MARCH 18, 1895

HAIDA GEORGE NIX BORN—1^ST NATIVE ALASKAN PRO FOOTBALL PLAYER

Born in Howkan, Alaska, a Haida island village west of Ketchikan, George went to Chemewa Indian School in Salem, Oregon, before attending Haskell Institute in Kansas in 1922 where he played against  America’s best college football teams. Other Alaska Natives on that team included his brother Frank & Frank Peratrovich. In 1926, Nix played briefly for the National Football League’s Buffalo Rangers before joining the Hominy Indians, comprised of members of several nations.  In December 1927, George played in the team’s greatest victory, a 13-6 win over the reigning world champion New York Football Giants. Also on that team were All American John Levi and Johnny “Pepper” Martin, later of baseball’s St. Louis Cardinals. After football, Nix lived in Oklahoma & California in the 1930s before returning to Hydaburg in the 1940s. A member of the Alaska Native Brotherhood fighting for civil rights for Alaska Natives, he worked as a fisherman before moving to Tacoma, where he died on October 5, 1978.

Sources: 

Morton Guzman, “Hominy Indians Triumph over New York Giants.” The Daily Journal-Capital, 12/27/1927, p. 6. Microfilm roll number MN00274. Sequoyah National Research Center, Little Rock, Arkansas. Retrieved 11/7/2022, Hominy Indians Triumph over New York Giants - Sequoyah National Research Center (ualr.edu) 

Matt Tunseth, “George Nix, Alaska's NFL pioneer, Anchorage Daily News, 1/31/2015, updated 9/28/2016.  Retrieved 11/7/2022, George Nix, Alaska's NFL pioneer (adn.com)

Photo:  Author unknown, 1925. 1925 Hominy Indians team photograph [Cropped], reprinted in “Hominy Indians Triumph over New York Giants.” The Daily Journal-Capital. 12/27/1927, p. 6. Microfilm roll number MN00274. Sequoyah National Research Center, Little Rock, Arkansas. Public Domain. Source: Photographs - Hominy Heritage Association (weebly.com).