Member's Memories
Members of the Cossitt Family Association are given an opportunity in this section of our website to say a few words about a deceased Cossitt relative that are of interest to all who read this section.
Harlow Hopkins Cossitt (b
September 21,1860 Pompey Hill, NY, d November 29, 1952 Hanford, CA)
We all know
that baseball is an American creation. According to the Ken Burns
documentary on baseball that was broadcast on PBS, it got its structure
and beginnings from a game played by young men and boys in Syracuse, NY called
TOWNBALL. As a child, I remember sitting on the couch in the
living room one Christmas Day and talking to my great grandfather
Cossitt. On this occasion he told me that as a youth there was no
game of baseball. He told me that what they played was called TOWNBALL. It wasn't until many years after
his death that I discovered that he grew up in Syracuse, NY and had played
the game that shortly thereafter developed into modern day baseball. (Submitted
by Richard Frey)
Newton Neville Cossitt
(b
August 31, 1902 Brockville, Ontario, Canada, d April 2, 1965 Stamford,
Connecticut)
If
there is one thing my siblings and cousins remember most about our
Grandfather, it was gathering around him to listen to stories about our
ancestors. My Grandfather sure could spin a yarn and we couldn't
always tell if the sole purpose of some of his details wasn't purely for
our enjoyment. One of the most memorable stories he told was of
the Brockville Skating Rink which was constructed in 1903 by his
Grandfather Newton Cossitt Sr. It was managed by his father
Leonard Randles Cossitt. The Cossitt skating rink stood at the
corner of Broad and Water streets and was considered one of the finest
rinks in the province. The building had over 14,000
square feet of floor space and a high arched roof which ensured good
pure air, no matter how large the crowds. The interior was surrounded by a gallery for easy viewing of the many events
taking place there. There was ice skating in the winter, and
roller-skating
and carnivals through the summer and to add to the pleasure of the
skaters, there was a band in attendance every evening. As a young
boy, Newton often attended social events at the rink with his family and
recalled simpler times when the citizens of Brockville came together to
celebrate. The rink was destroyed by fire in April of 1913
and about five years later his family left Brockville because his father
was offered a position with the Toronto Skating Club.
(Submitted by Cam Cossitt)