news programmes are BBC South East Today and ITV Meridian. In 2014 a local news website (Hyperlocal) called CrowboroughLife.com was established by Stephan Butler. Local radio stations are BBC Radio Sussex on 104.5 FM, Heart South on 102.4 FM and Ashdown Radio on 94.7 FM.

Health
Crowborough Hospital is a small cottage hospital with a midwife-led maternity unit. It has been threatened with closure numerous times, but services are still offered, in part due to a strong local campaign. Non-maternity services are provided at hospitals in Pembury and Haywards Heath.

Sports teams and associations
The town's football clubs comprise Crowborough Athletic F.C., who are based at the Crowborough Community Stadium and currently play in The Southern Counties East Premier and Jarvis Brook F.C., founded in 1888, run four senior sides, the highest of which plays in the Southern Combination Division 2.

Crowborough Rugby Football Club won promotion from the Sussex leagues in 2006 and now plays in the London South 2 division.

Crowborough Tennis and Squash Club has seven tennis courts, four squash courts and two padel courts. The club also offers racketball and will be launching pickleball and touchtennis in Spring 2024. The club competes in Sussex County leagues in both tennis and squash. The club is open to the public for Pay and Play tennis, padel, squash and racketball. There are also a host of social events from quizzes to live music.

Crowborough Netball is a coaching club formed, with help from Crowborough Town Council, in 2013. The club coaches children and adults from those new to the game to league players at Crowborough Leisure Centre, Beacon Academy's Green Lane Gym, and Goldsmiths outdoor court. The club arranges friendly, fun matches and competitions for all ages.

Crowborough is host to a detachment of the Army Cadet Force, a national organisation sponsored by the MoD for youths aged between 12 and 18. 1st Crowborough Scout Group comprises 1 Squirrels, 3 Beavers, 3 Cubs and 3 Scouts sections.

Recreation
Crowborough has several recreation grounds, including Goldsmiths Recreation Ground, which was given to the parish by private owners in 1937. The town council has since purchased additional land and has developed the ground into a recreation centre. There are a sports centre with swimming pool; a boating lake; and a miniature railway.

Crowborough Common is an ancient common covering over 220 acres, or about 90 hectares, to which the public was granted a legal right of access "for the taking of air and exercise" in 1936. The common is owned by Crowborough Beacon Golf Club. Most of the common is heathland and woodland. In 2012 Wealden District Council refused permission for the golf club to build a new car park in woodland on the common after a campaign involving local residents and organisations including the Open Spaces Society. On 1 February 2013 the Club served notice to DEFRA to revoke the Section 193 agreement which governed the public's right of access on the Common. On 7 February 2013 DEFRA confirmed the revocation of the rights. Due to Health and Safety reasons, not least of which is the outcome of a court case known as the 'Nidry Castle' case members of the public are requested to keep to official public footpaths and bridleways to mitigate the possible incidence of accident and injury. The club however are in consultation with Wealden District Council and other interested parties to endeavor to relocate some footpaths to make it safer for members of the public who use such footpaths. In addition, to give better access to the common for members of the public, the club are looking at ways of introducing some permissive pathways to give access to areas not served by public footpaths. The club, with the assistance of Natural England, have embarked upon a 10-year programme to restore as much of the common as possible to heathland so this endangered environment will be preserved for future generations. Adjacent to the fourth fairway is a memorial to nine Canadian soldiers of the Lincoln and Welland Regiment who were killed by a flying bomb on 5 July 1944.

Crowborough Country Park is a 16-acre (6 hectare) nature reserve located in the southern part of Crowborough. The park was previously a clay quarry serving the Crowborough Brickworks which closed in 1980. The topography of the site is evidence of its industrial past. The site of the brickworks was developed into Farningham Road industrial estate and housing in the area of Osborne Road. For nearly 30 years the quarry was left to natural regeneration and local people used it for informal play, with stories of swimming in the ponds and losing Wellington boots in the wet areas of the site. In 2008 Crowborough Town Council acquired the site to develop it for informal recreation and also to enhance the site's biodiversity. In 2008 work began in the Country Park, with a stone track and bridges installed. The site was declared a Local Nature Reserve in 2009 ensuring the future management of the site for the benefit of the wildlife and for people to enjoy quiet recreation.

The Crowborough Players, established in 1933, are the resident community drama group at the 300-seater hall at Crowborough Community Centre which opened in June 2012.

Notable people
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859–1930), the author of the Sherlock Holmes novels and short stories, lived at Windlesham Manor in Crowborough for the last 23 years of his life.

He moved to Crowborough from Surrey in 1907 when he married his second wife, whose family lived next door at Little Windlesham. Windlesham Manor is now a retirement home.

Sir Arthur was a past Captain of Crowborough Beacon Golf Club in 1910 and Lady Conan Doyle was Ladies Captain in 1911.

Conan Doyle was initially buried vertically in the grounds of the manor, but later interred with his first wife at Minstead in the New Forest. His statue stands at Crowborough Cross, in the town centre.

A Sherlock Holmes festival was held in Crowborough for several years running in the mid-1990s, reportedly attracting up to 25,000 visitors.

Conan Doyle is commemorated in the town through street names such as Watson Way and Sherlock Shaw, and Conan Way.

Other notable Crowborough people include:

 * Tom Baker, (born 1934), actor, played the role of the fourth Doctor in Doctor Who
 * Dirk Bogarde, (1921–1999), actor and writer
 * Robert Henry Cain, VC, (1909–1974), only survivor of the Battle of Arnhem to receive the Victoria Cross.
 * James Dagwell (born 1974), British journalist, former BBC News presenter
 * Tom Driberg, Baron Bradwell (1905–1976), journalist, politician, member of the British Communist Party
 * Sir E. E. Evans-Pritchard, social anthropologist.
 * Dylan Hartley, England Rugby Union player
 * David Jason (born 1940), actor
 * Richard Jefferies (1848–1887), writer and naturalist
 * Jehst (William Shields) (born 1979), hip hop artist
 * Rear Admiral Philip Whitworth Burnett (10 October 1908 - 6 October 1996) was a Senior British Military Commander who served in the Royal Navy during the Second World War.
 * Kerry Katona, actor and singer
 * Ross Kemp, actor, played Grant Mitchell in the soap opera EastEnders
 * Derek Rayner, Baron Rayner, former CEO of the Marks & Spencer department store chain.
 * Isaac Roberts (1829–1904), engineer, pioneer in astrophotography of nebulae
 * Piers Sellers (1955–2016), NASA astronaut
 * Tony Stratton Smith, manager of the rock bands Genesis and Van der Graaf Generator
 * Norman Thorne (c.1902–1925), chicken farmer convicted of the Crowborough "Chicken run murder".
 * Sir Tim Waterstone, founder of Waterstones bookshop chain.
 * Kim Woodburn, television presenter
 * Cate Blanchett, Academy Award-winning Australian actress
 * Kevin Brownlow, filmmaker and film historian
 * Kirsty Barton, Brighton & Hove Albion footballer
 * Matt Weston, Olympic Skeleton
 * Joanne Rout, Paralympic swimmer
 * Hugh Beaver, founder of the Guinness Book of Records
 * Kim Philby, Soviet spy

Popular culture
The town is the territorial designation in the title of the Duke of Crowborough (portrayed by Charlie Cox) in the first episode of the TV show Downton Abbey. Cox grew up in the vicinity of the town.

The town is also mentioned in series 3 episode 6 of Unforgotten. Series villain Dr Tim Finch (played by Alex Jennings) claims that he had practiced medicine in Crowborough in 1997.

Local traditions
A main event in the town's calendar is its annual celebration of Guy Fawkes Night on 5 November. An average of 5000 people descend upon Goldsmiths Recreation Ground for this town council event. Donations on the night are traditionally collected by the local Lions Club and now also the Rotary Club, and donated to the mayor's charity.

However this is overshadowed by carnival night, which sees the whole of the town taking to the streets on the second Saturday in September. This is run by the town's Bonfire and Carnival Society. It involves a fête on Chapel green during the day, followed by a torchlight parade led by the carnival princess in the evening, with various Sussex bonfire societies joining the march round the streets. The evening culminates in a bonfire on Chapel Green or sometimes there have been fireworks at Goldsmiths Recreation Ground. Street collections are received on the night and are given to around six different local charities each year. On average the society raises about £2,000–£3,000 per year. This tradition dates back around 70 years and is part of Sussex Bonfire Tradition the largest event of which being the Lewes Bonfire celebrations on 5 November.

The town council also puts on a summer fair and a Christmas fair. A summer fun day is organised by the Crowborough Chamber of Commerce, and Crowborough Hospital has a fête every August Bank Holiday.

There is a farmers' market on the fourth Saturday of the month. and a French Market held as part of the Chamber of Commerce's Fun Day in June. As well as this for the last few years Sussex day has been celebrated on 16 June with a small fete in Chapel Green

According to local legend, Walshes Road is haunted by a bag of soot. The spectral bag pursues people walking along the road by night.

Twin towns
The town is twinned with:
 * 🇫🇷 Montargis, France
 * Horwich, Greater Manchester, England

On 22 April 1990, Crowborough and Horwich became the first towns in England to be twinned with other English towns.

title: Crowborough


text:
Prophets (disambiguation)

Prophets may refer to:

People

 * Prophet, an interpreter or spokesperson of a deity
 * Prophets in Judaism
 * Prophets of Christianity
 * Prophets of Islam - beginning with Adam and ending with Muhammad
 * LDS Prophets, modern day Prophets of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Religious texts

 * The Prophets, Nevi'im in Hebrew, is a collection of writings comprising the second of three main divisions in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible; Old Testament)

Popular culture

 * High Prophets (Halo), The Covenant leaders in Halo 2
 * Prophet (Star Trek), in the fictional Star Trek universe
 * Prophets (verse novel), a 1995 verse novel by Kwame Dawes
 * Prophets (album), an album by hardcore band Counterparts

title: Prophets (disambiguation)


text:
Illinois State University

Illinois State University (ISU) is a public research university in Normal, Illinois. It was founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University and is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teaching and is recognized as one of the top ten largest producers of teachers in the US according to the American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".

The university's athletic teams are members of the Missouri Valley Conference and the Missouri Valley Football Conference and are known as the "Redbirds," in reference to the state bird, the cardinal.

History
ISU was founded in 1857, the same year Illinois' first Board of Education was convened and two years after the Free School Act was passed by the state legislature. Among its supporters were judge and future Supreme Court Justice, David Davis and local businessman and land holder Jesse W. Fell whose friend, Abraham Lincoln, was the attorney hired by the board of education to draw up legal documents to secure the school's funding.

Founded as Illinois State Normal University, it was the first state university in Illinois. Its classes were initially held in downtown Bloomington, occupying space in Major's Hall, which was previously the site of Lincoln's "Lost Speech." With the completion of Old Main in 1860, the school moved to its current campus in what was then the village of North Bloomington, which was chartered as the town of "Normal" in 1865. The new town had named itself after the university.

The editor of the Bloomington Pantagraph wrote in 1882: "The intention was to gather around the institution the different colleges, - classical, agricultural, industrial, law medical, and the other departments of a university, - until, in the end, the State should have here a grand university, equal to any." Thus the school was originally designed as a wide-ranging university with one department of teacher training. That left only a teacher-training school--indeed what was then called a "normal college". It later added many other roles and became a wide-ranging university in the 20th century.

On January 1, 1964, the institution's name was changed to Illinois State University at Normal, and then again in 1967 to the current Illinois State University.

The school's motto was originally "and gladly wold he lerne and gladly teche", in the Middle English spelling of Geoffrey Chaucer. It has since been updated to modern English in the gender-neutral form "Gladly we Learn and Teach".

Laboratory schools
The university has two laboratory schools: University High School and Thomas Metcalf Laboratory School.

Bloomington/Normal Japanese Saturday School (ブルーミントン・ノーマル補習授業校 Burūminton Nōmaru Hoshū Jugyō Kō), a Japanese weekend school, was established in 1986 and held at the Thomas Metcalf School. It has a separate office in Normal

Academics and organizations
Founded as a teachers' college, the university now offers a range of programs at the bachelor, master, and doctoral levels. Illinois State is accredited by the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. The teacher preparation programs are accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and certified by the Illinois State Board of Education. In addition, 22 programs hold discipline-based accreditation.

The Illinois Board of Higher Education in 2022 approved plans for a new College of Engineering, with the university seeking to add three programs: general engineering, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering. In January 2023, the university announced that Thomas Keyser would be the first dean of the College of Engineering, which was set to welcome its first students in 2025.

Academic colleges
Source:

 * College of Applied Science and Technology
 * College of Arts and Sciences
 * College of Business
 * College of Education
 * College of Engineering
 * Mennonite College of Nursing
 * Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts

Rankings
In the 2024 rankings, U.S. News & World Report ranked Illinois State University (tied for) 209 among a combined list of America's best 439 private and public "national universities" and (tied for) 112 among 227 public "national universities" in the United States that qualified for the list.

Forbes magazine ranks Illinois State #245 out of 500 American colleges.

Demographics
As of the fall of 2021, total on-campus enrollment was 20,233, with 17,674 undergraduate students and 2,559 graduate students. As of 2019 56.6 percent of students are female, while 43.4 percent are male. About 28.8% of all students were from minority groups. Of the 558 international students 422 are graduate students. International students come from 69 countries. The average new freshman student had an ACT score near 24 and a gpa of 3.6 out of 4.0.

The Quad

Initially designed by William Saunders, the Illinois State University campus quadrangle (commonly known as The Quad), is a popular outdoor venue for students and the local community. Lined with benches and shady trees, the site is a popular spot for students to relax, study, and play informal games of sports. Outdoor events such as the annual RSO showcase, Festival ISU and Concerts on the Quad are popular in the campus community.

The ISU Quad is also host to the Fell Arboretum, which is part of a 490-acre site that represents over 154 species of trees from the state of Illinois. Trees on the north side of the quad are from Northern Illinois, and those on the south side of the quad from southern parts of the state. The Fell Arboretum is part of the Arbor Day Foundation's Tree Campus Higher Education Institution.

Milner Library

Milner Library has a collection of more than 1.63 million volumes and an ever-increasing number of electronic materials accessible by the Internet to students and faculty. The library's collection is distinguished by materials related to educational theory and policy, curriculum development, and issues related to special education and assistive technology. The Special Collections include extensive Circus and Allied Arts materials and a children's literature collection that features more than 100 first edition volumes signed by author Lois Lenski. Milner Library is also a selective federal depository for government information. Combined Milner's collections contribute to the university's relatively high standing in regional, national, and world rankings. In 2007, the library received the John Cotton Dana Library Public Relations Award, an award given to only seven libraries nationwide.

Milner Library administers the Dr. Jo Ann Rayfield University Archives, which houses selected official records from university departments and organizations, faculty papers, and memorabilia and ephemera on student life. The archives also hosts a branch of the Illinois Regional Archives Depository (IRAD). In addition to making physical collections available for in-person use, the Rayfield Archives has made many of the university's official publications freely available for online research use.

Additional library facilities include book storage both on and off-site as well as a preservation department.

The Milner Library was named for Angeline "Ange" Vernon Milner (1856–1928), a Bloomington-Normal native and the first full-time librarian of Illinois State Normal University. Milner is credited with organizing the university's initial collection of more than 40,000 items and was a prolific author of more than seventy articles and short monographs in library and education journals during her tenure as University Librarian from 1890 to 1927.

The current library building, opened in 1976, is the second facility constructed to be a dedicated library. The university library has resided in five campus locations: Old Main (demolished 1958), John W. Cook Hall, North Hall (demolished 1965), Williams Hall (first known as Milner Library), and the current Milner Library.

Residence halls
Illinois State University has six residence halls, one apartment complex, and dedicated apartments for upper class and graduate students. Facilities are administered by the ISU's University Housing Services.

Watterson
Watterson Towers is not only the largest residence hall on campus, it is also one of the world's tallest student residence halls, and provides the highest vantage point in Illinois between Chicago and St. Louis. Watterson features areas for wellness, quiet, substance-free, and restricted visitation. Built between 1968 and 1970, the facility is named for Arthur W. Watterson, a geography faculty member and chair. Watterson went through a massive renovation from March 2010 through August 2012.

East Campus
Hewett and Manchester Hall are in East Campus. Built in 1966, they were named after Edwin C. Hewett, the third University president, and Orson L. Manchester, Illinois State Normal University dean from 1911 to 1928.

Both are for the most part coed, with specialty floors designated as all male or all female. Until recently, Hewett was all-female. Between both Hewett and Manchester, there are floors dedicated to students majoring in art, business, communication, co-sciences, curriculum and instruction, Geo-Environmental, Honors, Information Technology, Math, and Music. Other floors are dedicated to students with interests and preferences such as service and leadership, substance-free, quiet, and international house.

These residence halls were renovated in 2008–09. During this renovation, the dining center in the basement between each hall was transformed into the Julia N. Visor Center which is dedicated to helping students achieve academic success through free tutoring and other services.

West Campus
Haynie, Wilkins, and Wright Hall are in West Campus, next to Redbird Arena and Hancock Stadium. Also known as "The Tri Towers", they feature floors for ROTC, Wellness, Substance-Free, and Quiet. These halls are the most remote residence facilities on campus and are known for housing a majority of athletes because of their proximity to practice areas. They were built in 1962 and named for Martha D.L. Haynie, the first female Illinois State Normal University professor, Daniel Wilkins, principal of the Female School Institute of Bloomington in the 1850s, and Simeon Wright, one of the university's founders.

Cardinal Court
In 2012, the university opened the new Cardinal Court Apartments to replace a complex by the same name and on the same site built in 1959. Much like the old Cardinal Court, the new Cardinal Court provides apartment-style living combined with the benefits of university housing. Besides simply being more modern, the primary difference is that the old Cardinal Court had been reserved for married couples and graduate students.

South Campus
Until recently, there were several residence halls in what has been known as "South Campus". There are no longer any students housed in the area now, and the buildings were demolished in the summer of 2016.

Hamilton and Whitten Hall (aka "Ham-Whit) shared a joint entrance and front desk. They featured lifestyle floors such as Upper-class and Graduate, Student Nursing, and Speech Pathology and Audiology. Constructed in 1959, the facility was named for Alma H. Hamilton, the first recipient of an Illinois State Normal University bachelor's degree, and Jennie Whitten, the former head of the Foreign Language Department.

Atkin and Colby Hall, though built later than "Ham-Whit", were essentially a mirror image of the former, and shared a dining center with the same. Built in 1962 as female-only dorms, they were converted to co-ed. They were named for Edith Irene Atkin, Illinois State Normal University mathematics professor from 1909 to 1940 and June Rose Colby, English professor from 1892 to 1932.

Central Campus
Three residence halls, Dunn, Barton, and Walker Hall, were demolished in 2008 to provide space for the Student Fitness, Kinesiology and Recreation Center.

Student life
The school newspaper, The Vidette first published in 1888 as a subscription-based newspaper serving both the university and Town of Normal. In 1915, the paper received funding from the university and dropped its subscription model. In 2021, The Vidette ceased printing newspapers and became an entirely online news source.

ISU owns a public radio station WGLT ("News, Blues and All That Jazz"), which broadcasts on 89.1 in Normal, 103.5 in Peoria, and by streaming audio. The call letters are from keywords of the school's motto: "Gladly-Learn-Teach." The university also maintains a student radio station, WZND. On January 20, 2010, WZND changed its format from a dual format (Rock and Jamz) to a college shuffle format. The station broadcasts on 103.3 FM, channels 4 & 5 in the residence halls and on the web. TV-10, a part of the School of Communication, provides the only live local television newscast produced entirely in Bloomington-Normal.

ISU has over 400 registered student organizations (RSO) and several university groups that sponsor student-focused events. The Multicultural Center is home to student diversity advocacy organizations such as the Asian Pacific American Coalition (APAC), the Association of Latin American Students (ALAS), Black Student Union (BSU), and Pride.

Student organizations
Illinois State is home to over 400 registered student organizations or "RSOs". These organizations can range from intramural sports to branches of nationally recognized student organizations. Every year RSOs are able to advertise themselves to students during Festival ISU where RSOs can reserve a booth on the quad where they can meet passing students looking to join an organization.

Illinois State University also boasts one of the largest student spirit organizations in the United States, RED ALERT. This registered student organization has over 4,100 members, roughly one fourth of the student body. The group was founded in 2006 to promote student involvement in university athletics and has grown exponentially.

ISU is the home of the Gamma Phi Circus, the oldest collegiate circus in the world, founded in 1929. It is one of two collegiate circuses in the US; the other is run by Florida State University.

The Student Government Association at Illinois State University is a unique governing body for the ISU Student Body. It is unique in that it sends 21 voting student members to serve on the Academic Senate which is composed of student, faculty, staff, and administrators.

Greek life
The Illinois State University Greek community was established in 1967. Statistics kept by those involved claim more than 10% of the student population as active members of Greek Life.

Nationally ranked teams
The ISU Forensics Individual Events team is one of the most successful forensics individual events teams in the country. In 1995, 1999, and 2000 it won the National Forensic Association team championship and in 2005 its team won the American Forensic Association team championship. Illinois State has been selected as the host of the 2011 NFA National Championship. Famous alumni include Nelsan Ellis of HBO's True Blood.

In recent years the Illinois State football team has been consistently ranked at the NCAA Division I FCS level.

The Illinois State Club Baseball team was ranked No. 18 in the country in the spring of 2010 for much of the year, but ultimately finished second in the Great Lakes South Conference behind the University of Illinois. The Redbirds compiled a 15–5 overall record, including 9–4 in conference.

The Illinois State University Mock Trial Team has enjoyed continue success since its inception in 1987. The team competes in intercollegiate tournaments sponsored by AMTA (American Mock Trial Association).

Athletics
The school's fight song is "Go, You Redbirds," a song written specifically for ISU and frequently played at sporting events. The Alma Mater song, also played at sporting events from time to time, is "Glory Hast Thou," written to the tune of Haydn's "Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser," and better known as the tune used for "Deutschlandlied," the German national anthem.

In addition to the Redbird teams linked above, the Ice Hockey club is the oldest registered student organization on campus. The Grossinger Motors Arena located in downtown Bloomington is home to the university's three club ice hockey teams, which compete in ACHA Divisions 1, 2, and 3.

Notable alumni and faculty
The Illinois State University Alumni Center, located at 1101 N. Main in Normal, is designed to serve over 215,000 alumni of Illinois State University, as well as current students, faculty/staff, and the Bloomington/Normal community.

University presidents

 * Charles E. Hovey (1857–1862)
 * Richard Edwards (1862–1876)
 * Edwin C. Hewett (1876–1890)
 * John Williston Cook (1890–1899)
 * Arnold Tompkins (1899–1900)
 * David Felmley (1900–1930)
 * Harry A. Brown (1930–1933)
 * Raymond W. Fairchild (1933–1955)
 * Robert Gehlmann Bone (1956–1967)
 * Samuel Braden (1967–1970)
 * David K. Berlo (1971–1973)
 * Gene A. Budig (1973–1977)
 * Lloyd Watkins (1977–1988)
 * Thomas Wallace (1988–1995)
 * David A. Strand (1995–1999)
 * Victor Boschini Jr. (1999–2003)
 * C. Alvin Bowman (2004–2013)
 * Timothy Flanagan (2013–2014)
 * Larry Dietz (2014–2021)
 * Terri Goss Kinzy (2021–2023)
 * Aondover Tarhule (2024-Present)

Folklore and legends
The ghost of Angeline Vernon Milner, the university's first librarian, is said to haunt the former library building, now called Williams Hall.

title: Illinois State University