On Thursday, the USA Hockey Hall of Fame announced its induction class for 2024. Chicago Blackhawks founding owner Major Frederic McLaughlin will be inducted with Matt Cullen, Brianna Decker, Kevin Stevens and the 2002 Paralympic Sled Hockey Team.
McLaughlin led a group of business men who bought the expansion franchise and named it for the Army’s 86th Blackhawk Division of the 333rd Machine Gun Battalion, which McLaughlin commanded during World War I. His wife designed the first logo for the team, which was known as the Black Hawks.
From the USA Hockey Hall of Fame bio on McLaughlin:
The late Major Frederic McLaughlin (Chicago, Ill.) was a pioneer in American hockey in the 1920s and 30s, with his efforts in founding the Chicago Blackhawks and securing two Stanley Cup titles during his tenure, serving as a catalyst for the growth and evolution of the sport not only in Chicago, but throughout the Midwest and beyond.
McLaughlin owned the team until 1944, when he passed away at age 67. He was known for collecting American-born players and firing head coaches like George Steinbrenner did with the Yankees decades later.
His estate sold the team to a group led by James E. Norris (yes, of the Norris Trophy — and, then, the owner of the Red Wings) and team president Bill Tobin. In 1950, James D. Norris (son of James E.) and Arthur Wirtz took control of the team. Wirtz was a minority owner of the Red Wings previously. James D. Norris passed away in 1966, passing ownership fully to the Wirtz family.