Special Program: The Life and Times of Pop Geers

November 21, 2024
12:00pm - 1:00pm

The Life and Times of Edward Franklin “Pop” Geers

One hundred years have passed since the famous, Edward Franklin “Pop” Geers of Tennessee was killed in a harness racing accident at the West Virginia State Fair in Wheeling. Geers was born in Lebanon, Tennessee, in 1851 but he called Columbia, Tennessee, his home. After closing his training stables in Nashville, Tennessee, he moved to the old fairgrounds located in Columbia in 1876. The late 1800s marked the zenith of harness racing. Although harness racing originated in Colonial America, it did not reach its golden age until after the Civil War. Geers’ accomplishments in racing carried him from the tracks of the rural South to the Grand Circuit. His contributions ranged from improving the bloodlines of the Standardbred horse to adopting innovations such as a lighter sulky. After his tragic death, tributes came from across the continent from racing fans, reinsmen, and ordinary citizens. There were tributes given as well as a monument dedicated in Columbia, Tennessee. This monument is attests to his place as one of America’s first sports celebrities.

Sarah Elizabeth Hickman-McLeod was born and raised in Maury County, Tennessee. She lives on her great-grandmother Hutcherson’s farm with her husband, daughter, parents and an assortment of animals. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University , BS in Mass Communications with minors in History and Marketing and a Master of Arts in History with a emphasis in Public History. Over the past several years she has continued her research on her master’s thesis topic to create a book about Pop Geers, a famous harness racer from Tennessee, to be published in the upcoming year.

This program is in partnership with the Museums of Ogelbay Institute. The Mansion Museum will soon be the site of a Harness Racing exhibit featuring Pop and his death in Wheeling 100 years ago.