James (Jimmy) Ellis

Jim Ellis is another athlete of note who was born in Peterborough and spent his life here, except for a brief fling during the 1938-39 hockey season when he played in Florida with “Bullet Joe” Simpson’s Miami Clippers.

His first coaching triumph of note was in 1932-33 when Rangers won the Schneider Cup, symbolic of the championship of the Southend Juvenile League. As a defenceman, Jim played three junior seasons for the city team, then shifted gears to play centre for Peterborough’s Intermediate and Senior squads. When he came back after the Miami experience, he played defence for the Intermediate team which won both OHA Intermediate A and Eastern Canada honours. The next season, he was playing coach of the Petes, and a season later he devoted his time solely to coaching the Peterborough senior team to the Ontario Sr. B title. He continued coaching the senior club until 1948.

Jim Ellis also played first base for several seasons of City League softball, known as a good fielder and timely hitter