Hanna, Joseph Lucius “Jake” Jr., 1907-1988
Biography
Joseph Lucius “Jake” Hanna Jr. (1907-1988) is the son of Joseph Lucius Hanna (1870-1960) and Carrie Shrock Maxwell Hanna (1877-1966). The Hanna family moved from Camden, Mississippi, to Shreveport, Louisiana, in 1920. Jake Hanna attended Shreveport High School (renamed C. E. Byrd High School in 1926) and graduated in 1927. He enrolled at Centenary College of Louisiana in 1927, was a celebrated college football player, and graduated in 1930. Hanna then worked as a coach and teacher at high schools in Louisiana and Texas – Franklin High School (1930-1931), Corsicana High School (1931-1933), Leesville High School (1933-1934), and Gladewater High School (1934-1940). From 1940 to 1942, he was Centenary College’s athletic director and football coach. During the Second World War, Hanna served in the United States Naval Reserve from 1942 to 1946. From 1948 until his retirement in 1978, Hanna worked for a car dealership run by his brother, William T. Hanna Jr. For his football achievements, he held numerous honors: Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame (1978), Louisiana Sports Writers Association Hall of Fame (1982), Distinguished American Award from the Northwest Louisiana Chapter of the National Football Foundation (1982), Centenary College Alumni Association Athletic Hall of Fame (1987). He was an honorary life member of the administrative board of the First United Methodist Church (Shreveport, La.). In 1934, Hanna married Mary Elizabeth Atkins Hanna (1910-2002).