Charles Whelan

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For the Mayor of Madison, Wisconsin, see Charles Elbert Whelan.
Charles Whelan
Biographical details
Born(1877-04-03)April 3, 1877
Weymouth, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedMay 29, 1945(1945-05-29) (aged 68)
Cohasset, Massachusetts, U.S.
Alma materDartmouth College
Tufts School of Medicine
Playing career
1899–1900Dartmouth
Position(s)Fullback
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1903–1907Tufts
1910Dartmouth (assistant)
1912–1917Tufts
1919Tufts
1921–1925Boston University
Head coaching record
Overall54–68–7

Charles "Doc" Whelan (April 3, 1877 – May 29, 1945)[1] was an American football player and coach and physician. He served as the head football coach at Tufts College—now Tufts University—for three stints (1903–1907, 1912–1917, and 1919) and at Boston University from 1921 to 1925, compiling a career college football record of 54–68–7. Whelan also coached track at Harvard University. He died after a brief illness in 1945.[2]

Early life[edit]

Whelan was born on April 3, 1877, in Weymouth, Massachusetts. He graduated from Weymouth High School in 1896 and entered Dartmouth College that fall. He left after one year to work in Boston, but returned a year later and graduated in 1901. While at Dartmouth, Whelan played fullback on the school's football team and specialized in the broad jump and the shotput on the track team.[3]

Coaching career[edit]

Whelan worked his way through the Tufts School of Medicine by serving as coach of the school's football team and as the athletic director at the Volkmann School. After graduating, Whelan left athletics to work as a physician, but returned to football in 1910 as an assistant coach at Dartmouth.[4] He returned to Tufts in 1912 and remained with the school until 1920 when he became supervisor of the Harvard Crimson track team and a professor of hygiene at Harvard College (he missed the 1918 season due to military service).[5][6] His tenure at Harvard was short-lived as he submitted his resignation less than three months after taking the job to return to medicine.[7] His final coaching position was at Boston University, where he served as head football coach from 1921 to 1925.[8]

Medical career[edit]

Whelan was a pioneer in radiology. He was the chief radiologist at Quincy City Hospital and was the head of the x-ray at the New York Port of Embarkation Hospital during World War I. He was also a consultant at Carney Hospital and the New England Hospital for Women and Children.[9]

Head coaching record[edit]

Year Team Overall Conference Standing Bowl/playoffs
Tufts Jumbos (Independent) (1903–1907)
1903 Tufts 5–8
1904 Tufts 2–9–1
1905 Tufts 5–3
1906 Tufts 6–2
1907 Tufts 3–4–1
Tufts Jumbos (Independent) (1912–1917)
1912 Tufts 5–4
1913 Tufts 7–1
1914 Tufts 5–3
1915 Tufts 5–1–2
1916 Tufts 5–3
1917 Tufts 3–3
Tufts Jumbos (Independent) (1919)
1919 Tufts 2–5
Tufts: 43–46–4
Boston University Terriers (Independent) (1921–1925)
1921 Boston University 6–2
1922 Boston University 2–4–3
1923 Boston University 1–6
1924 Boston University 1–5
1925 Boston University 1–5
Boston University: 11–22–3
Total: 54–68–7

References[edit]

  1. ^ Theta Delta Chi (1901). The Shield. Vol. 17. Theta Delta Chi. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
  2. ^ "Deaths and Funerals". pqasb.pqarchiver.com. Archived from the original on December 11, 2017. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
  3. ^ "Deaths". Dartmouth Alumni Magazine. August 1945. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  4. ^ "Dartmouth's New Coaching Staff". The Boston Daily Globe. January 19, 1910.
  5. ^ "Dr Charles Whelan Harvard Mentor". The Boston Daily Globe. March 23, 1920.
  6. ^ "Tufts to Play Football". The New York Times. October 9, 1918.
  7. ^ "Dr. Whelan Quits Harvard". The New York Times. June 9, 1920.
  8. ^ "Reappoint Whelan B. U. Gridiron Coach". The Boston Daily Globe. February 26, 1925.
  9. ^ "Dr. Charles Whelan: Radiologist and Former Sports Coach Was 66". The Boston Daily Globe. May 30, 1945.
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