Slatington High School 1952 yearbook
Bruce Arnold Kemmerer (1934-2013) was born in Bowmanstown, PA but grew up in Slatington, the son of Reuben Kemmerer (1915-1984) and Kathryn née Jones (1916-2026). Living on Fourth Street, there were two sons and two daughters in the family.
His Northern Lehigh High School "Ring of Honor" statement read:
Bruce graduated from Slatington High School in 1952. He was a member of the Varsity Football Team for four years. His senior year as co-captain of the team, he made five touchdowns against Northampton earning the first victory in 24 years. He was a member of the All-Lehigh Valley League Team. He played Varsity Baseball and JV and Varsity Basketball for four years. He was a member of the Lehigh Valley Gymnastic team, a member of the National Honor Society, and President of Student Council. He served in the Armed Forces before graduating with a BS Degree from East Stroudsburg University in Health and Physical Education. He retired from Northwestern Lehigh High School in 1989 after 30 years of service.
Kemmerer graduated from Slatington High School in June 1952, having played football, basketball and baseball all four years. He was co-captain of the 1952 football team and voted most valuable player that year.
As a freshman in the fall of 1948, Kemmerer started all nine games in the football season. It was not one of Slatington's better football years, as the team finished 0-9, but Kemmerer gained valuable experience playing. His first touchdown that year came in a 47-19 loss to Northampton in a game played at Slatington on Saturday, 16 October 1948.
Slatington's basketball team for the 1948-1949 season was a bit better than the football team, finishing with a record of 8-5-1. Kemmerer played primarily with the JV team, as there is no record of him scoring in official Lehigh Valley League play.
I could not find any information about Kemmerer's role in his freshman year on the Slatington baseball team, which finished 3-7.
In Kemmerer's sophomore year, 1949-1950, Slatington's sports teams enjoyed only moderate success: the football team, 5-3-1; the basketball team, 5-13; the baseball team, 2-7. Kemmerer was especially active as a back on the football team, and less active in both basketball and baseball.
As a junior, Kemmerer was a leading performer on Slatington's 1950 football team which finished with a solid record of 6-3.
- a 6-yard touchdown run in the 19-6 win over East Stroudsburg
- an 8-yard run for a touchdown in the 19-0 win against Coplay
- Kemmerer "streaked 95 yards on a spine-tingling punt return" for a touchdown in the 12-0 win over Lehighton. (The Morning Call, 1 October 1950)
- After two disappointing Slatington losses, the team was finally in the win column again with a 13-12 win over Catasauqua in a game in which Kemmerer scored on a touchdown run.
- A 19-6 loss to Whitehall followed in a rare Friday-night game in which Kemmerer tossed a 20-yard touchdown pass to Follweiler.
- In the 25-14 win over Stroudsburg in a game postponed to Monday afternoon because of muddy field conditions, Kemmerer scored on a 2-yard touchdown run.
- Then, in the 6-0 victory in the Thanksgiving game on Thursday, 23 November 1950, with Palmerton, "a six-yard pass from Bruce Kemmerer to "reds" Follweiler, ending an 80-yard advance, provided the game's lone touchdown in the second period." (The Morning Call, 24 November 1950)
Slatington's 1950-51 basketball team finished with a winning record at 13-9. Both Bruce and Robert Kemmerer, brothers, played that year, and their names were often mixed-up in the box scores. Robert finished with either 50 or 46 points in 12 league games.
The 1951 Slatington baseball team finished with an outstanding record of 10-2 and won the Lehigh Valley League championship behind the pitching of Franklin D. R. (Ted) Wieand. The team featured Kemmerer in center field.
Kemmerer was a co-captain of Slatington's 1951 football team which finished with a 4-5 record.
The season started well for Kemmerer and Slatington as he scored on a 12-yard run in Slatington's 20-13 win at East Stroudsburg.
But the good times did not long last as Slatington lost 21-2 to Coplay in the following week in a game in which Kemmerer had a 60-yard touchdown run called back for an offsides penalty.
Next up was Lehighton. "Bruce Kemmerer Sparkles, scoring four times as Slatington beats Lehighton" 47-13 in a game played at Lehighton. "Bruce Kemmerer was the big gun in the Slatington attack as he tallied four touchdowns and passed to Frank Rex for another." The scores included a 55-yard run, a 37-yard run, a 21-yard run, a 1-yard touchdown pass, and finally a 74-yard run at the start of the third quarter. (The Morning Call, 30 September 1951)
In the 18-12 loss at Emmaus, Kemmerer threw a touchdown pass to Clair Gower.
Then came the Northampton game. "Buddy Kemmerer Gets Five Touchdowns as Slatington Whips Northampton, 39-0." That was the headline in The Morning Call, 14 October 1951. "Kemmerer electrified the crowd on the first play of the ball game, running 51 yards off right end for a touchdown." He followed that with a 79-yard pass reception for a touchdown, then a pass reception of 59 yards for another touchdown, 1 a 9-yard touchdown run and finally a 33-yard touchdown run. That was an exceptional performance as this was the first time that Slatington had ever beaten Northampton in a high school football game.
"Buddy Kemmerer, No. 50, Slatington High's scoring flash, is pictured above as he got away to one of five touchdowns he scored yesterday afternoon at Northampton as the Slaters whipped the Konkrete Kids, 39 to 0." Photo credit: The Morning Call, 14 October 1951
Slatington's championship hopes then slipped away in consecutive losses to Catasauqua, 13-6, and Whitehall, 20-2. Kemmerer played little in the Whitehall game as the result of an injury.
Slatington rebounded with a 6-0 win at Stroudsburg with Kemmerer scoring the only touchdown of the game on a 5-yard run.
Going into the Thanksgiving Day showdown with Palmerton, which was looking to cap off an undefeated season, "Bruce Kemmerer, leading Lehigh Valley league scorer, is the only hope for the visiting Slatington eleven. The lumbering fullback has tallied 60 of his team's 100 points in circuit play this year." But Palmerton won the game 25-0 before a record crowd in Palmerton and capping a league championship season for Palmerton.
Slatington's 1951-52 basketball team did not have a great year, finishing with only a 2-12 record in the league. Kemmerer, who was a senior on the team, finished with 77 points in the 14 league games, an average of about 5.5 points per game.
Kemmerer finished his senior year playing center field on the baseball team with finished with a 4-5 record.
After graduating from high school, Kemmerer began working at the Trojan Powder Company for a very short time.
In October 1953, he was drafted, and he served in the US army in France and the United States.
In March 1954, he married Mary Ann née Shoemaker (1932-) from Slatington. They had a son and two daughters.
After finishing his military service, he attended East Stroudsburg State Teachers College (now East Stroudsburg University), graduating in January 1960 with a degree in health and physical education. His wife was also a graduate of East Stroudsburg.
Kemmerer taught health and physical education at Northwestern Lehigh High School from 1961 until he retired in 1989.
He was also a PIAA football and basketball official.