The Greatest Generation
Submitted by Thomas W. Fish
Little did these boys of the 1928 and 1929 baseball teams know that the Great Economic Depression was only months away, and the greatest war of all mankind was a little more than a decade in the future.
These students were transplants from Brayton School to the newly opened Franklin School. In fact, there was one mother who told her son that he might not get as good an education in a country school house as he would in a school closer to town.
The enrollment at Franklin School was so small in the beginning that the baseball team was composed of 4th, 5th and 6th graders. They lost one baseball game to Washington School 62-0 while a cow grazed in the outfield.
Seventy-five Summit residents were lost in World War II. Focusing on the two students of this group that made the ultimate sacrifice in the war: Arthur “Lefty” Vivian who lived across the street from Franklin was often seen crossing the street in the morning, buttoning his shirt while the school bell was ringing. But by high school he was considered a top baseball pitching prospect. The other, Ben Herr, took the family car to pick up his high school date. When the girl’s father came to the door, Ben introduced himself to the father who immediately slammed the door in his face. He thought Ben was spoofing him with the character of the 1880 book, Ben-Hur, not knowing that the name was spelled differently. Hopefully, they finally got together.
Six grade students from Franklin competed against other schools in town, at least until the mid 1960s. The achievements on the field got better with future generations, but they would never match the accomplishments of students of “The Greatest Generation” who struggled through the depression and fought in the war.
