Harvey Mattingly

Harvey Mattingly was born Harvey Winford Mattingly on September 26, 1911, in Springfield, Kentucky, to James Raphael and Melinda Grimes. His family moved to Bardstown, where he excelled in football, basketball, and baseball at Bardstown High School. After graduating in 1930, he continued playing all three sports at the University of Kentucky.

Known as “Rafe,” Mattingly played guard on Kentucky’s 1931–32 varsity basketball team, Adolph Rupp’s second. While playing baseball in Bardstown that summer, he broke his collarbone and injured his shoulder. The injury ended his football and basketball playing days, leaving the 1931–32 season as his only varsity basketball season.

Mattingly returned to competition as Kentucky’s regular baseball catcher during his senior year. The Kentuckian yearbook praised his throwing arm, his ability to prevent stolen bases, and his timely hitting. He was also president of Kappa Sigma and the Lances honorary fraternity, vice president of the Inter-Fraternity Council, and an editor of the yearbook. He graduated in 1934 with a degree in education.

Mattingly later taught and coached basketball at Beechwood High School. During World War II, he served as an Army captain in the South Pacific, was wounded twice, and received the Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster and the Bronze Star. After the war, he built a career with Prudential, retiring as a regional manager in Atlanta. He died on April 4, 2001, in Tucker, Georgia, and was buried in Bardstown City Cemetery.