Eric Werge (Tammy) Hamber – Born April 21, 1879 in Winnipeg, Manitoba – Died January 10, 1960 in Vancouver, British Columbia was a rowing, polo, tennis, rugby, football, Hockey player, and a Canadian businessman. Hamber was named the 15th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia in 1936.
Hamber was educated at the Anglican St. John’s College for Boys in Winnipeg, where his father was headmaster.

Hamber was possibly the best Canadian all-round athlete of his time. At St. John’s College, he was captain of the rugby team, which he led to a Western Canadian championship in 1901. He became associated with the Toronto Argonauts in their glory years from 1902-06, and was captain of all three of their teams — Hockey, football and rowing. He rowed for the Argos at Henley in 1902. Hamber played Hockey for St. John’s College in Winnipeg from 1896 to 1901 and 1904, winning the Manitoba Inter-Collegiate Hockey Championship in 1898.

Hamber then played for the Winnipeg Hockey Club and the Dominion Bank Hockey team, winning the Winnipeg Bankers Hockey League in 1900 and 1901. Hamber also played for the Dominion Bank Hockey team in Toronto, Ontario, where he was team captain from 1902 to 1903 in the Toronto Bank League. Hamber also played for the Toronto Argonauts in 1902-03 where he captained the team. Hamber rejoined the Argonauts late in 1904, helping them to the OHA championship final, and also was with them for one final season in 1905.

Hamber was captain of the Princes Ice Hockey Club, at the Prince’s Skating Club in London, England in 1911. The British Ice Hockey Association was founded at the rink in 1914. Tammy’s biggest Hockey moment was when he played for the Manitoba Hockey Association champions, Winnipeg Rowing Club in the Stanley Cup challenge against the Ottawa Hockey Club / Ottawa Silver Seven on December 30, 1903 (9 to 1 loss), January 1 (6 to 2 win), and January 4 (2 to 0 loss), 1904.

After the first game of the series, Winnipeg added Eric Werge Hamber from the Toronto Argonauts Ice Hockey team. Hamber replaced the injured S. Crawford Richards and played in the second and third games only. There was controversy over Hamber’s participation because he had not qualified to play in the Stanley Cup challenge, as he didn’t play in the western playoffs and then he joined the Winnipeg Rowing Club in Ottawa, where the games were played at the Aberdeen Pavilion.

 

An interesting point of interest:

Eric Hamber and Bad Joe Hall

Joseph Henry “Bad Joe” HALL (May 3, 1881 – April 5, 1919) played the rover position during the 1904 games with teammate Hamber playing cover position. Hall became a professional hockey player and played senior and professional hockey from 1902 – 1919.

In the spring of 1919 Hall was playing for the NHL champion Canadiens in Seattle Washington against the Pacific Coast Hockey Association champion Metropolitans in the best of five Stanley Cup Finals. The series was at two win each and a tie game when health officials cancelled the deciding game due to the 1918 – 1920 Spanish Flu pandemic.

Almost all of the Canadiens team became ill with several requiring hospitalization. Everyone recovered except Hall who contracted pneumonia and died in hospital. Hall’s body was transported to Vancouver from Seattle where he is buried in the Mountain View Cemetery approximately 450 meters from Hamber.

Hamber rests in the Hendry/Hamber mausoleum. Joseph (Joe) Hall won the Stanley Cup twice. Once with the Quebec Bull Dogs and once with the Kenora Thistles. Hall was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1961.

 

 

 Details/portions of this website courtesy of hockeygods.com