Chief Boston

Boston was born in Providence, Rhode Island, graduated from Moses Brown School there, and attended Harvard.^[2] His father, a newspaper reporter, was also nicknamed "Chief", as his father had been the chief of police in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.^[3] At Harvard, Boston competed in wrestling, baseball, and football.^[2] He was a champion wrestler, and graduated from Harvard in 1939.^[2]

Boston coached high school football at University School near Cleveland,^[4] before returning to Harvard in 1940 as coach of the freshman football team.^[5] After coaching football for two seasons, and also coaching wrestling, Boston entered the United States Army in February 1942.^[6] Boston served in the Third Army, commanded by George S. Patton, and received a Bronze Star and the Legion of Merit,^[2] while rising to the rank of major.^[7] Boston returned to Harvard in 1946, coaching the junior varsity football team and wrestling.^[8] In May 1948, he was named as backfield coach for Army, under head coach Earl Blaik.^[9]

In March 1949, Boston was named head coach of the New Hampshire Wildcats, succeeding Bill Glassford, who had resigned to coach Nebraska.^[10] Boston coached the Wildcats from 1949 to 1964, compiling a record of 60–57–10.^[11] During his 16 seasons with New Hampshire, the Wildcats won four Yankee Conference titles,^[12] and in 1962, he was named New England small college coach of the year by the Boston Football Writers Association.^[13] He resigned in January 1965, after the team had gone a combined 3–12–1 during the 1963 and 1964 seasons.^[12]

Boston was inducted to the Harvard Varsity Club hall of fame in 1971,^[1] and the University of New Hampshire athletic hall of fame in 1995.^[14] He remained active in the Army Reserve, holding the rank of lieutenant colonel in the 1960s while serving as executive officer of the 304th Infantry Regiment based in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.^[15] Boston and his wife, Mary, had two daughters and a son.^[2] Boston died in May 2002 at his home in Nashville, Indiana, and was buried at Greenlawn Cemetery there.^[2]