Frank Neuhauser

Who was Frank Neuhauser?

Frank Louis Neuhauser was an American patent lawyer and spelling bee champion, who won the first National Spelling Bee in 1925 by successfully spelling the word "gladiolus." Today, the bee is known as the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Neuhauser was born in Louisville, Kentucky, on September 29, 1913, to German American parents. His father, a stonemason, worked on spelling with his son on weekends if the weather was bad.

Neuhauser defeated nine finalists on stage, who had been whittled down from approximately two million schoolchildren, to win the first ever National Spelling Bee, held in Washington D.C. in June 1925. He had prepared for the bee by copying the dictionary into a blank notebook. Neuhauser, who was eleven years old at the time of the contest, met U.S. President Calvin Coolidge and was awarded five hundred dollars in gold pieces for his victory. His hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, gave Neuhauser a parade in his honor and presented him with bouquets of gladiolus. His classmates and school also gave him a bicycle. During his later life, Neuhauser often appeared as a guest of honor at more recent spelling bees. He also appeared in the 2002 documentary film, Spellbound.