Bio – Ellis, Franklin Clay “Hank”

Born: August 18, 1921 (Bluefield, WV)

Died: October 29, 2015 (Buckhannon, WV)

Education:

  • B.S. West Virginia Wesleyan College, 1943
  • M.A. West Virginia University, 1947

Served:

  • Coach of Baseball 
  • Coach of Basketball
  • Coach of Golf
  • Athletic Director

Taught:

  • Assistant Professor of Physical Education and Coach of Basketball 1950-1956
  • Associate Professor of Physical Education and Coach of Basketball 1957-1960
  • Professor of Health and Physical Education 1960-1986
  • Professor of Health and Physical Education and Coach of Baseball Emeritus 1987-2015

Notes:

  • 1942-67 Naval Reserve, retiring as a Lieutenant Commander
  • 1944 (May) to 1945 (March) Commanding Officer on USS LCT 710, which landed elements of the 50th Signal Battalion on Utah Beach on D-Day (June 6, 1944) (LCT – Landing Craft Tank)
  • 1944 (June) Made D-Day landing on Utah Beach, Normandy
  • 1945 (June) Gunnery Officer on USS LCI 728 in Pearl Harbor, HI. (LCI – Landing Craft Infantry)
  • 1947-50 U.S. Olympic Basketball Committee
  • 1949 Taught and Coached at Martins Ferry High School
  • 1986 – The Baseball Field at West Virginia was named in honor of Franklin Clay “Hank” Ellis. [1986 Sundial Spring/Summer p.13]
  • 1959 West Virginia Coach of the Year in Basketball 
  • Named to the All-Time WVIAC Basketball Team as both a player and a coach,
  • Member of the WV Sportswriters Hall of Fame. 

Sources:

  • Catalogs
  • Murmurmontis
  • Sundials