Eric Zweig shares his Research on Cyclone Taylor

Eric Zweig was the guest speaker at the April meeting of the Grey County Historical Society. Eric Zweig, a sports historian, has been passionate about sports since a young lad. He began his presentation that focussed on Cyclone Taylor, by reading some entries from his grade five school journals. Practically ever page of Eric's note book shared a news item about sports.

Frederick Wellington “Cyclone” Taylor was born around 1884 to Scottish immigrant, Archibald Taylor and his wife, Mary in Tara, Bruce County, Ontario. Eric has not been able to locate a birth registration to prove Cyclone's exact birth date. Various documents indicate different years and Eric shared some of these with the group.

 Eric shared some of the facts and legends surrounding the life of Cyclone Taylor. When Cyclone was a young boy, his family moved to Listowel where he played for junior and intermediate teams in the Ontario Hockey Association. In 1907, he joined the Ottawa Hockey Club and the Ottawa Civil Service.

Cyclone Taylor, named for his speed, was one of Canada’s earliest professional hockey players. He helped win the Stanley Cup twice, once with Ottawa in 1909 and with Vancouver in 1915. He was one of the first hockey stars and in 1947, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. His government job led him to becoming the Commissioner of Immigration for British Columbia and the Yukon.  He died June 9, 1997 in Vancouver, BC.

Eric wrote Star Power: The Legend and Lore of Cyclone Taylor. (James Lormier and Company, 2007)
to tell the story of this legendary hockey player.