Polo
From KCpedia
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Creation of the School of Equitation
On June 16, 1934 the Board of Trustees resolved that “this board approves the establishment of a school of equitation by Mr. R.A. Weaver with hearty thanks of the Board.” The college provided the School of Equitation with the use of the Kenyon Military Academy's old drill hall, but Weaver paid for all of the other expenses including the services of an instructor.
The man selected to direct the new school was Captain Frederic Eberle, a former officer in a German cavalry. Eberle was detained in this country at the outbreak of [[World War I] and went on to earn a degree in engineering at Purdue University. Eberle was an experienced teacher by the time he arrived at Kenyon College; he taught equitation at the Culver Military Academy and French and German at Lakewood High School.
At Kenyon, Eberle was employed by both the School of Equitation and the Modern Language Department. He stayed on as a language teacher for many years after the School of Equitation was closed. Eberle left his mark on Kenyon College as the model for the Gambier Post Office mural of Philander Chase.
Creation of the Polo Club and Rise to Power
The formation of the Polo Club followed quickly after the School of Equitation. The club was founded in 1936 to promote collegiate polo. The team was instantly successful, and by 1937 they were nationally known as the “indoor polo champions of the West.”
In 1937-1938, the Kenyon Polo Team became the first non-Eastern team to participate in the National Intercollegiate Championship in New York. Kenyon beat the defending champion, Cornell, twice, but ultimately lost to Harvard.
Discontinuation
The team was disbanded in 1939. The team was reformed to play to games against Culver and the University of Michigan in 1942.
Kenyon 13 -- Culver 10 Kenyon 12 -- Michigan 13
There are no additional results recorded after 1942. The School of Equitation eventually closed in 1968-1969, ending the days where students brought their polo ponies and their aircrafts to campus.
Resources in the Kenyon College Archives
- Polo -- collected materials (oversize)
- Fredric Eberle -- collected materials
- Greenslade, Thomas Boardman. Kenyon College: Its Third Half Century. Gambier, Ohio: Kenyon College, 1975. KNA Press, Inc. [Find in Kenyon's Library]
