| Chautauqua County, New York |
| Chautauqua County, New York |
Legend Group
The Chautauqua Sports Hall of Fame is an organization formed in 1980 to honor Chautauqua County, New York area sports celebrities.
The Chautauqua Sports Hall of Fame museum
features memorabilia to capture the interest
of visitors.
Honorees are chosen by a committee under which a volunteer has as much an opportunity to be selected as an outstanding athlete in the professional or amateur ranks.
The Chautauqua Sports Hall of Fame held its first meeting at the Fenton Mansion on December 6, 1980. Russ Diethrick, the Jamestown City Parks and Recreation Director, invited various sports-minded people of the community to this meeting to discuss the formation of the museum. There was a great deal of interest with a group numbering around 15 getting together, first monthly, then weekly, to form the Chautauqua Sports Hall of Fame.
The first meeting was held at the Fenton Mansion because it was a possible site for the first sports museum. The proposal for the Hall of Fame was greeted enthusiastically by the organizers. It was decided that having a Hall of Fame honoring area celebrities would enhance a museum of sports memorabilia.
The Chautauqua Sports Hall of Fame committee decided it would be up to the public to send in nominations, along with the achievements of their candidates. Ballots will be placed in Chautauqua County newspapers with a deadline date for submitting nominations.
| Ron Melquist - President | Randy Anderson - 3rd Vice-President |
| Bill Rollinger - 1st Vice-President | Russ Ecklund - Secretary |
| Bill Race - 2nd Vice-President | Lee Johnson - Treasurer |
| Kay Anderson | Chip Johnson |
| Sam Bardo | Scott Kindberg |
| Dick Barton | Phil Klinginsmith |
| Lou Deppas | Fred Larson |
| Russ Diethrick | Mannie Laughlin |
| Joe DiMaio | Denny Lundberg |
| Grace Dolan | Jim Painter |
| Marilyn Hale | Tom Phillips |
| Oleta Hannon | Jim Riggs |
| Tom Heppeler | Charles Sinatra |
| Terry Heslink | Komo Tane |
| Wally Huckno | |
The Chautauqua Sports Hall of Fame welcomes new members and encourages them to be involved. A copy of the by-laws is included here to assist those interested in understanding how the organization functions.
