1931

The 7th National Spelling Bee took place on May 27th, 1931. It was held at the National Museum Auditorium in Washington, D.C., and 23 spellers participated.

For the first 16 years of the National Spelling Bee, the competition took place in the Auditorium of the National Museum, the same building that now houses the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.

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About the 7th Bee

Champion

Ward Randall

White Hall, Illinois

Ward Randall, age 12, sponsored by the White Hall Register-Republican, won the $1,000 prize by correctly spelling the word “fracas.”

Ward was a sales manager for Swift & Co. in New York for 48 years. He died in 1998.

Location

National Museum Auditorium

Winning Word

fracas(n)

FRAY-kus

a noisy quarrel : brawl, fight, altercation.

This word is from a Latin word that became Italian and then French.

OFFICIALS

Directors

Donald McWain

Pronouncers

  • Dr. Charles E. Hill

SPELLER ROSTER

  • Janet Brophy
  • Aaron Butler Jr.
  • Mary Carter
  • Esther Chafetz
  • Joseph Digman
  • Elizabeth Doton
  • Helen Gengler
  • Dorothy Greenwald
  • Beryl Hardacker
  • Maxson Hopkins
  • Blanche Krell
  • Roland Light
  • Catherine Lucas
  • Nelda Marchant
  • Charles Michel
  • Margaret Morrow
  • Irene Priller
  • Ward Randall
  • Pauline Reed
  • Mary Jo Scheidler
  • Katherine Smith
  • Geraldine Young
  • Mary Young

* Winner
** Runner-Up