Milestones

Milestones

 

Welcome to our timeline of major National Spelling Bee milestones.

It’s a journey through 100 years of the most unforgettable moments in the Bee’s rich history. From groundbreaking champions and record-setting performances to iconic winning words and cultural touchpoints, this page highlights the events that have shaped America’s largest and longest-running educational program. Whether you’re a spelling enthusiast or former participant, explore how the Bee has evolved from humble origins into a beloved national tradition.

 

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1920

 

the first bee

1925

The first National Spelling Bee took place in Washington, D.C. The program was sponsored by the Louisville Courier-Journal. Nine spellers competed, and 11-year-old Frank Neuhauser won by correctly spelling gladiolus. Frank’s prizes included $500 in gold pieces and a bicycle. He also got to meet with President Calvin Coolidge. Frank became a patent lawyer and lived to age 97.

 

 

1940

 

 

1941

Scripps-Howard Newspapers took over the administration of the National Spelling Bee program after the Louisville Courier-Journal dropped it. Twenty-nine spellers competed in the 1941 Bee, which took place May 27, 1941, at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

 

 

 

 

 

world war ii

1943-1945

There was no Bee during the World War II years of 1943, 1944 and 1945.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

first televised bee

1946

The first televised Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee took place on May 24, 1946. The Bee was broadcast on NBC from the National Press Club’s auditorium.

 

 

1950

 

 

first co-champions

1950

The Bee declared its first co-champions in 1950: Diana Reynard of East Cleveland, Ohio, and Colquitt Dean of College Park, Georgia.

 

 

 

 

 

first audio recording

1953

The first time the Bee used audio recording of the competition from start to finish was in 1953. As each speller misspelled, the tape recording was replayed to ensure the speller was not eliminated by mistake.

 

 

 

1957

Fred Souk, an American living in the Azores, was the first speller in history to represent a regional partner from outside the U.S. He represented the Stars and Stripes of Europe.

After exhausting more than 640 words, the Bee declared its second set of co-champions: Dana Bennett of Denver, Colorado, and Sandra Owen of Canton, Ohio.

Merriam-Webster began its involvement with the Bee.

 

 

 

 

1958

The Bee moved to a two-day format for the first time.

 

 

 

 

 

new venue

1959

The competition moved to the ballroom of the Mayflower Hotel.

 

 

 

1960

 

1962

The Bee declared its third set of co-champions: Michael Day of Hardin, Illinois, and Nettie Crawford of Roswell, New Mexico.

 

 

1970

 

first champion from outside the 50 states

1975

Hugh Tosteson of Puerto Rico became the first national champion from outside the 50 United States by correctly spelling incisor.

 

 

 

1977

At the 50th annual Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee, 1925 champion Frank Neuhauser was on hand to congratulate the 1977 champion, John Paola of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Ninety-four spellers competed in the 1977 national competition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

speller roster cracks 100

1978

A record 106 spellers participated in the 1978 Bee, marking the first time the number of participants eclipsed 100.

 

 

 

1980

 

 

new venue

1980

The competition moved to the Presidential Ballroom inside the Capital Hilton.

 

 

 

 

 

1981

A comfort room was added so that eliminated spellers could sit in private after misspelling. This evolved to the comfort couch seen today.

 

 

 

 

first indian-american champion

1985

Balu Natarajan of Chicago, Illinois, became the first Indian-American champion after he correctly spelled milieu in the 58th annual Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee.

 

 

 

 

speller roster cracks 200

1988

Only 10 years after the Bee reached 100 participants, it expanded to 200 spellers.

 

 

 

1990

 

rule change

1992

A rule change meant that no speller would have to correct the misspelling of another speller. Previously, when there were two spellers remaining, in order to win, a speller would have to correct the other speller’s misspelling.

 

 

 

sports broadcast

1994

For the first time in Bee history, the competition was broadcast on ESPN.

 

 

 

 

new venue

1996

The competition moved to the Grand Hyatt Washington.

 

 

 

 

spellingbee.com launches

1996

Carolyn’s Corner, a weekly spelling study guide for spellers and their parents, came to life on the Web in January 1996, when spellingbee.com was launched. It was created by Carolyn Andrews, a Bee Word Panelist who would later become the Bee’s word list manager (1998–2010).

The primary goal of Carolyn’s Corner was to make studying—and learning—methodical in a fun and engaging setting. Instruction focused on aspects of spelling such as word origins, word components and their meanings, spelling patterns, and pronunciation. Readers were regularly treated to contributions from language experts and veteran spellers. A relevant game or puzzle often complemented the academic content.

 

 

 

first international champion

1998

Jody-Anne Maxwell became the first Jamaican citizen to win the Bee and the first international champion. Jody-Anne correctly spelled chiaroscurist in Round 11 of the 71st annual Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee to claim her championship. The prize money doubled that year from $5,000 to $10,000.

 

2000

2002

The Bee added a 25-word written test component one year after the competition had moved to a three-day format for the first time in Bee history.

The Bee was the subject of the critically acclaimed documentary Spellbound in 2002. Directed by Jeffrey Blitz, the film follows eight spellers during their quest to win the 1999 national competition. Nupur Lala won the 1999 Bee by correctly spelling logorrhea. Nupur celebrated the 25th anniversary of her national championship in 2024 by appearing as a guest commentator at that year’s Bee.

 

 

 

rule change

2004

Officials introduced a time limit requiring spellers to begin spelling within two minutes of receiving their word and another 30 seconds to complete their spelling.

 

 

 

prime time broadcast

2004

The Bee Finals were broadcast in prime time on ABC. Kerry Close, representing the Asbury Park Press/Home News Tribune in Asbury Park, New Jersey, claimed the national championship by correctly spelling Ursprache in Round 20.

This same year, Keke Palmer, Laurence Fishburne and Angela Bassett starred in Akeelah and the Bee, a major motion picture depicting Akeelah Anderson’s journey to the national competition. Bee pronouncer Dr. Jacques Bailly plays himself in the film!

 

2010

 

new venue

2011

The competition moved to the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in Oxon Hill, Maryland.

 

 

 

 

 

2012

Lori Anne Madison, a 6-year-old first-grader, became the youngest known qualifier for the national competition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

2013

A vocabulary component was introduced to the Bee, as the Round 1 Preliminaries Test added 12 vocabulary questions.

 

 

 

 

2014

For the first time in 52 years, the Bee finished in a tie, as Sriram Hathwar of Painted Post, New York, and Ansun Sujoe of Fort Worth, Texas, became co-champions. Sriram’s victory culminated his fifth appearance at the Bee.

A Semifinals Test was added, with 12 spelling words and 12 vocabulary questions. This second test was removed ahead of the 2016 competition.

 

 

 

 

2015

For the second year in a row, co-champs were named: Vanya Shivashankar of Olathe, Kansas, and Gokul Venkatachalam of Chesterfield, Missouri.

 

 

 

2016

Three records were set when the confetti fell: The Bee declared its youngest champion, Nihar Janga at 11 years, 190 days old; Nihar and fellow co-champion Jairam Hathwar were the third consecutive pair of co-champs; and Jairam and his brother, 2014 co-champ Sriram Hathwar, became the second pair of sibling champs, following Kavya and Vanya Shivashankar (2009 and 2015, respectively).

The Tennessee Titans became the first major league sports team to sponsor a speller’s participation in the Bee.

 

 

 

2017

Edith Fuller, a 5-year-old kindergartner, became the youngest speller to qualify for the Bee when she won her regional competition in Oklahoma. She was six at the time of the national competition.

 

 

 

 

 

rsvbee launches

2018

The Bee had its largest fields in history, with 515 spellers in 2018 and 562 spellers the next year. A program called RSVBee gave a pathway to spellers who applied to participate.

The program was eliminated ahead of the 2021 competition.

 

 

octochamps

2019

In a record-setting moment, Bee officials declared eight national co-champions, affectionately referred to in the media as the “octochamps.” Each champion received a Scripps Cup trophy and a $50,000 cash prize.

 

2020

 

 

 

2020

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the national competition was canceled for the first time since 1945.

 

 

 

 

2021

As the world emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, the first three segments of the Bee took place virtually. Eleven spellers qualified for the 2021 in-person Finals. For the first time in Bee history, a Bee champion was named in a location outside of the metro D.C. area. Zaila Avant-garde became the Bee’s first Black American champion by correctly spelling Murraya in Round 18 at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex in Bay Lake, Florida. 2021 was also the first time that spellers were asked multiple-choice vocabulary questions during the live broadcast.

 

 

 

2022

For the first time in history, the Finals were broadcast live on ION, a network owned by The E.W. Scripps Company. 2022 was also the first year the Bee’s champion was declared via Spell-off. Harini Logan, representing the Brauntex Performing Arts Theatre in New Braunfels, Texas, correctly spelled an impressive 22 words in 90 seconds to claim her championship.

 

 

 

 

2023

Akash Vukoti of San Angelo, Texas, set a record as the first speller to appear in six national Bees. He had made his first appearance as a 6-year-old first-grader, a few days shy of his seventh birthday.

 

 

 

 

 

2024

Bruhat Soma set a Spell-off record by correctly spelling 29 of 30 words in 90 seconds to claim his championship.