Arthur "Art" Egerton Sixsmith (June 27, 1880 – March 15, 1969) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

rover Rover may refer to: People * Constance Rover (1910–2005), English historian * Jolanda de Rover (born 1963), Dutch swimmer * Rover Thomas (c. 1920–1998), Indigenous Australian artist Places * Rover, Arkansas, US * Rover, Missouri, US ...

and businessman. He played for the Ottawa Hockey Club and later moved to

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

to play professionally. He was a member of the Ottawa's 1901 CAHL championship team. As one of the first professional ice hockey players, he captained and managed several of the championship teams in the

Western Pennsylvania Hockey League The Western Pennsylvania Hockey League (WPHL) was an originally amateur and later professional ice hockey league founded in 1896 and existing through 1909. Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the league became the pre-eminent ice hockey league in ...

(WPHL). His brother, Garnet Sixsmith, also played professionally in Pittsburgh.

Career

Born in

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, Sixsmith first played senior hockey at the age of 15 with the

Ottawa Cliffsides The Ottawa Cliffsides were a senior ice hockey team that played in the Inter-Provincial Amateur Hockey Union from 1908–1911. From 1905 to 1908 they played in the Ottawa City Senior League. They were the first winner of the Allan Cup in 1909 ...

of the

Ottawa City Hockey League The Ottawa City Hockey League (OCHL) was an amateur ice hockey league with junior, intermediate and senior level men's teams in Ottawa, Canada. Founded in 1890 by the local Ottawa Hockey Association (Ottawa HA), the OCHL was created to organize p ...

. He played junior hockey until 1899 when he joined the Ottawa Hockey Club, playing two seasons for the club, scoring seven goals in nine games. During his time with the club, Ottawa won two CAHL titles. In 1901, Art visited Pittsburgh on his way back to Ottawa from his wedding in

Campbellton, New Brunswick Campbellton is a city in Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Restigouche County, New Brunswick, Canada. Situated on the south bank of the Restigouche River opposite Pointe-à-la-Croix, Quebec, Pointe-à-la-Croix, Quebec, Campbellton was officially ...

. In Pittsburgh, he met Arthur McSwigan and the two men founded the WPHL. By 1902, Art convinced his brother, Garnet, and several other Canadian players to play in the new league. He then turned professional with the WPHL's Pittsburgh Keystones, for which he played with for the next three seasons. During this time, he also served as the team's manager and won a WPHL title with the club in

1902 Events January * January 1 ** The Nurses Registration Act 1901 comes into effect in New Zealand, making it the first country in the world to require state registration of nurses. On January 10, Ellen Dougherty becomes the world' ...

. In

1903 Events January * January 1 – Edward VII is proclaimed Emperor of India. * January 19 – The first west–east transatlantic radio broadcast is made from the United States to England (the first east–west broadcast having bee ...

, became the captain and manager of the

Pittsburgh Victorias The Pittsburgh Victorias were one of the earliest professional ice hockey teams. The club was based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and were members of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League, the first league to openly hire hockey players, from 1902� ...

. However, in

1905 As the second year of the massive Russo-Japanese War begins, more than 100,000 die in the largest world battles of that era, and the war chaos leads to the 1905 Russian Revolution against Nicholas II of Russia ( Shostakovich's 11th Symphony ...

, the WPHL teams were consolidated into the

Pittsburgh Professionals The Pittsburgh Professional Hockey Club, also referred to as the Pittsburgh Professionals and Pittsburgh Pros, were a professional ice hockey team that participated in the International Professional Hockey League (IPHL) from 1904 until 1907. The te ...

of the

International Professional Hockey League The International Professional Hockey League (IPHL) was the first fully professional ice hockey league, operating from 1904 to 1907. It was formed by Jack "Doc" Gibson, a dentist who played hockey throughout Ontario before settling in Houghto ...

(IPHL). Art then served as the captain of the Professionals for the next two seasons. When the WPHL was revived in 1907, Art played with the

Pittsburgh Bankers The Pittsburgh Bankers were one of the earliest professional ice hockey clubs. The club was based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and was a member of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League, the first league to openly hire hockey players, from 1899–1 ...

for two further seasons. In 1915, Art became the manager of the Pittsburgh Winter Garden hockey team. The team was based at the Pittsburgh Winter Garden and featured his brother, Garnet. However, the team only lasted one season, before disbanding in 1916. Following his hockey career, he went into the banking industry working his way up the corporate ladder in

Mellon Bank Mellon Financial Corporation was an investment firm which was once one of the world's largest money management firms. Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, it was in the business of institutional and high-net-worth individual asset management, incl ...

ing to become

Andrew W. Mellon Andrew William Mellon (; March 24, 1855 – August 26, 1937), sometimes A. W. Mellon, was an American banker, businessman, industrialist, philanthropist, art collector, and politician. From the wealthy Mellon family of Pittsburgh, Pennsylv ...

's personal assistant. He held this position during Mr. Mellon's tenure working for U.S. Presidents:

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gr ...

, Calvin Coolidge and

Warren G. Harding Warren Gamaliel Harding (November 2, 1865 – August 2, 1923) was the 29th president of the United States, serving from 1921 until his death in 1923. A member of the Republican Party, he was one of the most popular sitting U.S. presidents. A ...

. During this time he amassed a personal fortune of over ten million dollars only to lose it in the

stock market crash of 1929 The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash, was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange colla ...

. He retired to

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, later lived with a son in

Cheyenne, Wyoming Cheyenne ( or ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming, as well as the county seat of Laramie County, Wyoming, Laramie County, with 65,132 residents, per the 2020 US Census. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne ...

and died in

Titusville, Florida Titusville is a city in eastern Florida and the county seat of Brevard County, Florida, United States. The city's population was 43,761 as of the 2010 United States Census. Titusville is located along the Indian River, west of Merritt Island and ...

in 1969. He is buried in an unmarked grave at Pittsburgh's

Homewood Cemetery Homewood Cemetery is a historic urban cemetery in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in Point Breeze and is bordered by Frick Park, the neighborhood of Squirrel Hill, and the smaller Smithfield Cemetery. It was established ...

Statistics

Exh. = Exhibition games ''Statistics per Society for International Hockey Research at sihrhockey.org''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sixsmith, Arthur 1880 births 1969 deaths Sportspeople from Ottawa Ottawa Senators (original) players Pittsburgh Bankers players Pittsburgh Keystones (ice hockey) players Pittsburgh Professionals players Pittsburgh Victorias players Sault Ste. Marie Marlboros players Ice hockey people from Ontario Burials at Homewood Cemetery