Herb Trawick
*Herb Trawick was born on this date in 1921. He was a Black professional football player.
Trawick was born and raised in the Hill District of Pittsburgh, PA. He attended Kentucky State University and graduated with a degree in physical education. Collegiately, Trawick was a three-time All-American in football from 1940 to 1942. After school, he enlisted in the U.S. Army during World War II. Lew Hayman and Leo Dandurand managed the new Montreal Alouettes franchise in 1946. They noticed how well-received Jackie Robinson was when he played minor league ball with the Montreal Royals. They were determined to have a black player on their team.
In 1946, Trawick was the first Black to play in the Canadian Football League. He was surprisingly quick for 5 ft 10 in and 230 lb.; he went on to play 147 regular-season games and was an Interprovincial Rugby Football Union All-Star seven times. He also played in 4 Grey Cup games, scoring a touchdown on a fumble recovery in the Als 1949 Grey Cup championship against the Calgary Stampeders. Trawick played in the three-game Grey Cup set against the Edmonton Eskimos from 1954 to 1956 and had a touchdown on a fumble return in the classic 42nd Grey Cup game. Trawick spent his 12-year career as an offensive lineman and defensive guard with the Montreal Alouettes.
When he retired in 1957, Trawick was the only "original" Alouette remaining with the team. Though he was welcomed in Montreal and made it his home, things were imperfect. Though university-educated, he could only find work as a doorman. He became a Canadian citizen in 1953. He was generous to the community charity work. His fans much loved Trawick's jersey. No. 56 is one of seven retired by the Alouettes. Trawick entered the Canadian Football Hall of Fame and the Kentucky State University Athletics Hall of Fame in 1975.
Herb Trawick died on September 16, 1985, in Montreal. On July 16, 1997, the City of Montreal named a park in his honor. Parc Herb-Trawick is located southwest of the intersection of Lionel-Groulx Avenue and Richmond Street. In 2006, Trawick was voted to the Honor Roll of the Canadian Football League's Top 50 players of the modern era by the Canadian sports network TSN.
