Oof Wah! West Side Rooters return, recall Cubs’ heyday

 By Nadeen Nakib 

Chicago is pumped with baseball fever. The early part of the season is “always an exciting time of year,” Chicago Cubs fan Rick Storck said. “Let’s hope we can take it all the way this year.”

One hundred years ago, Cubs fans’ hopes were exactly the same, with a group called the West Side Rooters extolling their undying loyalty to the team in 1908. A century after being disbanded, the West Side Rooters are starting up again and already have received thousands of responses from across the nation.

Grant DePorter, president of Harry Caray’s restaurants, also is president of the 2008 Rooters. He is excited about the reaction so far.

“We’ve already had e-mails and letters from fans from New York to L.A.,”  DePorter said. “We’re hoping to have 10,000 members by the end of May.”

            The 1908 West Side Rooters were undoubtedly some of the most exuberant fans the Cubs have ever seen. From contracts that made members attend every game unless ill to rumors of hexes and “hoo doo” curses, the Rooters pledged unfailing devotion to their favorite team. They connected with fans and players, and their war cry “Oof Wah!” could be heard across the city during the season.

            Charles W. Murphy, Cubs president at the time, had the West Side Rooters disbanded after the Cubs repeated their 1907 World Series championship with another in 1908. Some believe this act may have resulted in the curse that has kept the Cubs from winning a World Series since.

            Cubs shortstop “Joe Tinker, chairman of the Rooters, really led the way for fans and players in 1908,” DePorter said, noting that “was the year of the Rooters. The fans and players really bonded and had a great connection. But Charles Murphy had a real disconnect with the whole thing. He didn’t like the fans becoming organized.”

            The 2008 Rooters hope to be highly involved with the fans and the team and plan to sponsor activities and hold events in remembrance of the 1908 Rooters and Cubs—including reviving the “Oof Wah!” cry and staging a recreation of the 1908 Rooters’ “Tallyho” formal, complete with horse drawn carriages and period musical instruments.

Former players are involved, too. Hall of Famers Ernie Banks is chairman of the new Rooters, and Ryne Sandberg is secretary.

            “Ernie Banks has a real connection with the fans, unlike Charles Murphy,” DePorter said. “He and Ryne Sandberg are going to be sending personal e-mails to fans who have registered through the website.”

            Everyone is welcome to join the 2008 Rooters, and there is no cost to join. The website, www.westsiderooters.com, under construction as of this writing, is being developed by a Cubs fan. Members receive e-mails updating them on Cubs information and meetings, which will be held at the new Harry Caray’s Tavern in Wrigleyville.

            “I’ve even been contacted by the 84-year-old son of the 1908 batboy,”  DePorter said with a laugh.

            Along with catering to Cubs fans and players, the 2008 Rooters plan on giving back to the community through donations to charities that have some connection with the Cubs.

            “I want to bring back events that haven’t happened since 1908,” DePorter said. “A swimming race in the Chicago River is in the works. I’ve already contacted members from the West Side Rooters to participate.”

            In July 1908, the first annual Chicago marathon swim took place; there were 71 participants, and even one woman swam the river competitively. Winner Herald S.C. Jensen won the race, swimming from Lake Michigan to VanBuren St. in 44 minutes. DePorter wants to get West Side Rooters members involved in other Chicago activities as well, connecting them across the city.

            The 1908 West Side Rooters were given their name to honor the Cubs’ old playing field on the Near West Side, the West Side Grounds at Polk and Wolcott Sts., a site now on the University of Illinois at Chicago campus. The 2008 Rooters have kept the old name, although the Cubs’ last year on the Near West Side was 1915.

Brian Bernardoni, former executive director for the University Village Association, is a Cubs amateur historian and member of another fan group, the Way Out in Left Field Society. He supports any group that promotes the Chicago Cubs.

            “The Chicago Cubs’ rich history has significant ties to the Near West Side, and those ties can only be strengthened by efforts such as the West Side Rooters Social Club and The Way Out of Left Field Society,” Bernardoni said.

            The Chicago Cubs years on the Near West Side were the team’s heyday, producing two World Series wins and some of the greatest plays made in baseball. The 1916 move was something Near West Siders had to accept with gritted teeth.

            “People were worried about the move,” Bernardoni said. “The North Side was like the suburbs to them. Yet there was a lot of change on the West Side. Immigrants were moving to Taylor Street and were more focused on building a life rather then baseball. The move made strong economic sense.”

            The move proved more successful than most Near West Siders of the time thought, as Wrigley Field has become an icon for Chicago baseball and its fans. The 2008 Rooters picked the new Harry Caray’s Tavern as headquarters because of its location close to Wrigley.

            “There are parallels—‘Third Base Saloon’ was adjacent to Fenway Park [in Boston], and it only makes sense that the headquarters for the Rooters is next to Wrigley,” DePorter said.

            Cubs fans are excited about the group starting up again.

            “It’s definitely something I would join.” Storck said. “The idea of the West Side Rooters in 2008 sounds fun and exciting. Maybe with them we can win the World Series again this year.”

            Rooters hope they can give the Cubs that “Oof Wah!” they need to break the so-called curse and win this year.