Woman’s National Bowling Assn. The groundwork had been prepared by proprietor Dennis Sweeney and Ellen Kelly, who’d put together the fi rst local women’s associ- ation the year before. The declared purpose of the new group is to stage a nation- al tournament for female bowlers. The organization later becomes known as the Women’s International Bowling Congress.
1916
First local proprietors’
association formed
After two years of effort by local proprietor Leo Schuen- emann, the Greater Chicago Bowling Alley Proprietors’ Assn. is founded. The original roster includes 16 estab- lishments. When Dave Luby declines the honor, Matt Faetz is elected President. Schuenemann becomes Secretary.
EVERYTHING BOWLING, ALL THE TIME
THE 1910s 1917
Detroit Recreation opens
The fi rst bowling mega- center has 88 lanes on four fl oors, including an entire fl oor reserved for women. The Recreation also boasts 103 billiard tables, a cigar store, seven soda fountains, a full-service restaurant, a bar- ber shop and a chiropractor’s offi ce. The owners proudly call it “the working man’s private club.”
1918 Bowling
and World War I
With the country at war and men entering the service, the bowling business slumps. The situation is made worse by the sudden outbreak of the Spanish Flu epidemic. In Chicago, proprietors battle back by staging the largest bowling event to date — the Patriotic Bowling Tourna- ment — to raise funds for military bowling lanes.
1919 The
postwar rebound.
Bowling booms with the return to peace. The num- ber of leagues doubles, and the ABC at Toledo draws a record entry. The Central States Bowling Assn. holds its fi rst tournament. Scor- ing reaches new heights, as Count Gengler sets a 10-game pinfall record. As a symbol of the transition, Mort Lindsey wins the ABC All-Events championship — while still wearing his wartime naval uniform.
About The Author: J.R. Schmidt has been BJI’s resident historian since 1990. Normally, he writes the monthly “Time Capsule” feature,but during BJI’s 100th an- niversary year, we’ve asked him to assemble a monthly bowling timeline — one for each decade of the magazine’s exis- tence — to be comple- mented by photographs and illustrations from BJI’s massive “morgue.” Schmidt, an avid bowler, also maintains a blog about bowling history.
CLICK HERE: To check out his personal photo gallery of ABC/USBC Open Tournament team photos