J.D. Brewster, Jr. Papers
Collection
Identifier: MS394
This collection consists of newspaper clippings (and their photocopies), football and event programs, certificates, and Alpha Tau Omega materials relating to the student life and athletic career of James D. Brewster, Jr. during his time at Georgia Tech.
(one document case, one oversize box)
None.
Permission to publish materials from this collection must be obtained from the Head of Archives and Special Collections.
1.9 Linear Feet
This collection is composed of the sports sections of many Atlanta-area newspapers from during the years that James D. Brewster, Jr. played on the football and basketball teams at Georgia Tech (1918-1922). Many of these newspapers contain photos of Brewster on the playing field or court, and others mention him as a vital member of the Georgia Tech athletics department. The collection also includes a few items relating to the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity; certificates from the Georgia Tech Athletic Association; a football program, an annual celebration program for the 1920 Golden Tornado, and a "T" Club program dating from Brewster's time at Tech.
James David "Jimmy" Brewster, Jr. was born in Newnan, Georgia, on January 9, 1902. His father was the Coweta County Sherriff, and his mother, Margaret, was a homemaker. Jimmy Brewster graduated from Newnan High School and entered the Georgia School (now Institute) of Technology in 1919, joining the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity. A talented multi-sport athlete, Brewster played basketball and ran track as well as becoming the star halfback on the football team. During his college years, Brewster was often seen in photographs on the front of the Atlanta Journal and Atlanta Constitution's sports sections. His fancy footwork earned him the nickname "the Side-Stepping Wonder."
After graduating from Georgia Tech with a degree in Textile Engineering in 1923, Brewster moved back to Newnan to work on the family farm, but soon moved to Newark, New Jersey, when an opportunity to play professional football for the fledgling Newark Bears of the first American Football League arose. He played halfback for this team as well, mostly composed of former college football players from Georgia and Florida, but the team, and ultimately the league, folded the next year.
Moving back to Newnan, Brewster worked his family's farm for nearly the rest of his life. He also managed its pulpwood operations, with his only "break" coming in the form of World War II, during which he served as a Lieutenant in the United States military in North Africa, where he was wounded.
Brewster was a devout Methodist, and a member of Newnan's First United Methodist Church. He never married or had any children.
James D. Brewster, Jr. died on August 20, 1998, at the age of 96, at Newnan Hospital. The funeral was held a few days later, and he was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in Newnan.
A print copy of this finding aid is available in the Georgia Tech Archives reading room.
Donations, 2002-2005 (accession numbers 2002.087, 2004.022, and 2005.034).
This collection also includes several artifacts (pins, medals, a plaque, and other memorabilia) and visual materials, including photographs and two Georgia Tech calendars. The artifacts have been separated and placed in the Artifacts collection; the visual materials will be processed separately as VAM394.
(one document case, one oversize box)
This collection was processed by Christine de Catanzaro and Lindsay Resnick in January 2013.
Part of the Archives and Special Collections, Library, Georgia Institute of Technology Repository