JOHNNIE E. CORRIGAN This website is dedicated to Johnnie E. Corrigan for his years of service to Powhattan High School as a Coach, Principal, Teacher and a friend of all his students during his 37 years from 1928 until his death in 1965. Read all the following articles about some of his achievements at Powhattan High School |
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JOHNNIE E. CORRIGAN
Following is the introduction read when Johnnie Corrigan was inducted into the first honorary class of the Kansas State High School Activities Assn. Hall of Fame.
"At his death in 1965, the newspapers said of him, Big cities will accept little men but it takes a big man to be honored and respected by a small town.
Johnnie Corrigan began his coaching, teaching and administrative career in Powhattan, Kansas, in 1926. Thirty-nine years later he was still in the same school system having brought fame to that community through its basketball teams .
Powhattan won the county tournament twenty-six out thirty-five years. They went to the state tournament on ten different occasions.
More than a master coach, he was a master teacher. If conditions made it impossible to provide a particular subject in his school, Johnnie took the necessary college courses to become qualified rather than let his students be deprived.
Serving nine years on the Executive Board of the Kansas State High School Activities Association, he was its vice president for three terms."
Accepting the award for the late Johnnie Corrigan is: Mrs. Lois Corrigan
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Milling Around
By Jack Miller
Powhattan is probably the smallest town in Kansas to have two former residents in Kansas High School activities Hall of Fame. The late Johnnie Corrigan was superintendent and coach at Powhattan for many years and Paul Boatwright was an instructor, school official and assistant coach at Powhattan before moving to Hiawatha and later to Topeka.
Corrigan had ability to get the utmost out of his athletic teams and they always were rated high in the state, although the Powhattan High School had a small enrollment. It was reported one time that Corrigan could have gone to Kansas University as basketball coach, but he preferred to stay in Powhattan and coach the Red Devils.
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On The Level
By Bob Busby (1962)
(Assistant Sports Editor of The Star)
There are few homes in the vicinity of Powhattan, a small rural community in Northeast Kansas, which do not sport a basketball hoop on the garage or barn . . . And the few practice shots the boys take before doing the chores has been paying dividends for Powhattan high school for many years.
Last week this class B basketball team won the Brown County Rural high tournament for the 25th time . . . Its record this year is 15-3 and includes victories over four teams of the Northeast Kansas Big Six conference, Hiawatha, Horton, Sabetha and Effingham.
Johnnie Corrigan, principal, has been coaching the Powhattan Red Devils, for 34 years . . . And the little high school likely will remain on top as long as the Corrigan influence is around.
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Will Powell,
of Powhattan:
(unknown source)
John Corrigan, our high school coach, is one of the finest coaches I ever Knew. He is coaching five teams this year, is very busy.
His interest in his players is that of a father in his children. I remember one year when he took a team to the state basketball tournament at Hays (1927). They returned to Horton by train, found the roads a sea of mud. John managed to get a ride north on the hiway, then walked thru mud from the hiway west of Powhattan. He got in his own car, several others, went back to Horton after the boys.
He is a gentleman always, unselfish, likeable. We will have to lose him some day. I suppose for he has been offered positions better than our community can afford to give him. He turned down on good position this year in order to stay at Powhattan with the kids he likes so well.
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SPORTS ROAMER
Atchison Globe (Date Unknown)
We have a letter from Sharon Corrigan, Powhattan High School, regarding the record of the Powhattan High Basketball team.
Sharon calls attention to the fact that Powhattan recently won the Brown county basketball tournament for the 25th time and asks: “Isn’t this some kind of a record in winning a count tournament that many times?”
We would say it is a WORLD RECORD
Powhattan defeated Hamlin 54-44 to win the finals of the tournament held at Robinson. Other teams in the tournament were from Fairview, Robinson, Reserve, Willis, Everest and Morrill.
Probably the outstanding performance of the Powhattan team came in the semifinals when it limited the famed scoring ace, John Griebat, to 13 points in defeating Morrill.
Griebat went into the game against Powhattan with a better than 30-point per game average.
But we sill must marvel at that Powhattan record--25 Brown County Tournament wins.
Following is the introduction read when Johnnie Corrigan was inducted into the first honorary class of the Kansas State High School Activities Assn. Hall of Fame.
"At his death in 1965, the newspapers said of him, Big cities will accept little men but it takes a big man to be honored and respected by a small town.
Johnnie Corrigan began his coaching, teaching and administrative career in Powhattan, Kansas, in 1926. Thirty-nine years later he was still in the same school system having brought fame to that community through its basketball teams .
Powhattan won the county tournament twenty-six out thirty-five years. They went to the state tournament on ten different occasions.
More than a master coach, he was a master teacher. If conditions made it impossible to provide a particular subject in his school, Johnnie took the necessary college courses to become qualified rather than let his students be deprived.
Serving nine years on the Executive Board of the Kansas State High School Activities Association, he was its vice president for three terms."
Accepting the award for the late Johnnie Corrigan is: Mrs. Lois Corrigan
* * * *
Milling Around
By Jack Miller
Powhattan is probably the smallest town in Kansas to have two former residents in Kansas High School activities Hall of Fame. The late Johnnie Corrigan was superintendent and coach at Powhattan for many years and Paul Boatwright was an instructor, school official and assistant coach at Powhattan before moving to Hiawatha and later to Topeka.
Corrigan had ability to get the utmost out of his athletic teams and they always were rated high in the state, although the Powhattan High School had a small enrollment. It was reported one time that Corrigan could have gone to Kansas University as basketball coach, but he preferred to stay in Powhattan and coach the Red Devils.
* * * *
On The Level
By Bob Busby (1962)
(Assistant Sports Editor of The Star)
There are few homes in the vicinity of Powhattan, a small rural community in Northeast Kansas, which do not sport a basketball hoop on the garage or barn . . . And the few practice shots the boys take before doing the chores has been paying dividends for Powhattan high school for many years.
Last week this class B basketball team won the Brown County Rural high tournament for the 25th time . . . Its record this year is 15-3 and includes victories over four teams of the Northeast Kansas Big Six conference, Hiawatha, Horton, Sabetha and Effingham.
Johnnie Corrigan, principal, has been coaching the Powhattan Red Devils, for 34 years . . . And the little high school likely will remain on top as long as the Corrigan influence is around.
* * * *
Will Powell,
of Powhattan:
(unknown source)
John Corrigan, our high school coach, is one of the finest coaches I ever Knew. He is coaching five teams this year, is very busy.
His interest in his players is that of a father in his children. I remember one year when he took a team to the state basketball tournament at Hays (1927). They returned to Horton by train, found the roads a sea of mud. John managed to get a ride north on the hiway, then walked thru mud from the hiway west of Powhattan. He got in his own car, several others, went back to Horton after the boys.
He is a gentleman always, unselfish, likeable. We will have to lose him some day. I suppose for he has been offered positions better than our community can afford to give him. He turned down on good position this year in order to stay at Powhattan with the kids he likes so well.
* * * *
SPORTS ROAMER
Atchison Globe (Date Unknown)
We have a letter from Sharon Corrigan, Powhattan High School, regarding the record of the Powhattan High Basketball team.
Sharon calls attention to the fact that Powhattan recently won the Brown county basketball tournament for the 25th time and asks: “Isn’t this some kind of a record in winning a count tournament that many times?”
We would say it is a WORLD RECORD
Powhattan defeated Hamlin 54-44 to win the finals of the tournament held at Robinson. Other teams in the tournament were from Fairview, Robinson, Reserve, Willis, Everest and Morrill.
Probably the outstanding performance of the Powhattan team came in the semifinals when it limited the famed scoring ace, John Griebat, to 13 points in defeating Morrill.
Griebat went into the game against Powhattan with a better than 30-point per game average.
But we sill must marvel at that Powhattan record--25 Brown County Tournament wins.