James Lynah (1881 – February 24, 1956) was an American businessman and sports administrator who is considered the principal founder of the
Eastern College Athletic Conference
The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) is a college athletic conference comprising schools that compete in 15 sports (13 men's and 13 women's). It has 220 member institutions in NCAA Divisions I, II, and III, ranging in location fr ...
.
Lynah Rink is named in his honor.
Early years
Born in
Charleston, South Carolina, Lynah transferred from
Clemson University
Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enr ...
to graduate from
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...
in 1905 where he was a member of the
Quill and Dagger
Quill and Dagger is a senior honor society at Cornell University. It is often recognized as one of the most prominent societies of its type, along with Skull and Bones and Scroll and Key at Yale University. In 1929, ''The New York Times'' stated ...
society and
Sigma Phi
The Sigma Phi Society () was founded on the Fourth of March in the year 1827, on the campus of Union College as a part of the Union Triad in Schenectady, New York. It is the second Greek fraternal organization founded in the United States. . He played for both coach
John Heisman and
Pop Warner
Glenn Scobey Warner (April 5, 1871 – September 7, 1954), most commonly known as Pop Warner, was an American college football coach at various institutions who is responsible for several key aspects of the modern game. Included among his inn ...
.
Joe Guyon
Joseph Napoleon "Big Chief" Guyon (Anishinaabe: ''O-Gee-Chidah'', translated as "Big Brave"; November 26, 1892 – November 27, 1971) was an American Indian from the Ojibwa tribe (Chippewa) who was an American football and baseball player and co ...
is the only other known player who can make a similar claim. Lynah was an end for Heisman's
1900
As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...
and
1901
Events
January
* January 1 – The British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia federate as the Commonwealth of Australia; Edmund Barton becomes the first Prime Minist ...
Clemson teams, and he was captain and quarterback for Warner's
1904 Cornell team.
Engineer
After graduation, Lynah worked for
DuPont for fifteen years, becoming a plant manager during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. He went on to work at
General Motors from 1922 to 1929, serving as director of purchasing and manufacturing staff.
Cornell athletics
An active alumnus of
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...
, he was involved in many alumni committees, was chairman of a committee for the development of the
College of Engineering
Engineering education is the activity of teaching knowledge and principles to the professional practice of engineering. It includes an initial education ( bachelor's and/or master's degree), and any advanced education and specializations tha ...
and was a member of the College of Engineering Council.
He succeeded Graduate Manager of Athletics
Romeyn Berry Romeyn Berry (1881-1957) was an American sports administrator and author.
Nicknamed "Rym," Berry attended Cornell University, graduating in 1904 and earning a law degree in 1906. During his senior year, Berry was elected to the Sphinx Head Society ...
as the first Director of Athletics at
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...
from 1935 to 1943. While serving as athletic director, Lynah led the movement to establish an athletic conference in the eastern United States. His efforts led to the creation of the Eastern Intercollegiate Athletics agency, which became the modern
ECAC. Lynah was succeeded at Cornell by
Robert Kane. He was one of the inaugural members of the
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...
Athletic Hall of Fame.
After Cornell
Lynah left his position at Cornell on indefinite leave to serve as assistant director of the ammunition and light ordnance division of the National Defense Advisory Committee in Washington. He was also a member of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science,
American Academy of Political and Social Science, and
American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
He chaired the
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
committee on recruitment beginning in 1944.
Death and legacy
Lynah died in
South Carolina
)'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
on February 24, 1956.
The
ECAC created the James Lynah Distinguished Achievement Award in 1957 to recognize outstanding athletic administrators. Previous winners include
Asa Bushnell (1959),
Thomas J. Hamilton (1976) and
Robert Kane (1977).
James Lynah Distinguished Achievement Award
/ref>
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lynah, James
1881 births
1956 deaths
Cornell Big Red football players
DuPont people
Cornell Big Red athletic directors
Businesspeople from Charleston, South Carolina
Clemson Tigers football players
American football ends
20th-century American businesspeople