 | Rocksey Powell
serves as the "supervisor of the off ice officials" for the Wichita Thunder. The Central Hockey League is his boss. He served in the same capacity for the Wichita Wind in the 70's and early 80's, as well as with the Central Hockey League. He has served on the board of the Wichita Youth Hockey in the early 70's and was in charge of scorekeeping.
Rocksey is the son of the well known Wichita Jeweler from yesteryear, J.V. Powell. Rocksey is well known for his knowledge and expertise in the jewelry and engraving business, but is also a renowned and widely acclaimed Horologist, better known as a Watchmaker. During over 40 years of being in the jewelry and watchmaking business, Rocksey has become an expert at altering parts to repair watches and clocks. Rocksey and his wife Jacquie own and operate The Gold Tender at 2730 N. Amidon, Suite B, in Wichita.
You can call Rocksey or Jacquie Powell at (316) 832-9292. |
Sports
2004-01-01 11:40:00
Tell me about this game
: Hockey never ceases to amaze me. It seems like it would be hard enough to get a heavy flat rubber puck into a net if you were on dry land... but on ice skates too? When and where did this game originate?
ANSWER: My research shows that hockey's origins have been claimed by many communities. Windsor Nova Scotia, Montreal, Quebec and Kingston, Ontario. But it was Deline, North West Territories where the first documented reference to the game occurred. Sir John Franklin, the explorer who discovered and traveled throughout Northern and Arctic Canada, recorded in his diary a first ever reference to the game of hockey. While wintering at the fort at Deline NWT, on Great Bear Lake, Franklin's men played a game of hockey where they strapped on skates and Franklin documented this in a diary entry. Toronto history buff Joseph Nieforth unearthed a letter written by Franklin in November 1825, which says: "Till the snow fell the game of hockey played on the ice was the morning's sport." Franklin's personal journal, published in 1998 by the Champlain Society contained the following entry by Franklin in October 1825:"Friday 20th... We were visited by the first decided snow storm which continued without intermission 36 hours. Though this change put a period to the amusements of skating and the evening games on the ice we could not but rejoice, as there was now sufficient snow on the ground for the putting in practice the winter modes of traveling." Martin Jones, a lawyer from Dartmouth, NS has published "Hockey's Home: Halifax-Dartmouth - The Origins of Canada's Game". He claims that the game was first played on Lake Banook in Dartmouth in the early 1800's.Thomas Chandler Haliburton, a judge and writer (19th century Sam Slick) in Windsor, Nova Scotia penned a reference in his writings. Haliburton wrote in 1844 about his childhood memories and he spoke of his time at King's College shortly after the turn of the century and of boys "(playing) hurley on the Long Pond on the ice." The long pond reference is apparently that of a pond on Howard Dill's pumpkin farm in Windsor, 60 km northwest of Dartmouth.A game played in Kingston in 1855 between teams from the Royal Canadian Rifles, stationed in the British Garrison there, is claimed to be the first organized hockey game played in Canada. The game was played on the harbor ice and had as many as fifty men to a side and is still debated as to whether it was a "hockey game" or not.James Creighton, born in Halifax in 1850 had relocated to Montreal in 1870, and introduced the game there. On March 3rd, 1875, Creighton and friends played the first game of organized hockey inside a rink. Creighton's game featured nine skaters a side and followed "Halifax Rules" written by Creighton himself. The introduction of hockey in Montreal was successful and the game grew quickly.Four years later W.F. Robertson, a student at McGill University in Montreal decided to adapt the sport of field hockey to ice hoping to keep the McGill football club in shape during the winter. This game had fifteen men a side, and used a lacrosse ball with the edges cut off as the puck. This reduced the damage caused by the lacrosse ball wildly bouncing out of control.From the games played in the early 1800's in Windsor Nova Scotia, hockey spread to Quebec by 1875, then into Kingston, Ontario in 1886, and south to Toronto in 1888. By 1890, the game had arrived in Winnipeg and then to Victoria, British Columbia becoming a truly Canadian game.More next month...
