Bay City's All Time All Pro Football Player Bill Hewitt Not Forgotten
Pro All-Star Player's Plaque to be Placed on Display at Community Center
June 4, 2008
By: Chelsea Anderson
(l-r) Tim Tobin, Darwin Baranski and Neil Kent admire the Plaque dedicated to Bill Hewitt
William Hewitt (born 1909 in Bay City) attended the University of Michigan and became a pro football player in the National Football League. He played for the Chicago Bears, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Phil-Pitt Eagles. Hewitt was notorious for not wearing a helmet and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1971.
Bay County also commemorated him by putting a plaque in his honor at Hewitt Field. The plaque was taken down, but thanks to the City Park Director and the board of the Bay County Sports Hall of Fame, it will soon be put on display once again.
The plaque was originally placed inside the storage building at the Bay City park, but it was thought that too many people had access to it. It was feared that somebody would steal it, considering it would be worth some money at a salvage yard. "We felt it was a good idea to remove it," said City Parks Director Darwin Baranski.
However, that decision was made about a year ago, and few people have seen the plaque since. So Baranski brought it to the attention of Neil Kent, Tom Tobin and Mike Gwizdala, members the board of the Bay County Sports Hall of Fame. They were very thankful. After a lot of dusting and some heavy lifting, the plaque was transported to the community center, where it can soon be seen and appreciated.