Middle Tennessee Bowling Association

  HISTORY OF THE GREATER NASHVILLE BOWLING ASSOC DA) THE MEETING WAS HELD AT THE NOEL HOTEL IN NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE ON TUESDAY, APRIL 13, 1937 AT 06:00 PM. MR JOHN SEABOLT WAS ELECTED AS CHAIRMAN OF THE MEETING. MR NEWT MOORE WAS ELECTED AS TEMPORARY SECRETARY.

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  THE FOLLOWING BOWLERS WERE PRESENT: NEWT MOORE, DICK HARTMAN, W P GRFFIN, RUSSELL HOLDER, GORDON TUCKER JOHN M SEABOLT, MILTON SANDERS, ROBERT EAVES, CARL CHILTON, ICEM FINLEY, ROBERT THOMPSON, ALBERT ATWOOD, JOE BRANTLEY, AND ROY NOWLIN. THE CONSTITUTION WAS WRITTEN AND APPROVED.

 

  THE ASSOCIATION WAS NAMED THE NASHVILLE BOWLING ASSOCIATION. THE OFFICERS CONSISTED OF A PRESIDENT, VICE PRESIDENT, SECRETARY ANDA TREASURER. THE DUEs WERE $3.00 PER TEAM OF WHICH S1.50 PER TEAM WOULD BE REMITTED TO THE AMERICAN BOWLING CONGRESS.

 

  THE FOLLOWING OFFICERS WERE ELECTED: LEON LANGFORD-PRESIDENT, GORDON TUCKER-VICE PRESIDENT, RUSSELL HOLDER-SECRETARY, AND JOHN M SEABOLT-TREASURER. THE FOLLOWING WERE ELECTED TO SERVE AS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEN: DICK HARTMAN, NEWT MOORE AND ROBERT EAVES.

 

  IN 1938 THERE WERE 10 LEAGUES REPRESENTED AT THE ANNUAL MEETING. NEW OFFICERS WERE ELECTED AS FOLLOWS: RUSSELL HOLDER-PRESIDENT, R. L. ROGERS-VICE PRESIDENT, ROBERT L. THOMPSON-SECRETARY, AND JOHN M. SEABOLT-TREASURER. THE TREASURER'S REPORT INDICATED A BALANCE OF $61.20.

 

  THE SAME OFFICERS WERE ELECTED AT THE ANNUAL MEETING IN 1939.

 

  THERE WERE 9 SANCTIONED LEAGUES AND 74 TEAMS IN 1940.

 

  AT A MEETING HELD NOVEMBER 20, 1943 THE DATE WAS SET FOR THE FIRST CITY BOWLING TOURNAMENT. THE DATE THE TOURNAMENT WAS TO BE HELD WAS FEBRUARY 5TH AND 13TH, 1944. THE PLACE THE TOURNAMENT WAS HELD WAS NOT MENTIONED.

 

  AT THE ANNUAL MEETNG HELD JUNE 12, 1944 A LETTER FROM MR LATHAM DAVIS, SECRETARY OF THE OLD HICKORY BOWLING ASSOCIATION, ASKING TO BE ALLOWED TO CONSOLIDATE WITH THE NASHVILLE ASSOCIATION, WAS CONSIDERED AND APPROVED. THERE WERE TEN LEAGUESs REPRESENTED OUT OF TWENTY ONE SANCTIONED. MR ROY NOWLIN WAS ELECTED PRESIDENT AND DICK HARTMAN WAS ELECTED SECRETARY.

 

  THE 1945 CITY TOURNAMENT WAS HELD AT WEST END LANES, IN 1946 AT NASHVILLE RECREATING CENTER, IN 1947 AT YATES BROTHERS RECREATION CENTER AND IN 1948 AT MELROSE BOWLING CENTER. THE COST FOR ENTERING THE TOURNAMENT IN 1945 WAS $2.00 PER MAN, PER EVENT, OF WHICH S.67 WAS FOR BOWLING FEES AND $1.33 WAS FOR PRIZE MONEY.

 

  THE FIRST TWO BOWLERS TO BE SUSPENDED FROM MEMBERSHIP FROM NASHVILLE WERE SGT. RALPH VERSCHAEVE, AND SGT. JOHN MALINOFSKY. THEY WERE CHARGED WITH USING A LOWER AVERAGE IN ORDER TO GAIN ADVANTAGE IN THE TOURNAMENT.

 

  THE MINUTES INDICATE THERE WERE MANY PROBLEMS WITH TEAMS AND INDIVIDUALS ENTERED IN THE CITY TOURNAMENT THROUGH THE YEAR OF 1947.

 

  THERE WERE 1368 SANCTIONED BOWLERS IN THE NASHVILLE BOWLING ASSOCIATION AND AVERAGES WERE REPORTED AS FOLLOWS:

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  175 OR ABOVE  -    78 BOWLERS

  165 THRU 174  -    122 BOWLERS

  150 THRU 164  -    371 BOWLERS

  149 AND BELOW - 797 BOWLERS

 

  IT WAS APPROVED TO HAVE THE CITY TOURNAMENT DIVIDED INTO 4 DIVISIONS. THE COST FOR ENTERING THE TOURNAMENT HAS NOW INCREASED TO $3.00 PER MAN, PER EVENT. THE BOWLING WOULD COST $.90. THE TOURNAMENT DIRECTOR WAS PAID S100.00 FOR DIRECTING THE TOURNAMENT.

 

  DALE BROCKMAN WAS BLECTED PRESIDENT AND JACK WHITE SECRETARY AT THE ANNUAL MEETING HELD IN 1951. AT THAT MEETING IT WAS APPROVED TO APPLY TO ABC FOR INDIVIDUAL MEMBERSHIP STATUS. THE RATES TO BE AS FOLLOWS: ABC S.50 PER MAN AND NBA $.50 PER MAN FOR A TOTAL OF $1.00. THE SECRETARY WOULD RECETVE S.25 PER SANCTION PER YEAR.

 

  TJ VANPATTEN WAS ELECTED PRESIDENT AND BILL HUND SECRETARY AT THE 1952 ANNUAL MEETING.

 

   A RECORD OF PAST PRESIDENTS AND SECRETARIES IS LISTED IN THE CURRENT YEARBOOK.

 

  IN 1961 THE NASHVILLE BOWLING ASSOCIATION WAS INCORPORATED AND CHANGED THEIR NAME TO THE GREATER NASHVILLE BOWLING ASSOCIATION (GNBA).

 

  AFTER THE YEAR 1961, THERE WERE YEARBOOKS PRINTED AND THE HISTORY CAN BE OBTAINED FROM THOSE BOOKS WHICH ARE ON FILE IN THE GREATER NASHVILLE BOWLING ASSOCLATION OFFICE.

 

   IN THE 1990's ABC/WIBC BEGAN COMBINING THE TWO ASSOCLATIONS AND DEVELOPED MANY RULES AND MATERIALS THAT CAN BE USED JOINTLY BY BOTH ASSOCIATIONS. OUT OF THIS ENDEAVOR CAME A NEW COMPUTER PROGRAM WHICH IS NOW KNOWN AS WINLABS. IN THE YEAR OF 1998 THE GNBA SWITCHED TO THE NEW WINLABS PROGRAM.

 

  MR. BEN KRISE SERVED IN MANY CAPACITIES WITH THE GNBA AND SERVED AS ASSISTANT SECRETARY FROM 1978 TIL THE TIME OF HIS DEATH IN THE YEAR 2000.

 

  ON MARCH 26, 2001 MR. BERRY THOMAS OF NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE SET A WORLD RECORD BY BOWLING A 300 GAME AT THE AGE OF 87 YEARS AND 11 MONTHS.

 

  MR. ARNOLD POSTON DIED OCTOBER 20, 2002. HE WAS A LIFE MEMBER AND A MEMBER OF THE GREATER NASHVILLE BOWLING ASSOCIATION HALL OF FAME.

 

  ON JUNE 15, 2004 LIFE MEMBER, BOB ERVIN PASSED AWAY.

 

  ON AUGUST 30, 2004 MONTY MONTGOMERY PASSED AWAY. MONTY WAS GNBA SECRETARY FOR 16 YEARS.

 

  ON MAY 5, 2005 THE ABC AND WIBC DELEGATES APPROVED THE UNITED STATES BOWLING CONGRESS PROPOSAL TO UNIFY THE MEMBERSHIP ORGANIZATIONS WITH MORE THAN THE REQUIRED TWO-THIRDS MAJORITY.

 

  AT THIS TIME THE NWBA AND GNBA HAVE DECIDED NOT TO MERGE.

 

  THE NEW NAME FOR THE GNBA WILL BE NASHVILLE AREA USBC BA, EFFECTIVE AUGUST 1, 2005.