The Codger Pole - Colfax, Washington

Thought some might enjoy this. A good friend who knows I love football history told me about the "Codger Pole" in Colfax, Washington. I did not believe him, not that he's an untrustworthy person or frequently exaggerates, but his story was beyond comprehension.

In 1938, Colfax and St' Johns High School football teams battled on a snow covered field for a mythical "state championship" (a controversial Colfax loss). 50 years later they settled the score on the gridiron in a rematch between the '38 teams; 65-68 year old men battled to finally decide the outcome, in what was dubbed the "Hamstring Game".

Now the strange part of the story begins: In 1991 a chainsaw sculptor from Northern California named Jonathon LaBenne was commissioned to erect a 65 foot totem of the players in the 1988 game in their original 1938 helmets. The totem bankrupted the artist, but it still stands in Colfax, Washington. Here's a related article:
https://news.google.com/newspapers?n...,3105671&hl=en

It is very peculiar, and stands 6-and-a-half stories tall. The football totem dominates the landscape in a town with very few buildings more than a single story:

[CowboysGuide]

Interesting story. I wonder if anyone of note is on the pole.

Originally Posted by CowboysGuide

Interesting story. I wonder if anyone of note is on the pole.

Fourth up on the pole pictured on the left is TV actor, and former Colfax resident John Crawford, who played in the 1938 & 1988 games. Crawford is probably most well known for his role in Gunsmoke. This seems to have been a bizarre pet project.

A couple may have gone on to play college football, going to the library today to look up some more info. Here's some scale...