He was born in 1884 in Hot Springs, the fourth of six children of a father who was a lawyer and a representative in the Arkansas General Assembly. One of his grandfathers served as governor of Arkansas while the other served as governor of Mississippi.
He attended Hot Springs schools, but during his high school years he transferred to Lawrenceville School, a college preparatory school in Lawrenceville, N.J. He was an outstanding student and athlete, excelling in baseball, football, and track and field. The student newspaper described him as "unquestionably the best sprinter representing any preparatory school in the country." Because of his running style, friends give him a unique nickname that stuck with him the rest of his life. He graduated in 1906 as class valedictorian.
He studied law at the University of Virginia and continued to participate in track and field, setting school records in the 50-yard dash, 100-yard dash (indoor and outdoor) and outdoor 220-yard dash. In 1908, he ran a time of 9.4 seconds in the outdoor 100-yard dash, which was equal to the world record at the time, but was not official because the track meet had not been sanctioned by the Amateur Athletic Union.
He competed in the 1908 Eastern Olympic Trials on the University of Pennsylvania track. He qualified in the 100-meter dash, tying the American record of 10.8 seconds, but false-started in the final and was penalized to line up one meter behind the others on the restart. He caught up with the leaders at about 80 meters, the finish appearing to be a three-way tie. After discussion, the officials declared he came in second.
He was the 100-meter favorite in the 1908 Olympics in London. He equaled the Olympic record of 10.8 in his qualifying heat and the semifinals. The day before the final race, the coach of South African sprinter Reggie Walker, who had also run a 10.8, asked him to show his sprinter how to start from the crouch position that the Americans favored. He spent several hours working with the sprinter — his opponent — helping him adapt to the technique. In the final, he finished second to Walker.
In 1909, after graduating with a law degree, he joined a law firm in St. Louis and married Viola Mesch. In 1943, he retired and returned to Hot Springs, where he served as manager of the family estate trust until he died in 1950.
Who was this athlete from Arkansas, who should have received a "good sportsmanship" award in the 1908 Olympics?