MEDIA RELEASE: Celebrating Hockey History

In the 1950s, Belleville’s Memorial arena was packed on game nights as rowdy crowds cheered on their hometown hockey team, The Belleville McFarlands.

Owned by wealthy industrialist H.J. McFarland of Picton, the team was stocked with former NHL veterans, promising rookies, and local farm boys who played a blend of hockey featuring speed, scoring skill, and bruising play. The mighty MACS were rough, tough, and unstoppable.

In 1958, the McFarlands swept through successive series with Canadian teams to win the Allan Cup. Fifty thousand fans lined the streets of Belleville to welcome them home. The following year, they travelled to Prague, Czechoslovakia to play the best teams in the world. The MACS lost just one game and captured the world title. And Belleville went crazy again.

But within months the players were embroiled in a scandal involving city payments to team members. It was not until 50 years later in April 2009, Belleville honoured the team with a special anniversary night launching a documentary and book about their remarkable achievement.

Re-live this hockey history on Thursday, January 30^th from 7 – 8:30PM at The Andrew, 31 King St., Picton as another of our monthly “History Nights” presentations with journalist Peter Lockyer. The evening will also feature author Richard Hughes discussing his new book, Belleville Hockey Town, The Early Years 1865 – 1930.