Concordia in Cloud County, Kansas — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Joseph Fuourka / Joseph "Joe" Roguet Aillet
September 13, 1904 - December 28, 1971
— Orphan Train Rider to Louisiana, 1905 —
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 22, 2022
1. Joseph Fuourka / Joseph "Joe" Roguet Aillet Marker
Joe Aillet was born Joseph Fuourka in 1904. Shortly after he was born, he was given to the New York Foundling Hospital, which sent him on to Louisiana in 1905. When he arrived in Louisiana, the family who had requested him decided not to take him in, and he was instead taken and raised by a local priest and his widowed housekeeper. Joe played football through high school and college, and began coaching the sport in 1929. He is most well-known for his position as head football coach at Louisiana Tech University, beginning in 1940. While there, he led the team to three Louisiana Intercollegiate and nine Gulf State Championships. In 1952 he also took on the role of golf coach at Louisiana Tech, and led that team to ten Gulf State Conference titles.
Joe was a well respected coach, and was named the Gulf States Coach of the Year four times. He is also a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, the Louisiana Tech Athletic Hall of Fame, the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame, and the Holy Cross School Sports Hall of Fame. After 30 years, Joe retired from his position as the Louisiana Tech Athletic Director in 1970. Joe and his wife, Ruby Marie Comeaux Alliet, had three children: two sons and a daughter. Joe Aillet passed away on December 28, 1971. The following year,
this page online
Erected by National Orphan Train Complex; and Easy G Sports Grill.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Charity & Public Work • Education • Railroads & Streetcars • Sports. A significant historical year for this entry is 1905.
Location. 39° 34.302′ N, 97° 39.587′ W. Marker is in Concordia, Kansas, in Cloud County. Marker is on West 6th Street just west of Broadway Street (State Highway 9), on the right when traveling west. Marker and sculpture are located along the sidewalk at the southwest corner of the sports grill at this address. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 107 West 6th Street, Concordia KS 66901, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. In Memory of George C. Padgett (a few steps from this marker); Leo Clement, Gerald Clement, and Alton Lou Clement (within shouting distance of this marker); Miriam Malford Roering Zitur (within shouting distance of this marker); Elmer Barney Malone & Ethel Barney Malone Staley (within shouting distance of this marker); George Jacobs Ducrow (within shouting distance of this marker); Irma Craig Schnieders
2. Marker detail: Joseph Roguet Aillet
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. Orphan Train Movement
Also see . . .
1. Joe Aillet.
Aillet was brought in 1905 from the New York Foundling in New York City to Opelousas in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, on an Orphan Train. Upon arriving at Youngsville on the orphan train, Father Johanni Roguet, the priest at St. Ann's Catholic Church, claimed the child. Since the priest could not legally adopt a child, he handed over the responsibilities of raising the baby to a widow named Eliza Aillet. From these two individuals, Joseph Fuourka was renamed Joseph Roguet Aillet.(Submitted on December 21, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
2. Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame • Joe Aillet, coach, induction year 1973.
Joe Aillet’s first game as head football coach at Louisiana tech was in Baton Rouge, against Bernie Moore’s(Submitted on December 21, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)LSU Tigers (1940). His last season at Tech included a trip to Tuscaloosa, Ala., for a contest with Paul “Bear” Bryant’s defending national champion Alabama Crimson Tide (1966). In 26 seasons, Aillet’s Tech teams won 151 games, lost 86 and tied eight—a winning percentage of .633. In half of those seasons, the Bulldogs won or shared conference championships. “I never wanted to create an athletic monster,” Aillet said at the end of his coaching career. “It was my responsibility to develop a player not only athletically, but also mentally, socially and spiritually. We are not dealing with players, but whole men. I wanted my players to have a good attitude toward the game of football and toward their teammates, coaching staff, students and officials. I tried to instill in their minds that football was the greatest game that has ever been invented.” When he retired as Tech’s athletic director a year before he died in 1971, Aillet said he never had second thoughts about choosing the coaching profession.Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 22, 20223. Marker detail: Joseph Roguet Aillet Sculpture
3. Joseph Roguet Aillet (Find A Grave).
Saint Anne Cemetery, Youngsville, Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, USA(Submitted on December 21, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
4. A History of the Orphan Trains
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 22, 2022
4. Joseph Roguet Aillet Sculpture & Marker
When the Orphan Train movement began, in the mid-19th century, it was estimated that approximately 30,000 abandoned children were living on the streets of New York. Over the 75 year span of the Orphan Train movement, it is estimated that between 150,000 and 200,000 children were relocated to new homes via the Orphan Trains.(Submitted on December 21, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 22, 2022
5. Joseph Fuourka / Joseph "Joe" Roguet Aillet Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on December 24, 2022. It was originally submitted on December 18, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 111 times since then and 21 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on December 21, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
