Walter Oster Norris (1905 - 1958)

Born 1905 in Maryland

Ancestors

Died 9 Nov 1958 at about age 53 in Mount Washington, Baltimore, Maryland

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Biography

St. John's College

"Walter Oster Norris, better known as "Kid," attended Friends School in Baltimore where he won letters and was an outstanding athlete in football, basketball, and tennis. He left Friends in 1923 and entered St. John's College in Annapolis where he was on the football team. Norris left St. John's in 1924 to become a partner in his father's automotive business, R. W. Norris & Sons. It was after leaving St. John's that Norris started his long and illustrious association with the Mt. Washington Club. At that time, Mt.Washington fielded football, baseball and tennis, as well as lacrosse teams. Norris played and starred on all these teams, as a third baseman and a .300 hitter on the baseball team, at quarterback on the football team, and was always high on the club tennis ladder. In spite of all these accomplishments in other sports, he had time to become one of the finest midfielders in the history of lacrosse. Norris played and coached lacrosse at Mt. Washington for 30 years. For the 15 years he played, Mt. Washington won 110 games out of 119 played, and after he started coaching in 1938, Mt. Washington won the Open Championship eight times. In 1937 Norris was a member of an all-star team that toured England and was undefeated. He also was honored as captain of this team for their first game. Although Norris concentrated on lacrosse he did not neglect other forms of athletic endeavor. He played and coached the Mt. Washington Club's men's field hockey team with such success that several members of the team were selected to represent the United States in three Olympiads. In 1940 Norris was a member of the Olympic Selection Committee for field hockey and helped coach this team. He was also very active in badminton, winning the Maryland State Men's Doubles Championship in 1944 with another great lacrosse player, Fred Stieber. In addition Norris enjoyed duck shooting and was very active as a yachtsman during the summers.Norris was a very strong leader and influenced the lives of a great many of the young men with whom he played and also coached. The new Mt. Washington Club is a fitting memorial to one who devoted so much time and effort into making it one of the outstanding influences in the game of lacrosse down through the years. Kid Norris passed away in November, 1958."

Sources

• "United States Census, 1920", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M6Q6-QZ2 : 1 February 2021), Walter O Norris in entry for Harry D Norris, 1920.
• "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X34C-JW5 : accessed 12 April 2021), Walter O Norris, Baltimore (Districts 501-673), Baltimore (Independent City), Maryland, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 666, sheet 14A, line 12, family 120, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 870; FHL microfilm 2,340,605.
• "New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1957," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:24KK-B5Q : 2 March 2021), Walter Oster Norris, 1937; citing Immigration, New York, New York, United States, NARA microfilm publication T715 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
• "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K7XY-J5H : 8 January 2021), W Oster Norris, Baltimore, Baltimore, Maryland, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 4-803, sheet 5A, line 29, family 90, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 1539.