Check out this auction of an ashtray dating back to the 1930s or 1940s. The outside is carved out of wood. The inside contains a raised carving of Michigan stadium along with the likeness of a Wolverine.
Because this isn’t tied to a particular season, player, or era, I really don’t have a history element to directly drop into. As far as the item itself, I think this is very cool but I’m wondering if any M fan would crush out a cigarette butt into Michigan Stadium or on the likeness of a wolverine. It’s kind of like walking on the block M in the Diag. Perhaps that explains the ashtray’s pristine condition?
While I don’t have a specific historic angle to explore, I do know from digging through the archives at the Bentley Library that Fielding H. Yost enjoyed the occasional cigar. I’ve seen a few instances of the press mentioning old ‘Hurry Up’ partaking in a post-game smoke, including in the aftermath of the legendary win over Penn in 1909. Here’s the account from the Sunday, November 14, 1909 Michigan Daily:
After the game the happy players lifted the smiling coach, unlighted stogie in his mouth, and carried him to their dress quarters, amid the cheers of the highly elated Michigan rooters.
Here’s some more evidence of his fondness for the stogies. A google image search yielded this interesting pic and caption.
Apparently, the device these gentlemen are holding (umm, are those dice on their pants?) is a football-shaped humidor, compliments of Yost himself. The caption explains:
The longest pass in the history was made when hurry-up Yost, coach of the University of Michigan football team, tossed the pigskin to Tad Jones coach of the Yale eleven. Jones (center) is shown with his two aides, Ducky Pond (left); the football is really a humidor, made of aluminum covered with genuine pigskin the same as is used for footballs. Yost sent the humidor to Jones by air mail–again employing the aerial route, which is his favorite play. The football humidor is patented, and makes a very fine ornament for the desk or table.
The photo is from 1925. While Yost was one of the innovators of the forward pass, which was first allowed in 1905, it definitely wasn’t Yost’s “favorite play” for a quite a while. Its use was critical in the 1909 Penn game (Michigan stunned Penn with fakes, passes, and overall sleight of hand), and the next year in the huge game against Minnesota.
