Hugh Smith Knox (January 27, 1883 – January 2, 1936) was an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

player. He played at the halfback position at

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

and was selected as a first-team

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n in 1906. Knox was the son of

Philander C. Knox Philander Chase Knox (May 6, 1853October 12, 1921) was an American lawyer, bank director and politician. A member of the Republican Party, Knox served in the Cabinet of three different presidents and represented Pennsylvania in the United States ...

, who served as the U.S. Secretary of State under

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...

and U.S. Attorney General under

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...

and

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

He attended Allegheny Prep School before enrolling at Yale University. While he was a student at a private school in Connecticut, Knox was arrested and charged in May 1903 with assault. The complainant alleged that he had been beaten badly by a group of young men, which included Knox. Because his father was the U.S. Attorney General, the case received coverage in the press. Knox was put on trial in

Norwalk, Connecticut , image_map = Fairfield County Connecticut incorporated and unincorporated areas Norwalk highlighted.svg , mapsize = 230px , map_caption = Location in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Fairfield County and ...

, and he was found not guilty. Knox graduated in 1907 from Yale University, where he was a member of

Skull and Bones Skull and Bones, also known as The Order, Order 322 or The Brotherhood of Death, is an undergraduate senior secret student society at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. The oldest senior class society at the university, Skull and Bone ...

. At Yale, Knox played at the halfback position for Yale's football teams in 1905 and 1906. In Yale's 6–0 victory over Harvard in 1906, Knox was credited with a 40-yard run that was considered one of the most exciting plays of the 1906 season. ''The New York Times'' called it a "magnificent effort" and a "beautiful run" and described Knox "swerving in and picking his way through the broken field ahead, ... dodging one and another of the oncoming Cambridge men." At the conclusion of the 1906 season, Knox was selected as a first-team All-American halfback by both

Walter Camp Walter Chauncey Camp (April 7, 1859 – March 14, 1925) was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". Among a long list of inventions, he created the sport's line of scrimmage and the system ...

Caspar Whitney Caspar William Whitney (September 2, 1864 – January 18, 1929) was an American author, editor, explorer, outdoorsman and war correspondent. He originated the concept of the All-American team in college football in 1889 when he worked for ''Harper ...

, the ''

New York World The ''New York World'' was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers. It was a leading national voice of the Democratic Party. From 1883 to 1911 under publi ...

'' and the ''New York Mail''. ''The New York Times'' wrote that Knox was "as useful as any man on the field in general work." Knox later served as the private secretary to his father while he served as the U.S. Secretary of State. In 1910, Knox traveled incognito to Southern California to visit with Yale football legend, Walter Camp. The ''Los Angeles Times'' reported on Knox's visit as follows: "Short of stature, he bears a striking resemblance to his distinguished father, with the same restless dark eyes and dark hair growing sparse on the forehead. Mr. Knox is a bachelor and has not had the romantic marital history of his two younger brothers." In December 1911, Knox was married at New York's Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church to Katherine McCook, the daughter of

Anson G. McCook Anson George McCook (October 10, 1835 – December 30, 1917) was an American military and political figure who served as Union Army colonel during the Civil War. In recognition of his service, in 1866, he was nominated and confirmed for appo ...

, a member of the "

Fighting McCooks The Fighting McCooks were members of a family of Ohioans who reached prominence as officers in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Two brothers, Daniel and John McCook, and thirteen of their sons were involved in the army, making the fami ...

," one of the most prolific military families during the American Civil War. The couple planned to live in Washington, D.C. Knox died in 1936 in Ithaca, New York.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knox, Hugh Yale Bulldogs football players 1883 births 1936 deaths University of Pennsylvania Law School alumni Members of Skull and Bones

See also

References