1966

The 39th Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee took place on June 9th, 1966. It was held at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C., and 71 spellers participated.

In the fourth round, Rosalie Elliott, 11, of Central, South Carolina, spelled “avowal” with such an accent that the judges weren’t sure whether she used an “a” or “e” as the second to last letter. When the judges eventually asked her, she admitted she had spelled it wrong, getting a standing ovation for her honesty.

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About the 39th Bee

Champion

Robert A. Wake

Clear Creek, Texas

Robert A. Wake, age 13, sponsored by the Houston Chronicle, won the $1,000 prize by correctly spelling the word “ratoon.”

Bob earned a bachelor’s degree in math from MIT, then a doctorate from Brown University. He worked as a college professor and insurance regulator. No image of this champion has been found on record.

Location

Mayflower Hotel

at the Grand Ballroom

Winning Word

ratoon(n)

ra-TOON

a stalk or shoot arising from the root or crown of a perennial plant.

This word is from Latin-derived Spanish.

OFFICIALS

Directors

James H. Wagner

Judges

  • John H. Lloyd
  • Leroy C. Dillard
  • Beatrice M. Gudridge

Pronouncers

  • Dr. Richard R. Baker

SPELLER ROSTER

  • Kathryn Adkins
  • Melvin Baer
  • Ralph Banasiak
  • Sarah Berger
  • Theresa Ann Bretch
  • Mike Brinkley
  • Deborah Sue Butler
  • Michael Candeto
  • Thomas J. Chordas
  • Mark L. Cohen
  • Marilyn June Coleman
  • James Connell
  • Eleanor DeLand
  • David Eatman
  • Patrick H. Edwards
  • Steve Elkins
  • Rosalie Elliott
  • Alice Ely
  • Elaine Feder
  • Douglas Funkhouser
  • Sonya Gilliam
  • Christina Graf
  • Eugene S. Grecheck
  • Pam Harrison
  • Louise Henrie
  • Bonnie Hirsh
  • Dwayne E. Howe
  • Stuart Isaacson
  • Linda Johnson
  • Marshall Ramsey Jones
  • Walter Kennedy, III
  • Kevin Killian
  • Karen King
  • Steven J. Kleene
  • Karen Koyanagi
  • Deborah Lauer
  • Michael Leheney
  • Kim Leighton
  • Barbara Lochridge
  • Deborah Maggipinto
  • Tom Mailand
  • Sharon F. McDonnell
  • Vicki Miller
  • Federico Mora
  • Patt Morrison
  • Margaret A. Murphy
  • Thomas Alan Pelton
  • Victoria Perry
  • Karen Pittman
  • Diane Randle
  • Pam Reid
  • Stacy Richardson
  • Steven Rieger
  • Cathy Ritter
  • Elaine Schwalm
  • Barbara Senkowski
  • Beth Sherrill
  • John Marshall Sims
  • James W. Small
  • Rick Snyder
  • Wanda Suchowiejko
  • Harold Teichman
  • Susan Traub
  • Stephanie Tsivoglou
  • Tony Tyree
  • Ana L. G. Untalan
  • Gladys Velez
  • Robert A. Wake
  • Arthur W. Walsh
  • Joyce Weaver
  • Lorraine Willmeroth

* Winner
** Runner-Up