Jun 21

Written by: Joe Longo
Saturday, June 21, 2008 

Local resident Frank Long will launch his new book “A Century of Sports in Niagara Falls: Book II” at the Victoria Avenue Library on June 21 from 10am to 1pm. Autographed copies of the book will be on sale for $25 (tax included) and the public is invited to share their sports memories with the author.

In 2006, Book I by Long was a bestseller and many local athletes and their families wanted a copy.

After the official launch, the Library will once again be selling the book as a library fund raising project for $25 (tax included) at each of our four libraries (Chippawa, Community Centre, Stamford and Victoria Avenue libraries).

The book committee included the author’s wife Joyce and friends Doug Caverson and Boris Dimitroff.

Book II continues the first book and with new and different photographs. There are 300 photographs of 19 sports with more than 3100 names in the name index which will provide easier identification of local athletes.

There are a large number of photographs from Chippawa including some special early photos from elementary school teams.

In addition to sports like hockey, baseball, softball, curling, soccer, tennis and basketball which come quickly to mind, many other sports were included . These are badminton, bowling, boxing, cycling, figure skating, rugby, golf, horse racing, lacrosse, rowing, skeet shooting, volleyball, wrestling, soap box derby, swimming and track and field.

We are proud to see that our Library’s Manager of Public Services, Monika Draeger Seymour, is included under rowing. Monika was on the Canadian National Team from 1974 to 1980; her team won the bronze medal in Lucerne Switzerland in 1976; and won the bronze medal the Women’s Eight World Championship in 1978. Monika participated in the 1976 Montreal Olympics and qualified in the Pre-Olympic Regatta for the boycotted Olympics in Moscow in 1980.

Frank Long was born in Niagara Falls, graduated from N.F.C.V.I. , taught and worked for the Niagara South Board of Education, retiring in 1985. He authored four school textbooks. He played and coached hockey in Niagara Falls and elsewhere, playing professional hockey in the American, East Coast and Pacific Hockey Leagues.

There are almost 1,000 digital photographs and almost 7000 indexed newspaper articles under the subject “sports” in the “Historic Niagara Digital Collections” on the library’s website http://www.nfpl.library.on.ca/nfplindex/ . In a typical day more than 7,000 visits are made to this database. The Niagara Falls Virtual Sports Wall of Fame on our website has been well used.