In my constant reading and search for more historical and sports knowledge, I came across an interesting bit of hoop history tied to Ada in a book I bought this spring.
As a native of Indiana and lifelong player, chronicler and historian of the game, I am always looking for new information on basketball history.
My extensive personal library has hundreds of basketball books, dozens of biographies, many old Basketball Digest and Street and Smith's magazines, annual handbooks, and other team histories, as well as some of my own self-published trivia game books.
Sitting in the Ada Public Library meeting room listening to a presentation by Jane Helser is a reminder that, yup, you really can’t judge a book by its cover. You wouldn’t guess that she’s rubbed elbows with NFL greats, until you take a peek at her memorabilia and photo albums from a 48-year career at the Wilson Sporting Goods football factory at 217 Liberty St. The factory is the sole manufacturer of NFL and Super Bowl footballs.
Arthur Amiet took this photo in the fall of 1938, when he was a student at Ohio Northern. Mayor Dave Retterer recalls that the tower supports were made of railroad rails. Photo courtesy of Don Amiet, as found on Old Pictures of Forgotten Ohio.
The Ada Ohio Historical Society will host My Time at the Wilson Football Factory with Jane Helser at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 18 at the Ada Public Library, 320 N. Main St.
Helser will give a talk about her 48-year career at the Wilson Football Factory. In the attached photo Helser is pictured with Peyton Manning, the NFL quarterback who played for 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four seasons with the Denver Broncos. Helser was featured on the television program Peyton's Places in 2019.
Icon founder Fred Steiner blogs about 1937 earthquakes that shook Ohio. You'll find the Ada Herald story from 1937 HERE, in the digital archives of the Ada Public Library.
