Charles Douglas "Baldy" Spittal (November 17, 1874–January 29, 1931) 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 ...

athlete and soldier. He was notable as an amateur and 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 ...

player, and as a competitive marksman with a rifle. He was a member of the 1903

Ottawa Silver Seven The Ottawa Senators were an ice hockey team based in Ottawa, which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League (NHL) and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934. The c ...

Stanley Cup champions. He was one of the first players to play professionally, in

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 ...

and

Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Sault Ste. Marie ( ) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is at the St. Mary's River on the Canada–US border. It is the third largest city in Northern Ontario, after Sudbury and Thunder Bay. The Ojibwe, the indigenous Anishinaabe inhabitants ...

Personal information

Spittal was born in Ottawa, the son of Alexander Spittal and Margaret Moodie. He was educated in Ottawa public schools and the

Collegiate Institute A collegiate institute is an institution that provides either secondary or post-secondary education, dependent on where the term is used. In Canada, the term is used to describe an institutions that provide secondary education, while the word is use ...

. As a youth, he was a competitive cyclist, lacrosse player and ice hockey player. He also was an accomplished marksman with a rifle, competing regularly in competitions from his youth until his death. Spitall later joined the Canadian Army, rising to the title of Lieutenant-Colonel. He served during World War I in Europe. He married Helen Taylor and they had a son Taylor Spittal. He died at his home in Montreal and he was interred at Beechwood Cemetery in Ottawa. He was survived by his wife and son, a brother George Spittal of Ottawa, and two sisters Mrs. F. W. C. Cumming of Ottawa and Mrs. T. F. Moneypenny of Toronto.

Playing career

Spittal started his senior hockey career with the Ottawa Hockey Club in 1897. He played two full seasons with the club, but was demoted to a spare position in the 1899 season. He played an average of one game per season with Ottawa, playing with other teams, such as Ottawa's second team in the intermediate division. Spittal played one game with Ottawa in the 1903 season but played the majority of the season with the professional

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� ...

of 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), which was made up of other Ottawa ice hockey players. He did not play in the Stanley Cup playoff with the

Montreal Victorias The Victoria Hockey Club of Montreal, Quebec, Canada was an early men's amateur ice hockey club. Its date of origin is ascribed to either 1874, 1877 or 1881, making it either the first or second organized ice hockey club after McGill University. ...

or the challenge by the

Rat Portage Thistles The Kenora Thistles, officially the Thistles Hockey Club, were a Canadian ice hockey team based in Kenora, Ontario. Founded in 1894, they were originally known as the Rat Portage Thistles. The team competed for the Stanley Cup, the ice hock ...

. In 1903–04 Spittal returned to the Victorias and played in the first "U.S. Professional Championship". He played the next two seasons as a professional in the first fully professional ice hockey league, 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 ...

, with 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 ...

and the

Canadian Soo The Sault Ste. Marie Marlboros, also known as the Canadian Soo and Soo Algonquins, was a professional ice hockey team from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. It was the lone Canadian entry in the International Hockey League of 1904–1907, and ...

. In 1906, Spittal returned to Ottawa, playing two games with the team in the

1906–07 Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20 * one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film Music ...

season, as well as Pembroke of the Upper Ottawa Valley Hockey League (UOVHL). In 1908 Spittal played with the Renfrew team of the UOVHL to end his ice hockey playing days. Spittal was twice arrested for on-ice behaviour. In January 1907, in a game between the Ottawa Hockey Club and the

Montreal Wanderers The Montreal Wanderers were an amateur, and later professional, ice hockey team based in Montreal. The team played in the Federal Amateur Hockey League (FAHL), the Eastern Canada Amateur Hockey Association (ECAHA), the National Hockey Association ...

in Montreal, Spittal clubbed down Wanderers Cecil Blachford with a vicious blow the head. His teammates Alf and Harry Smith also clubbed down

Hod Stuart William Hodgson "Hod" Stuart (February 20, 1879 – June 23, 1907) was a Canadian professional ice hockey cover-point (now known as a defenceman) who played nine seasons for several teams in different leagues. He also played briefly for the ...

and

Moose Johnson Thomas Ernest "Moose" Johnson (February 26, 1886 – March 25, 1963), also known as Ernie Johnson, was a Canadian ice hockey player whose professional career spanned from 1905 to 1931. He was a member of four Stanley Cup winning teams betwee ...

respectively, and when the Ottawa team returned to Montreal two weeks later all three Ottawa players were arrested by police. Harry Smith was acquitted while Spittal and Alf Smith were each fined $20. In January 1908, Spittal was again placed into custody for knocking out Pembroke player Oren Frood with a blow to the head, while playing for Renfrew of the Upper Ottawa Valley Hockey League."Imported Players: "Baldy" Spittal Was Placed Under Arrest for Knocking Out Pembroke Man"
''The Montreal Gazette'', January 18, 1908.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Spittal, Baldy 1874 births 1931 deaths Canadian ice hockey defencemen Ice hockey people from Ontario Ottawa Senators (original) players Pittsburgh Victorias players Pittsburgh Professionals players Sault Ste. Marie Marlboros players Sportspeople from Ottawa