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James Francis (Jim) "Wa-Tho-Huk" Thorpe
Son of Hiram Phillip Thorpe and Charlotte (Vieux) Thorpe
Brother of George Jack Thorpe, Charles Thorpe and Edward Paul Thorpe
Husband of Iva Margaret (Miller) Davies — married 13 Oct 1913 (to about 1925) in St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Carlisle, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States Husband of Freeda Verona (Kirkpatrick) Thorpe — married 23 Oct 1925 (to about 1941) [location unknown] Husband of Patricia Gladys Askew — married 2 Jun 1945 in Tijuana, Mexico
Father of James Francis Thorpe Jr, Gail Margaret (Thorpe) McShane, Charlotte Marie Thorpe, Grace Frances Thorpe, Carl Phillip Thorpe, Wlliam Kendall Thorpe, Richard Allen Thorpe and John R. Thorpe
abt 1852 - 22 Apr 1904Kansas, United States
Jun 1861 - 17 Nov 1901Pottawatomie, Anderson, Kansas, United States
abt 1809 - abt 1876
abt 1825 -
abt 1835 - 11 Dec 1903Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
1836 - 08 Apr 1900Indiana, United States
22 Jun 1792 - aft 1850Cornwall, Litchfield, Connecticut, United States
[Thorpe great-grandmother?]
[Sac and Fox great-grandfather?]
[Sac and Fox great-grandmother?]
30 Nov 1809 - 03 May 1872Milwaukee, Wisconsin
abt 1820 - 1857
[Goslin great-grandfather?]
[Goslin great-grandmother?]
02 Sep 1757 -
24 Jul 1760 -
29 Apr 1770 - 07 Jul 1852
abt 1784 - abt 20 Mar 1864
bef 1785 -
[Potawatomi g-g-grandmother?]
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Jim Thorpe, arguably the greatest athlete of the 20th century, was the first Native American Olympic gold medalist, winning gold medals for the United States in the 1912 Olympics in the pentathlon. He played professional basketball, Major League Baseball and National League Football, and was the soon-to-be-NFL's first president.[1] In 1950, he was named "the greatest American football player," and the most outstanding athlete of the first half of the 20th century by the Associated Press. In 1996-2001, he was awarded ABC's Wide World of Sports "Athlete of the Century."
Jim Thorpe was born in Indian Territory (now Prague, Oklahoma) about 1887,[2] a son of Hiram Thorpe, and Charlotte Vieux. His official website uses the date of May 28, 1887, which is the date according to his estate.[3] Jim had a twin brother, Charles, who died at the age of nine.[3] Thorpe's parents were both of mixed-race ancestry. His father supposedly had an Irish father and a Sac and Fox Indian mother, but his Irish origins were disproved in 2004 by a professional genealogist who worked his Thorpe line back to William Thorpe, an England-born immigrant and early settler of New Haven, Connecticut.[4] His mother had a French father and a Potawatomi mother; she was a granddaughter of Chief Louis Vieux.[5] He was baptized "Jacobus Franciscus Thorpe" in the Catholic Church. Jim was raised as a Sac and Fox, and his native name, Wa-Tho-Huk, translated as "path lit by great flash of lightning," or "Bright Path."[1]
Thorpe married three times. His first wife was Iva Miller.[6] They were the parents of James (died young), Gail, Charlotte,[7] and Grace.[8]
By 1930 he was married to Freda Kirkpatrick,[9] and was the father of two sons, Philip and William.[10] They had two more sons, Richard and John.[11]
His third wife was Patricia Askew. They had no children together.[12]
He died of heart failure on March 28, 1953 in Los Angeles County, California, at the age of 65.[13][14] He was buried at Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania.[15]
In 1998, the US Postal Service issued a 32-cent stamp in his honor. [16]
In 2015, Thorpe's living children appealed to the US Supreme Court to allow reburial of their father's remains on Indian land in Oklahoma,[17] but the appeal was denied in October 2015.[18]
Jim Thorpe attended Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, a school established by U.S. government authority in an effort "to immerse its students into mainstream Euro-American culture."[19][20] While attending the school, Jim began to play football and participated in track and field, eventually being named to the All-American team. He was coached by another notable sports figure, Glenn "Pop" Warner.
Jim sailed with the U.S. Olympic Team to Stockholm, Sweden to compete in the 1912 Olympic Games. He competed in the pentathalon and the decathalon, winning gold medals in each. He also competed in high jump and long jump.[21] He returned to the United States victorious, and was cheered on by thousands in a ticker-tape parade down Broadway in New York City.[1]
After the Olympic victories, he returned to Carlisle Indian Industrial School to play football and lead his team to a winning season. During post-season play, word got out that Thorpe had played semi-professional baseball for two seasons. The International Olympic Committee eventually stripped the Olympic medals and titles from him. The medals were reinstated in 1982, but he was, instead, listed as a co-champion. Efforts to declare Jim Thorpe the lone winner of the two events in the 1912 Olympic Games were finally successful in 2022.[1][22]
Jim Thorpe was a multi-sport participant at the professional level. He played for 4 different major league baseball teams from 1913 - 1919, and played football for six pro teams from 1920 -1928. He became the first president of the American Professional Football Association, which was later renamed the National Football League. Thorpe also played professional basketball for a time.[1]
After he retired from sports, he took jobs in Hollywood, acting in small parts or working as an extra. He also took jobs, "as a construction worker, a doorman (bouncer), a security guard, and a ditch digger, and briefly joined the United States Merchant Marine in 1945."[1]
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This profile has been nominated for possible inclusion in the Connection Checkers and the Connection Finder next week. Now is a good time to take a look at the sources and biography to see if there are updates and improvements that may need to be made, especially those that will bring it up to WikiTree Style Guide standards. The better the condition the profile is in, the more likely it is that it may be chosen.
Thanks!
Abby
posted Jul 27, 2024 by Abby (Brown) Glann
posted Jan 19, 2023 by Daniel Landrum edited Jan 19, 2023 by Daniel Landrum
posted Dec 01, 2022 by Kathie (Parks) Forbes
posted Dec 01, 2022 by Jillaine Smith
Regards, Margaret, Categorization project volunteer.
posted Dec 01, 2022 by Margaret (Gale) Haining
Regards, Margaret
posted Dec 02, 2022 by Margaret (Gale) Haining
posted Dec 02, 2022 by Jillaine Smith
posted Aug 02, 2022 by Ronald Prentice
posted Aug 02, 2022 by Jillaine Smith
Featured connections to teachers before they were famous: Jim is 34 degrees from Roberta Flack, 15 degrees from Alexander Graham Bell, 17 degrees from Hillary Clinton, 19 degrees from Sheryl Crow, 15 degrees from Ralph Emerson, 28 degrees from Hugh Jackman, 17 degrees from Lyndon Johnson, 19 degrees from Stephen Leacock, 16 degrees from Christa McAuliffe, 24 degrees from Helen Mirren, 18 degrees from Diana Mountbatten-Windsor and 23 degrees from Mark Rutte
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Categories: Presidential Medal of Freedom | Athletes | 1912 Olympic Summer Games | Carlisle, Pennsylvania | Modern Pentathlon | Decathlon | Lomita, California | Prague, Oklahoma | Carlisle Indian Industrial School, Carlisle, Pennsylvania | NFL Players | New York Giants (baseball) | Olympians Representing the United States | Olympic Gold Medalists | United States Olympic Hall of Fame | College Football Hall of Fame | Pro Football Hall of Fame | American Football Players | Actors | Indian Territory | Knights of Columbus | Namesakes US Municipalities | Persons Appearing on US Postage Stamps | Oklahoma, Notables | Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame | Example Profiles of the Week | Featured Connections Archive 2021 | Sac and Fox | Notables
