Willis Charles “Billy” Edson (September 25, 1874 in

Wilton, Illinois Wilton is located northeast of Wilton Center, Illinois, northwest of Andres and south of Frankfort. Wilton is the smallest Unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Wi ...

– March 5, 1965) was a football player, lawyer, and politician in Iowa. He was a halfback on the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

’s

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

championship team in 1900 and was the Speaker of the Iowa House of Representatives from 1925-1926.

Playing career

Billy Edson learned football while attending Buena Vista College from 1894-1896. He transferred to

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...

, where he played two seasons on the football team and earned his bachelor's degree. Edson attended law school at the

, earning his law degree in 1901. Edson starred on two undefeated Hawkeye teams in 1899 and 1900. As a junior in 1899, he helped Iowa to an 8-0-1 record, with the tie being a 5-5 draw against

Amos Alonzo Stagg Amos Alonzo Stagg (August 16, 1862 – March 17, 1965) was an American athlete and college coach in multiple sports, primarily American football. He served as the head football coach at the International YMCA Training School (now called Springfie ...

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

team. Edson scored the game's only touchdown in the contest against Chicago. In the final game of the season, he scored five touchdowns for Iowa in a 58-0 victory over Illinois. At the end of the season, Iowa was admitted into the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

, beginning in 1900. As a senior in 1900, Edson helped lead Iowa to a Big Ten championship in its first year in the conference. He scored one touchdown in Iowa's first ever Big Ten game, a 17-0 victory over Chicago, and he scored another touchdown the following week in a 28-5 victory over Michigan. In two years at Iowa, Edson scored 23 touchdowns, including seven of fifty yards or more.

Legal and political career

After obtaining his law degree in 1901, Billy Edson spent one season as an assistant football coach at the

University of Northern Iowa The University of Northern Iowa (UNI) is a public university in Cedar Falls, Iowa. UNI offers more than 90 majors across the colleges of Business Administration, Education, Humanities, Arts, and Sciences, Social and Behavioral Sciences and grad ...

before beginning a long and successful legal and political career. He practiced law in

Storm Lake, Iowa Storm Lake is a city in Buena Vista County, Iowa, United States. The population was 11,269 in the 2020 census, an increase from 10,076 in the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Buena Vista County. Storm Lake is home to Buena Vista University ...

, for over sixty years and was a member of the Iowa State Legislature from 1919-1927. Edson served as the Speaker of the Iowa House of Representatives from 1925-1926 and was the Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Iowa in 1936.

Honors

Edson served for decades on the Board of Trustees at

Buena Vista College Buena Vista University is a private university in Storm Lake, Iowa. Founded in 1891 as Buena Vista College, it is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. The university's campus is situated on the shores of Storm Lake, a natural lake. At i ...

. For his long-standing support of the college, Buena Vista renamed their gymnasium, Victory Hall, in his honor. Edson Hall is now used by Buena Vista's music department. For his athletic career, Billy Edson was inducted into the

Iowa Sports Hall of Fame The Iowa Sports Hall of Fame, sponsored by the ''Des Moines Register'', honors outstanding athletes and sports contributors. To be eligible, members must have either been born in Iowa or gained prominence while competing for a college or universi ...

in 1959.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edson, Billy 1874 births 1965 deaths Iowa Hawkeyes football players People from Will County, Illinois People from Storm Lake, Iowa