The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. They are the third-oldest franchise in the NFL, established in 1919, and are the only non-profit, community-owned major league professional sports team based in the United States. Since 1957, home games have been played at Lambeau Field. They hold the record for the most wins in NFL history.
Earl Louis "Curly" Lambeau was an American professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). Lambeau, along with his friend and fellow Green Bay, Wisconsin, native George Whitney Calhoun, founded the Green Bay Packers in 1919. He served as team captain in the team's first year before becoming player-coach in 1920. As a player, Lambeau lined up as a halfback, which in the early years of the NFL was the premier position. He was the team's primary runner and passer, accounting for 35 touchdowns in 77 games. He won his only NFL championship as a player in 1929.
Lambeau Field is an outdoor athletic stadium in the north central United States, located in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The home field of the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL), it opened in 1957 as City Stadium, replacing the original City Stadium at Green Bay East High School as the Packers' home field. Informally known as New City Stadium for its first eight seasons, it was renamed in August 1965 in memory of Packers founder, player, and long-time head coach, Earl “Curly” Lambeau, who had died two months earlier.
George Whitney Calhoun was an American newspaper editor and co-founder of the Green Bay Packers, a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. After establishing the Packers in 1919 with Curly Lambeau, Calhoun served the team in various capacities for 44 years until his death in 1963. Utilizing his editorial job at the Green Bay Press-Gazette, he became the team's first publicity director, helping to establish local support and interest. He also served as the first team manager and was a member of the board of directors of the non-profit corporation that owns the team. Although often overshadowed by the more famous Curly Lambeau, Calhoun was instrumental to the early success of the Packers. In recognition of his contributions, Calhoun was elected to the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 1978.
The Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame is a team-specific hall of fame honoring players, coaches, executives and other contributors to the history and success of the Green Bay Packers, an American football team in the National Football League (NFL). It was the first hall of fame built to honor a single professional American football team. William Brault, a Green Bay restaurateur and Packers fan, founded the Packer Hall of Fame in 1966. According to them, they got the idea after visitors to Green Bay would repeatedly ask about the Packers' storied history. Sensing opportunity, they went to Packers head coach Vince Lombardi, suggesting a hall of fame should be made to attract and educate tourists about the Packers and their history. Lombardi gave them his approval as long as the hall of fame would not interfere with the existing players.
Gary Knafelc was an American professional football player who was a wide receiver and a tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons, primarily with the Green Bay Packers. He played one game at the start of his career with the Chicago Cardinals and his final season was with the San Francisco 49ers.
Rockwood Lodge was the training facility of the Green Bay Packers from 1946 to 1950. Originally built in 1937 as a retreat for a local Norbertine Order, the Lodge was purchased by Packers coach and general manager Curly Lambeau in 1946 and then heavily renovated, making it the first self-contained training facility in professional football history. Although the facility was state-of-the-art at the time, many members of the Packers franchise and local fans complained of its high cost, distance from Green Bay, Wisconsin, and its poor practice field. The Lodge burned down in 1950, with the likely cause being faulty electrical wiring or lightning. The Packers received $75,000 in insurance from the fire, which would be used to help reestablish the Packers' long-term financial security. Lambeau resigned from the Packers just a week after the fire, citing a lack of unity in the team's direction between him and the Packers' board of directors. The Rockwood Lodge site would lay vacant for a number of years before being purchased by Brown County, Wisconsin, and developed into a public park.
The Hungry Five are the Green Bay, Wisconsin-area businessmen who were instrumental in keeping the Green Bay Packers franchise in operation during its early years. They raised funds, incorporated the team as a non-profit corporation, sold stock and otherwise promoted the franchise. The Five were Andrew B. Turnbull, Curly Lambeau, Gerald Francis Clifford, Lee Joannes and W. Webber Kelly. Turnbull, Joannes, and Kelly all served as president of the Packers, in addition to other leadership roles. Clifford served as team lawyer and ultimately vice president under Joannes. Lambeau founded the Packers and served as the team's head coach and general manager for almost 30 years. Although other people made significant contributions to the Packers, the Five were recognized as helping manage the team through difficult periods and were essential in maintaining the team's publicly-owned, non-profit status. All of the Five have been inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame, while Lambeau was also inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and had the Packers' stadium, Lambeau Field, named after him.
The Indian Packing Company was a company that was involved in the canned meat industry and was incorporated in Delaware on July 22, 1919. Its canned meat sold as "Council Meats." When the company was absorbed by the Illinois-based Acme Packing Company in 1921, it had facilities in Green Bay, Wisconsin; Providence, Rhode Island; Greenwood, Indiana; and Dupont, Indiana. At the time of the sale it was controlled by New England Supply Company of Providence, Rhode Island, with F.P Comstock as its principal owner.
The 1919 Green Bay Packers season was their first season of competitive football. The team was formed by Curly Lambeau and George Whitney Calhoun with help from the Indian Packing Company. Lambeau served as team captain, the position closest related to the modern position of head coach, while Willard Ryan served as the official head coach. The club posted a 10–1 record against other teams in Wisconsin and Michigan.
Dominic John Olejniczak was an American real estate broker, politician, and football executive. Olejniczak served as an alderman of Green Bay, Wisconsin, from 1936 to 1944. He was then elected mayor, serving for 10 years from 1945 to 1955. During his tenure as mayor, a number of large infrastructure projects were completed and city administration was streamlined. Olejniczak was also known for his work with the Green Bay Packers. Over a period of almost 40 years, Olejniczak served as a member of the board of directors, a vice president, president, and chairman of the board. His 24 years as president is the longest tenure of any Packers president. During his presidency, he hired Vince Lombardi in 1959, the Packers won five championships, and the team saw its net worth grow over 5,000%. In recognition of his contributions, Olejniczak was inducted into the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 1979 and the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame in 2020. He died in 1989, after a series of strokes.
The Bellin Building is a historic office building constructed by the Bellin-Buchanan Building Co. on the corner of East Walnut St. and S. Washington St. in downtown Green Bay, Wisconsin.
Lee Joannes, born Joseph Leland Heath Joannes and also known as Leland Joannes, was a businessman and American football executive. Joannes owned Joannes Brothers Company, a wholesale grocery store, and was the fourth president of the Green Bay Football Corporation, which became Green Bay Packers, Inc. during his tenure. He was part of The Hungry Five, a group of businessmen who are credited with keeping the Green Bay Packers in operation during numerous financially difficult times. He served on the Packers board of directors for over 58 years in various roles, including chairman, president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and director emeritus. During his 17 years as president from 1930 to 1947, the Packers won five NFL Championships while enduring the Great Depression and World War II. In recognition of his contributions, he was elected to the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame in 1981. Joannes died in 1982 at the age of 89.
Though the city currently has no National Football League (NFL) team, Milwaukee is considered a home market for the Green Bay Packers. The team split its home schedule between Green Bay and Milwaukee from 1933 to 1994, with the majority of the Milwaukee games being played at Milwaukee County Stadium.
Clifford A. Christl is an American sportswriter who is the team historian of the Green Bay Packers, a football team in the National Football League (NFL). Prior to this role, Christl worked as a newspaper reporter for over 30 years at newspapers in Wisconsin, including the Manitowoc Herald Times, the Green Bay Press-Gazette and the Milwaukee Journal. Throughout his years as a reporter, Christl covered the Packers as a sportswriter, while also chronicling the team in his spare time and helping establish the Packers Heritage Trail. In 2014, after historian Lee Remmel left the team, Christl was named the team's historian. One of his first activities after being hired was to write The Greatest Story in Sports: Green Bay Packers 1919–2019, a four-part book chronicling the first 100 years of the history of the Packers. Christl also writes articles on the team's history, records oral histories with past Packers' players and coaches and answers fan's questions about the team.
