&sq=Envato&lang=en&file=File:Frank_Hart_pedestrian.jpg) Hart circa 1880 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Black Dan, The Negro Wonder |
| Born | 1856 |
| Died | 1908 (aged 52) |
| Sport | |
| Country | USA |
| Sport | Pedestrianism, Baseball |
Frank Hart (1856 – 1908) was an American athlete famous as the first African-American world record holder in the 19th century sport of pedestrianism.[1][2] His most noted win was in an 1879 6 Day Race at Madison Square Garden where he covered 565 miles and won $21,567 in prize money (equivalent to $705,241 in 2023).[3] Later in life Hart played briefly on segregated baseball teams. Though his legacy faded with the loss of interest in pedestrianism as a spectator sport, Hart remains one of the first nationally famous Black athletes in America.
- ^ Algeo, Matthew (2014-04-01). Pedestrianism: When Watching People Walk Was America's Favorite Spectator Sport. Chicago Review Press. pp. 177–183. ISBN 978-1-61374-400-0.
- ^ Harding, William Edgar (1881). The American athlete A treatise on the rules and principles of training for athletic contests, and the regimen of physical culture. Also some short sketches of famous athletes, their experiences, and the notable contests in which they have taken part. New York: Fox.
- ^ "Frank Hart the Winner – And Another Boston Negro Second in the Race – Hart Rolls Up 565 Miles Before Leaving the Track, Beating Brown's World Record By Twelve Miles – Pegram Three Miles Ahead of the Greatest American Record – The Closing Hours of the Great Walk". The New York Times. April 11, 1880.