Downer’s Grove Boy’s High School Basketball Team, Circa 1916

I was in Chicago for the day and found myself in Downer’s Grove, one of the city’s prosperous Western suburbs, studying an enlargement of a photograph of the Downer’s Grove boy’s high school basketball team, circa 1916. I was captivated. The photo was so good I found myself wondering what happened to this motley group of young men, with their wrinkled white shorts and haircuts that looked like something out of a black-and-white gangster movie.

In some cultures, people believe photographs steal the human soul. I believe just the opposite. This photograph preserved some of the spirit of these young men – so much that I was able to experience it today – 93 years later. There they were standing on the steps of the school building, wearing tall knee-socks with two wide stripes; sleeveless jerseys – again with two, wide horizontal stripes; and tattered, two-tone high-top shoes. The tallest boy in the front and center held the ball, on which someone had clumsily painted the date in white numbers. There was a serious boy, one who looked to be a smart-ass, and of course a variety of smiles and half-smiles. I wondered to myself, how many of these guys still have lineage in the area? Did any of them fight in World War I? Did any become successful? Are any still alive today? I would love to know more of the stories of these young men.

Of course this is the reason we love photography, because it preserves for us a shadow memory of brief moments, the likenesses of long-passed relatives, events and people who might otherwise be forgotten. That’s the power of photography. But the power of a great photograph is that it preserves more than a likeness. A great photograph delivers the spirit and personality of the subject to us across the years. From 1916 to today, across all the wars and natural disasters and moon landings and social upheavals and countless events, I was able to connect with just a little of the youthful spirit and energy of these young guys… thanks to power of a great photograph.

Unfortunately, an Internet search for the photo turned up nothing. If I find the photograph, I will repost it here. Thanks for reading.