A tight end from the Jim Owens era, Dave Williams turned out to become the University of Washington’s best receiving representative in the National Football League.
Author: David Eskenazi
David Eskenazi
Many of the historic images on Sports Press Northwest are provided by resident Northwest sports history aficionado, David Eskenazi. A Seattle native, David has amassed an extensive archive of Seattle, Northwest, and West Coast historic sports photographs, artifacts and ephemera. We draw from this archive to illustrate stories in The Vault, and our weekly Rotation feature, The Wayback Machine. Youll see many unique and evocative representations of our sporting past, many of which have never been seen publicly. You are in for a treat! David enjoys sharing his collection and zeal for Northwest sports history. His historical showcase activities have included displays at numerous museums, historical societies, and community events, including an annual Northwest baseball history display at Mariners FanFest, and working on baseball-themed fund raising events for the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Since the early 1990s, The Seattle Mariners have enlisted David to help recognize and illustrate Seattle and the Northwests 120-year baseball legacy. This collaboration has produced historical displays at Safeco Field, including seven 35-foot long historical storyboards surrounding the Safeco Field main concourse, Fred Hutchinson seat end stanchions, and classic early photographs on the suite level, all created for the opening of Safeco Field in 1999. From its opening in 2007 to the present day, David has provided thematic ideas, design elements, images, and scores of original historic Northwest baseball artifacts for the Baseball Museum of the Pacific Northwest at Safeco Field. David also contributed visual materials, historical consultation and on-screen interviews for documentaries on The Seattle Rainiers, The Spokane Indians, and the Seattle Pilots, and provided images and other inputs for a multitude of books, magazines, web-sites and other media focusing on Seattle, Northwest and West Coast sports history. Recent books he contributed to extensively include SABRs Rain Check: Baseball in the Pacific Northwest, and Dan Raleys Pitchers of Beer: The Seattle Rainiers Story. David has a keen ongoing interest in sharing stories, expanding and enhancing his collection, and broadening his knowledge and archive of Northwest sports history and memorabilia. If you have questions, memories to share, stories to suggest, or would like to talk to him about selling or trading Seattle and Northwest sports artifacts, please contact him at (206) 441-1900, or at seattlesportshistory@gmail.com
Thirty-five years ago this week, the expansion Seahawks played their first regular-season game. The team’s quarterback, Jim Zorn, didn’t even know the names of all of his receivers.
No professional athlete who played in Seattle or the Pacific Northwest had a more varied career than Bill MacFarland, who passed away recently at the age of 79.
Seventy-five years ago this month, a collection of UW athletes came away with a major haul at the Berlin Olympic Games, much to the consternation of a mustachioed maniac.
On Aug. 12, 1954, the Seattle Rainiers introduced the most popular players (and manager) in the team’s PCL franchise history, making for a memorable night at Sicks’ Stadium.
A visionary, Joseph Gottstein, used the 1929 stock market crash to revive the sport of kings and build an entertainment venue that would last for six decades.
Engineer Ted Jones harbored a lot of creative (even radical) ideas about boat design, which spawned one of Seattle’s most storied traditions — unlimited hydroplane racing.
Nearly 60 years ago, a fast-talking promoter named Jack Hurley almost magically built local fighter Harry “Kid” Matthews into a boxing phenomenon and heavyweight contender.
Jack Lelivelt presided over the greatest era in Seattle Rainiers history, one that included three consecutive Pacific Coast League pennants.
The World Team Tennis Sea-Port/Seattle Cascades lasted just two seasons. Despite an entertaining product, the Tom Gorman-led team played mainly in front of empty seats.