Edwin Arthur Buckley

Former St. James coach dies

By TOM VARTABEDIAN
Gazette Staff Writer

HAVERHILL – A prominent sports figure is dead.

Edwin A. Buckley, 79, of 40 South Park St., Bradford, died Tuesday at the Haverhill Municipal (Hale) Hospital after a brief illness.

Known as "Big Buck" because of his 6 – foot frame, Mr. Buckley was a coaching legend at the former St. James High School during the 1940’s.

Football was his passion and he instilled it inot many of the city’s finest athletes.

"They enjoyed playing for Buck," said Dr. John E. Callahan, a local podiatrist, who was an end for three years. "Whether you won or lost, there was always some good that ame out of the locker room. He instilled some pretty fine qualities into youth."

Mr. Buckley took over the coaching reins from William J. Fenlon in 1942 after spending 13 years as a superintendent at St. James Cemetery.

The school needed a coach and Mr. Buckley was quick to accept the offer. He was and outstanding player himself in high school and continued his gridiron exploits for the University of Miami.

Mr. Buckley was the first player from Haverhill to appear in the Orange Bowl. He did so in 1934, the year the stadium was dedicated.

Among the more notable players he coached, in addition to Dr. Callahan, were Dr. Daniel R. Taffe, John "Tiger" Wholley, William J. Hart, Nordo Nissi Jr., and Norris Rogers.

The Same year (1942) that he was appointed football coach, he was also hired as head baseball coach at St. James High. "The man had many fine qualities," said Callahan. "He particularly extended his heart to players with lesser ability to give them a chance to fulfill their dream. Buck was always fair with his athletes and quick to praise."

Forty years later, they remembered their coach. His wife, Lucy Buckley, told how here husband would always be stopped in the street by a former player. Nostalgia followed Mr. Buckley in and out of supermarkets and downtown establishments.

"He was a demanding coach who relied on effort and fine sportsmanship more than touchdowns," said Mrs. Buckley. "He tried to make the game fo football fun and use it as a base for growth and maturity. Those were the virtues he carried himself on the playing field."

Mr. Buckley was a City Council candidate in 1969, in his only bid in politics, he failed to get elected.

More than 200 turned out in 1974 for a testimonial, honoring the man for d4edicated community service – both as a coach and as a businessman.

He was born in Haverhill; and was a lifelong resident. Mr. Buckley graduated from St. James High School.

He also attended St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H. before matriculating to Miami.

For the past 31 years, Mr. Buckley had been a member of Sacred Hearts Church in Bradford. He was a past president and director of the Plaistow Fish and Game Club, where he was an active member until his death. Before his retirement in 1974, he spent nearly 30 years as an insurance agent with John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company.

He was a former chairman of Haverhill Local, AFL-CIO IWIAU and past president of Local 88 Merrimack Valley, AFL-CIO IWIAU.

Surviving members of his family include his wife of 52 years, Lucy (Willet) Buckley; one son, Edwin A. Buckley Jr., Bradford; one daughter, Janice (Mrs. Paul) Meade, Atkinson, N.H.; one brother, Milton Buckley, Haverhill; grandchildren, Julie, James and Jodi Buckley, all of Bradford, and Laurie, Steven and James Meade, all of Atkinson, N.H.; and several nieces and nephews.

His funeral will be at 8 a.m. Saturday at Paul C. Rogers & Sons Funeral Home, 334 Main St. Haverhill, followed by a funeral Mass at 9 a.m. at Sacred Hearts Church, Bradford. Burial will be in Elmwood Cemetery, Bradford, Calling hours at the funeral home will be 2 to 4 and 6 to 9 p.m. Friday.

Memorial contributions can be made to the Haverhill High School Athletic Fund, in care of Athletic Director John Ottaviani, Monument Street, Haverhill.

Source: Haverhill Gazette, Wednesday September 13, 1989, p.4,

Haverhill Public Library. Researched August 12, 2000, Chris & Dan Murphy.