Archives West Finding Aid

Roscoe Conkling Torrance, nick-named Torchy because of his red hair, was an alumnus and supporter of the University of Washington sports teams known as "the Number One Husky." Torrance was born September 2, 1899 in Diamond, a small town in eastern Washington State. Later the family moved to Spokane where Torrance attended the Longfellow School. His interest in sports started early; he volunteered as a bat boy for the Spokane Indians baseball team. After moving to American Falls, Idaho, at the age of twelve, Torrance joined the American Falls High School baseball team. He attended high school in Spokane, where he was a football player, captain of the baseball team, and was voted "Yell King."

In 1918, during WWI, Roscoe Torrance became a student at the University of Washington. He volunteered for the Student Army Training Corps which was created at the University of Washington on October 1, 1918; however, the war ended before his intended training in Oklahoma could begin. While at the UW, Torrance was an athletic property manager for the athletic department, and was president of the Associated Students of the UW. While study body president, he raised funds for the building of a new stadium in 1920. Torrance played on the University's baseball team, which toured Japan during 1921.

After college, Torrance was employed as freshman baseball coach and assistant graduate manager for the UW athletics department. In 1924, he began to work as a billboard space salesman for Foster & Kleiser Company. In 1931, Torrance and his business partner William H. Seifert bought the Western Printing Company, and in 1938, the two acquired the Wood and Reber Advertising Agency, which later merged with Metropolitan Press. After Metropolitan Press' acquisition by Craftsman Press, Torrance was employed as vice president. Between 1926 and 1936, Torrance served in the Marine Corps Reserve. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, he fought in the South Pacific as a member of the 3rd Marine Division, and he earned a Bronze Star.

Torrance's civic and sports-related activities in Seattle were numerous. As a member of the Washington Athletic Board of Directors, he helped create the 101 Club in 1933, an organization to provide support to athletes. After the purchase of the Seattle Rainiers professional baseball team by Emil Sick, Torrance was hired as executive vice president for the team. He took on this work for a small sum while continuing to work in the printing business. In 1936, Torrance became State Chairman for the March of Dimes and served in that capacity for twenty years. Torrance was also a founder of Greater Seattle, Inc., the originators of Seafair in Seattle. He was crowned King Neptune XIX of Seafair in 1968. In 1962, Torrance and his wife were co-chairs of the Century 21 Exposition's hospitality commitee, hosting such dignitaries as President John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, and Jonas Salk. Torrance chaired the boards of the Western Pacific Insurance Company, the Salvation Army, and the Boys Clubs of America, and was a post commander of the American Legion. He was a member of the National Association of Manufacturers and Association of Washington Industries and a director of the Seattle Chamber of Commerce. In addition, Torrance was a member of the Rainier Club, the Seattle Rotary, Harbor Club, and Nile Temple of the Shriners.

During the 1950s, Torrance became involved in a public scandal due to his activities raising money for athletes. He was accused of running a "slush fund" that provided University of Washington players with more funding than the maximum financial aid allowed by the Pacific Coast Conference (forty dollars). Torrance and others felt that the maximum amount of funding allowed was far too little to assist the athletes with the cost of living and education. After the controversy, the University of Washington was placed on athletic probation by the National Collegiate Athletic Association, and the University's teams could not participate in any NCAA championships until the probation concluded. These events caused Torrance to remove himself from his official ties with the UW's athletics department.

Despite the unpleasantness during the 1950s, Torrance's efforts in supporting the University were honored in 1972 when he received the Distinguished Alumni Special Service Award. The Puget Sound Sportswriters and Sportscasters gave him their Charles E. Sullivan Award in 1974. He was inducted into the UW's Hall of Fame and the Washington State Sports Hall of Fame in 1980. In 1989, Torrance was the first awardee of the annual Seattle-King County Association of Realtors' First Citizen Award. In 2001, he was posthumously inducted into the UW's Baseball All-Century Team.

Torrance married Ruth Doris Inkster in 1924. The couple had three children, named Shirley, John and William.

After the death of his wife, Ruth, in 1971, Torrance married Madge True in 1976. He also remained active in the community throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and served as the chairman of the board of the Western Pacific Insurance Company, director of the Seattle Chamber of Commerce, post commander of the American Legion, and board member of the Salvation Army and Boys Club of America, and was a member of the National Association of Manufacturers, the Association of Washington Industries, the Rainier Club, the Seattle Rotary, Harbor Club, the Seattle Golf Club, and the Nile Temple.

Torrance published his memoir, Torchy, in the 1980s. He died on November 24, 1990.