Frank “Pete” Machell was born on August 26, 1893, in Aurora, Ontario. His family has deep connections to Aurora, which was originally called Machell’s Corners. The hamlet was named after Pete’s ancestor, Richard Machell.
From a young age, Pete was a dedicated athlete and enjoyed playing hockey in the winter, and lacrosse in the summer. Pete was an active member in the Aurora lacrosse scene and played on both the junior and intermediate teams. In 1913, Pete played right wing for the Aurora Hockey Club and helped the team win the inaugural Metropolitan League competition for the esteemed Allan Moore Trophy.
When the First World War broke out, he signed up with the 12th York Rangers and became part of the 127th Battalion; along with the rest of the Battalion, he was later re-designated as part of an Engineering battalion, in his case, the 1st Canadian Railway Troops. In this position Pete would have been at risk of artillery shells and aeroplanes (as they were spelled) while completing clearing and construction work. An interesting fact is that despite competing for the Allan Moore trophy in 1913, which is where the term “blood and thunder hockey” originated, Pete still had all of his front teeth as described in his military records.
Pete returned to Toronto in March of 1919, and although he just missed the hockey season, he was quick to sign up the following year and helped to lead the team to another victory, claiming the Allan Moore trophy yet again. When describing his presence on the ice, the local paper remarked, “At centre, well, Pete Machell was there and every other place that required attention. His check found him about as easy to hold as an eel over in the Holland River” (Aurora Banner, March 5, 1920). The team would go on to win the trophy again in 1921.
Unlike the hockey club, the record keeping of the local lacrosse team wasn’t as detailed, and at the time of writing, Pete’s membership on the 1919 and 1920 team couldn’t be confirmed. Based on what we know about Pete, it would be very surprising if he wasn’t on the team during those years. One can only imagine how Pete felt to be back home in Aurora, having survived the First World War, and competing in the sports that he loved.
In 1921, Pete appears in the local paper, this time related to his prowess in lacrosse. At a match in Schomberg, Pete broke his arm and the local paper remarked “Pete Machell Aurora’s star player had his left arm broken […] this will greatly weaken our team” (Aurora Banner, May 27, 1921). That would be Pete’s last season in Aurora before joining the Brampton Excelsiors where he rose to national prominence.
In 1922, Pete began playing for the Brampton Excelsiors in the Senior A Series. That year he was in the top ten league scorers, placed second in the league, and was first on his team. His hometown paper remarked that in Brampton he was, “starring as usual” (Aurora Banner, June 23, 1922). Pete would continue to rank as a top ten league scorer in 1923, 1925, 1926 and 1927. During each of those years, he came in either first, second or third on his team.
Pete’s great speed, stick handling ability, clever passing, and fearlessness at rushing the opposing team quickly earned him the reputation as one of the best players in the league. He was regarded as a lacrosse ace and many opposing towns would quantify the talent of their lacrosse athletes by how they measured up to Pete on the field.
A highlight of Pete’s lacrosse occurred in 1931, when he came out of retirement and helped lead the Brampton Excelsiors to victory over the New Westminster Salmonbellies, winning the Mann Cup and becoming national champions. That was the last year that the Mann Cup competition operated under the rules of traditional field lacrosse. The following year box lacrosse was adopted by the Canadian Lacrosse Association. One of the most obvious differences between the two styles is that field lacrosse is played on a large outdoor field, and box lacrosse is played indoors in an arena.
The following year Pete decided to retire permanently from the game. Perhaps his decision was prompted by the new rules of box lacrosse, or maybe he reached the goal of becoming a national champion. It can’t be said with certainty why Pete decided to leave the field, but one thing is true, his talent helped lead many teams in Aurora and beyond to victory at the local, provincial, and national level.
In 1947, after several months of illness, Pete died at Toronto General Hospital. He was remembered in many obituaries as being born and educated in Aurora, a veteran of the First World War, and of course, one of Canda’s greatest lacrosse players. He is buried at the Aurora Cemetery.
In recognition of his excellence in lacrosse, we are proud to welcome Frank “Pete” Machell as part of the 2023 class of inductees into the Aurora Sports Hall of Fame.
