Hobey Baker (1892–1918) was an American amateur athlete of the early twentieth century, widely regarded by his contemporaries as one of the best athletes of his time. He excelled at ice hockey and football at Princeton University, where he was a member of three national championship teams, and became a noted amateur hockey player for the St. Nicholas Club in New York City, helping the club win a national amateur championship. Baker graduated in 1914 and worked for J.P. Morgan Bank until he enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Service. During World War I he served with the 103rd and 13th Aero Squadrons before being promoted to captain and named commander of the 141st Aero Squadron. Baker died in December 1918 after a plane he was test-piloting crashed, hours before he was due to return to America. In 1921, Princeton named its new hockey arena the Hobey Baker Memorial Rink. He was one of the first nine inductees in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1945 and was also inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1975, making him the only person to be in both Halls of Fame. The Hobey Baker Award is presented annually to the best collegiate hockey player in the United States. (Full article...)

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