Knute Kenneth Rockne was born in Voss, Norway, on March 4, 1888, the son of Lars and Martha Gjermo Rockne. His family immigrated to the United States in 1892 and settled in Chicago. He matriculated to the University of Notre Dame in South Bend in 1910, and after graduating in 1914, he remained there as a chemistry instructor, head track coach, and assistant football coach. In 1918 he became head football coach and over the next thirteen years achieved fame as one of the greatest football coaches of all time, compiling a 105-12-5 record and winning three national championships. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in the 1951 Inaugural Class. In 1914 he married Bonnie Skiles, and they had four children: William, Knute Jr., Mary Jeanne, and Jack. The Rocknes lived in South Bend on St. Vincent Street, College Street, and finally at 1417 East Wayne Street. He was active in the South Bend community as a Kiwanis Club and YMCA member and worked for Studebaker Corporation from 1928-1931. He died in a tragic airplane crash in the Flint Hills of Kansas on Match 31, 1931.