House Historian To Host Book Talk Today

Get To know Chuck Carlson before the event

Before Chicago House A.C. was selected as the team’s name by the supporters, it was known as Chicago NISA and had a team historian to document all the moments great and small achieved by the club over the past two years.  Chuck Carlson, a teacher and archivist by trade, reached out to House Managing Partner and President, Peter Wilt, expressing interest in becoming the team historian after Peter was a guest on a Society of American Soccer History (SASH) Zoom meeting in January of 2021.

Since that fortuitous meeting and Peter taking him up on the offer, Chuck has already accumulated a wealth of documents including audio files, digital files, paper copies and a calendar of important dates in House history.

“It is important for any club to document its history. If it’s not done from the beginning, some of the most important information would be lost,” said Wilt. “We are fortunate to have Chuck in this role.  He is professionally skilled at recording history, passionate and knowledgeable about the sport’s place in the Midwest.”

As a member of SASH, Chuck will be hosting a virtual Book Talk with Kelcey Ervick.  Dr. Ervick will be talking about her book The Keeper: Soccer, Me and the Law That Changed Women’s Lives and how Title IX changed the landscape for women and girls in sports.  The event is free to attend, for more information, please refer to the details below.

On hosting the Book Talk:  I connected with the book via social media where a friend of mine was doing a book event and Dr. Ervick happened to be doing a similar event. So, I saw the cover, which highlights not only herself but clearly historic women who were sports people, which attracted it to me initially.  The book is full of beautiful art.  When I got it, I didn’t know if I should put it with my soccer books or art books because it’s so impressive visually, but it’s also important because she’s recognizing the history, it’s not just a personal memoir.  It also recognizes the work of the women that came before to allow her to participate in sports.  In 1971 less than 300,000 girls nationwide participated in sports, where 3,000,000 boys did.  So the effect of Title IX to allow girls and women to participate in sports was massive.  She also recognizes the importance of institutional efforts that really have great results.  She also focused on social justice as being important, like in England where women were not allowed to play.  I recently came across something from 1985 where women were barred from playing. I’ve also come across things from the 1880’s indicating girls playing soccer in East Dubuque, IL, so girls and women have been playing the game for over 100 years, but they weren’t allowed to form teams to participate until Title IX in the ‘70’s.  There’s also the concept of once the dam is broken, we can’t go back, but I’m seeing women playing 100 years ago and then they stopped playing.  You see what’s happened recently with Roe v. Wade, you think women’s rights are enshrined, then you find out they’re not.  The importance of writing a book like this to me is that it makes sure we don’t lose that institutional memory that’s necessary to make sure we don’t go backwards.

ABOUT CHUCK:

Hometown: Northfield, IL

Countries lived in: Six (South Africa, Germany, Thailand, Philippines, South Korea and the U.S.)

Countries visited: Close to 100

Soccer stadiums visited: 100’s soccer specific, all stadiums would be in the 1,000’s 

Family:  Married to his high school sweetheart, Corinne; Children Ethan, a senior at Macalester College and Shannon, a sophomore at UC Berkeley.

Favorite Soccer teams: Chicago House A.C. and St. Pauli in the Bundesliga second division

How long have you been a member of SASH: Just two years, it was during the pandemic that I found out about it.  They posted a film from a 1916 U.S. Men’s National Team going to Sweden and I wondered who this group is, that’s how I found out about them via social media during the pandemic.

What drew you to lower division soccer:  The concept that teams from any community can play at the very highest level and there aren’t barriers to a team based on finances becoming the very best team in the country. 

In addition to House history, you’re a wealth of knowledge about soccer history from games in leagues in the smallest town to major events. How do you find these stories and do you enjoy the work or is it all about the results? I love the research part of it.  It can be difficult staying focused.  An interesting story can pop-up when you’re looking for other things.  I look at how House is really trying to be inclusive and I see how many barriers are being put up, that’s by studying history.  

Just while talking today, I’ve heard some of the best stories/historic facts I’ve ever heard about soccer. What are you doing with all this research?  At the moment I’m writing articles focusing on IL, the soccer but also the communities that developed around it, labor history with the United Mine Workers, The Progressive Mine Workers of America.  Ultimately, the goal is to write a book, but I’m doing the articles to build the stories.

On your vision of a team historian for Chicago House: I met with Peter and with “Train” (Night Train Veeck) and explained what I can see a historian doing for a team that has no history.  House’s mission statement is so strong, so forward looking, positive and allows for the extension beyond sport.  It recognizes where sport and communities come together, and how we can make sure people in those communities know about history, why it’s important, how we can continue to make change and how much work is still to be done.    

Why are historians important for sports teams:  What holds communities together is history, it can also be incredibly divisive.  The importance of a historian to me is to operate from knowledge.  When someone says, “just focus on sports, or why should a soccer team be focused on social justice?” it’s because sports are incredibly political.  We’re constantly using politics in our day-to-day lives, so if you operate from a position of knowledge, I think that’s what a historian provides.  When you do that, you can easily fend off those who are bad and are bad actors and want to do harm.

BOOK TALK DETAILS:

The Society for American Soccer History invites you to a Book Talk on Friday, February 17 when Kelcey Ervick will discuss her book, The Keeper: Soccer, Me and the Law That Changed Women’s Lives.

In the graphic memoir, Ervick looks at the role that Title IX has played in expanding opportunities for women in soccer, and sport in general, in the United States. Ervick was a goalkeeper for nationally-ranked soccer teams in high school and college in the first decades of Title IX. The book includes her own story as well as those of pioneering women soccer players.

In addition to The Keeper, she has authored three other books. A professor of English and creative writing at Indiana University South Bend, Ervick has a PhD from the University of Cincinnati. For more information, please visit her website.

The Book Talk on Friday, February 17 will begin at 12 PM ET. Login information is below:

The Society For American Soccer History is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Book Talk on February 17, 2023 at 12 PM ET: Kelcey Ervick discusses "The Keeper: Soccer, Me and the Law That Changed Women’s Lives"

Time: Feb 17, 2023 12:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88548046222

Meeting ID: 885 4804 6222

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