College
WoburnThe following is an excerpt from an article by Craig E. Taylor entitled "He Saw Sports Come In" about William Davis.
"Bill Davis was born in Woburn, Mass., in 1862. As a young boy, he joined the townsfolk in the pastime of running to fires, often several villages away. He built up wind and stamina in this manner, and it was a source of pride to be able to arrive first on the scene."
A varied career took him through an almost countless number of jobs, including those of special agent of the United States Employment Service, field representative of the National Manufacturers Association, Secretary of the National Marble Dealers Association for many years and in between, service as a real estate salesman, sports writer, shoe dealers' representative and other posts.
In 1884, Bill was touring the British Isles as a member of the All-American team. His memory up until the time of his death held every detail of that experience, as well as many others. He recalled seeing A.G. Spalding as a pitcher for Boston. He was the All Round Champion in Boston and won a medal for "General Excellence."
Bill kept newspaper clippings of his and others successes, which, for him, were numerous. Throughout his life, Bill displayed an attitude and charisma about sports that lives on whenever anyone mentions his name. His accomplishments have served to enhance the game of lacrosse when it was still in its infancy, and now lacrosse is honored to pay him back.