Between the Covers

Hardcover. Quarto. Measuring 9" x 12.5". Black cloth with "scrapbook" stamped in white on the front board. Contains 352 sepia-toned or black and white gelatin silver photographs measuring between 2" x 3" and 6.5" x 8.5", with captions. Good only album with detached pages, tears on the spine, and large chips with near fine photographs.

A scrapbook compiled by John Joseph Cantwell (referred to as “Jack” throughout) between 1911 and 1925. The scrapbook details his high school and college years, his time serving in World War I, and the numerous sports he played. Jack spent his freshman year at Springfield College in Massachusetts playing baseball and football, and in 1912 he was involved with the Intercollegiate Championships held at Harvard Stadium. There are action shots of runners and pole vaulting as well as the crowd in the stands. By 1915 he had enrolled at Fordham University and throughout are photos of football games, boxing matches, and baseball games, as well as Jack and his friends goofing off during their leisure time.

After graduating from Fordham in 1917, Jack joined the American Expeditionary Forces and traveled to France to fight in World War I and was stationed in Verdun. Included in his scrapbook are 25 photos from this time which began with the French Army and later the United States Hospital Corps. These photos show the French countryside and people as well as military personal such as soldiers and American Red Cross nurses. Photos include a French plane, a group of soldiers on post, American grave sites in France, the ruins of Verdun, and men on a hill with their stomachs to the ground awaiting the enemy. Jack enjoyed his time in France when he had the chance and befriended a young woman who is referred to as “the Parisian Baby.”

He returned home in 1919 and documented a vacation at Lake Boone in North Carolina and photos show him with friends boating, swimming, and blowing off steam after his time overseas. By 1920 he became a counselor at Gardner Playgrounds where he taught children volleyball and supervised activities. A photo captioned “my bunch” shows Jack’s group of children posed on playground equipment. In 1923 he worked at the Sterling Health Camp which was a camp for sick children and is pictured with nurses, doctors, and patients on the grounds of the camp. The staff seemed to enjoy each other’s company and are photographed laughing and smiling together and with the children. One photo shows Jack surrounded by women of the camp which reads “talk about your harem” and another of a group of women reads “three good scouts.”

Jack married Margaret Ellen Riordan in Worcester, Massachusetts, their wedding taking place in January of 1925 and an invitation is laid in. The final pages detail vacations and family visits through the rest of that year, including trips to Lake Winnipesaukee, New Hampshire in the sun and water, fishing, hiking, and having a good time goofing off. Jack would go on to coach at Classical High School in Massachusetts with a newspaper clipping tipped in from 1952 that discusses his retirement from the school where he coached for 32 years.

An extensive scrapbook of a young man’s formative years featuring college sports and serving his country in World War I before becoming a beloved high school coach.

Item #407096