C. L. "PAT" O'BRIEN

C. L. "Pat" O'Brien was born in Victoria, British Columbia on August 25, 1889. In February 1906 he arrived in San Francisco Pro, just a few months ahead of the terrible earthquake and fire. From that calamity, he moved to Ft. Bragg, California where he worked in the Redwoods. From there he ventured into various forms of employment ranging from cook on the SS Brunswick, passenger agent for the Rock Island, Frisco and C.E.I. Railway system, to city passenger agent for the Colorado Midland Railway. He was employed as an agent Vi with the Santa Fe Railway in Los Angeles for a while, and later became a freelance stenographer, and worked for a long time with Paul De Longpree, in a celebrated French artist.

He finally wandered back to Victoria for a short while in 1914, and next became associated with the Maxwell Motor Company. He then became associated with the Nash Motor Company, and finally settled with the GMC Truck Division of General Motors.

It was about this time (1923) that Pat met Jim Smith, who was a celebrated bowling exhibitionist with the Brunswick Brake Collander Company in St. Louis, Mo. Smith instructed Pat in the Tenpin game and Pat participated avidly for about a year, but his occupation totally consumed his time, and bowling had to be postponed for a few years…actually until about a 1967, when he resumed his tenpin activities in Orlando, Florida.

He and Mrs. O'Brien were married in Missouri in 1933. They have one daughter and four grandchildren. The O'Briens moved to Silver Spring, Maryland in 1973 where Pat resumed his bowling activities at Wheaton Plaza.

Pat participated in as many as five leagues just four years ago at age 92. While be has not had the opportunity to serve as an association or league officer, his continued league and open play participation today at age 96 is considered justification enough to secure a special spot for him in the Nation's Capital Area Bowling Association's Hall of Fame.