FRANK BROWN MEMORIAL GOLF TOURNAMENT

Who was Frank Brown?

Frank J. Brown joined the laboratory staff as a technician where he helped develop the proximity VT fuse used during WWII.  He then was a machinist in the laboratory’s central shop and worked later as a senior clerk in the Raw Materials Shop.  Here he ordered and checked the quality of all material needed for fabrication in the shops.

Prior to joining APL he worked for the Bendix Aviation Corporation in Philadelphia, PA after being a mechanic for the Hudson Coal Co. in Scranton, PA.  He was an active sportsman all his life, having once played baseball for the AAA Scranton All Stars.  He bowled in an APL league and was a member of the APL Golf League tournament committee.  He also enjoyed dancing at Fred Waring’s Shawnee-on-Delaware in his spare time.

While on the tournament committee, Frank established a spring golf trip to Hershey, PA which later changed to Hanover when South Hills Golf Course opened in the early nineteen sixties.  His first outings included round trip bus from the lab, free coffee in the cafeteria, and greens fee at the course, all for around $9.  At first, we would have dinner in Hanover, and in later years at The Red Barn Restaurant adjacent to the course (the name has changed since).

Popularity of this wonderful course and inflation has changed since those early days, but I shall never forget Frank, a quiet little man who always had a smile on his face and a story or two to tell.

Terry “Hack” Hunter – 2006