Missing your favorite sports teams?
A Shawsheen Village 100 Story
In the 1920s, you could have cheered on Andover’s National Championship soccer team, the Shawsheen Indians, from the grandstand of the Balmoral Athletic Field in Shawsheen Village.
Company-sponsored sporting clubs and leagues played a prominent role in American sports in the late 1800s into the 1900s. In Andover, the American Woolen Company, Smith & Dove Manufacturers, and the Ballardvale mills all sponsored sports teams for their employees.
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Shawsheen Indians
George M. Wallace, private secretary to William Wood, President of the American Woolen Company, was the driving force behind the Shawsheen Indians. Wallace, a native of Scotland with a soccer background, laid out the Balmoral Athletic Field.
Wallace then began to turn an average team into a powerhouse. Using some existing players, Wallace added high-level players - all Scottish born. They officially became the Shawsheen Football Club, locally called the Indians. And they were a force on the field.
ACHC Collection #1995.069.1
In 1924, the team moved quickly through the state tournament and captured the Cup with a resounding defeat of a team from Holyoke, 3-0. In December that year, Wallace felt his team should move up in competition to the national level.
In spring 1925, after defeating strong teams from Boston, Worcester and New Jersey, the Indians moved up to the national semifinals against the Abbot Worsteds form Forge Village in Westford. The Indians prevailed 2-1 and played themselves into the championship match against a team from Chicago.
On a cool and cloudy mid-April day in 1925 at Mark's Stadium in Rhode Island, the Indians played before fewer than 1,000 people. Weather held the crowd level down, but it never played a role in the match. From the beginning whistle, the Indians outclassed the team from the Windy City. Leading 2-0 at halftime, they scored another goal in the second half, then, satisfied, played defense the rest of the way, shutting out their opponents.
The Shawsheen Indians, champions of the nation, brought the title to Andover. Wallace hoisted the cup for this little town team.
Want to learn more? You can read more about the Shawsheen Indians soccer team on our Andover Stories website here.