Nearly ten hours
The St. Petersburg Times of 8 June 1957 headlined it "2 Amazing Girls Tie For Title". The United Press account in the Deseret News the same day ran under "Who Said Modern Kids Couldn't Spell?". The bee had begun at 9 a.m. and ended at 6.55 p.m.
A day of that length is a physical event as much as an intellectual one. Competitors stand, wait, spell, and sit through rounds for hours with no food break long enough to matter, and the error that finally ends it is as likely to come from exhaustion as from ignorance. The record used here gives schappe — a yarn spun from waste silk — as the word on which the bee ended.
Meeting Nixon
On 10 June 1957 the Toledo Blade reported the aftermath: "Nixon Sees Winners of U.S. Spelling Bee". Richard Nixon was then Vice President, and receiving the champions was the kind of civic ritual the bee attracted at its mid-century peak.
The photograph opportunity is the point. A national spelling championship in 1957 came with a package — a trip, a prize, a handshake with a senior politician, and a week of newspaper coverage — that positioned the competition as a demonstration of American schooling rather than as a children's contest. The Deseret News headline says it outright.
What is documented — and what is not
Documented: a shared 1957 National Spelling Bee title at thirteen, from Denver, Colorado; a bee that ran from 9 a.m. to 6.55 p.m.; Sandra Owen of Ohio as co-champion; schappe recorded as the word on which the bee ended; and a meeting with Vice President Richard Nixon reported on 10 June 1957.
Not documented in the sources used here: her date of birth; her school and grade; the number of rounds; her education and career; her married name, if any; and anything at all about her adult life. The 1957 wire copy is effectively the whole record collected for this page.
Why the rules changed
Marathon finals of this kind are the reason the modern competition looks different. Over the following decades the bee introduced written rounds, tie-breaker tests and time controls, all designed to prevent exactly what happened in 1957: a day-long grind that ends when the officials' word list is exhausted rather than when a champion is found.
The change is not a softening. A modern national final is harder in every respect — the word lists are deeper, the competitors better prepared, the pace faster. What the rules removed was the possibility of an outcome decided by fatigue. Read against that, the 1957 tie is a period document: two thirteen-year-olds who spelled correctly for ten hours and were finally separated by nothing at all.
| Person | Country | Milestone | Age / Stat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dana Bennett | United States | Sharing the 1957 National Spelling Bee title | Age 13 |
| Arvind Mahankali | United States | Won the 2013 Scripps National Spelling Bee at 13 | Age 13 |
| Kerry Close | United States | Won the 2006 Scripps National Spelling Bee at 13 | Age 13 |
| Hugh Tosteson García | Puerto Rico (United States) | National Spelling Bee champion 1975 | Age 14 |
| Roy Seligman | Bahamas | First speller from the Bahamas to reach the Scripps National Spelling Bee… | — |
What is documented — and what is not
✓ Documented
- Shared the 1957 National Spelling Bee title at thirteen, from Denver, with Sandra Owen of Ohio.
- The bee ran from 9 a.m. to 6.55 p.m.
- Vice President Richard Nixon received the winners, reported 10 June 1957.
- Covered by the St. Petersburg Times and United Press on 8 June 1957.
? Unverified, disputed or wrong
- Her date of birth, school and grade are not published in the sources used here.
- The word schappe as the bee's final word is carried from the research record.
- The number of rounds is not documented.
- Nothing is recorded about her education, career or adult life.
Questions people ask about Dana Bennett
Did Dana Bennett win the 1957 spelling bee?
She shared it. The 1957 National Spelling Bee ended in a tie between her and Sandra Owen of Ohio.
How long did the 1957 bee last?
From 9 a.m. until 6.55 p.m. — close to ten hours.
How old was she?
Thirteen, which implies a birth year around 1943 or 1944. No source used here gives a date of birth.
What word ended the bee?
The record used here gives schappe, a yarn spun from waste silk.
Did the winners meet a politician?
Yes. The Toledo Blade reported on 10 June 1957 that Vice President Richard Nixon received them.
Where is Dana Bennett now?
No source used here reports on her adult life, and this page makes no claim about where she is now.
Is Dana Bennett on Wikipedia?
There is no separate article about her. Her name leads to Wikipedia's article on the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Quick quiz: how well do you know Dana’s story?
How did the 1957 National Spelling Bee end?
How long did it run?
Who received the winners afterwards?
Sources
- 2 Amazing Girls Tie For Title — St. Petersburg Times, 1957-06-08
- Nixon Sees Winners of U.S. Spelling Bee — Toledo Blade, 1957-06-10
- Who Said Modern Kids Couldn't Spell? — Deseret News (United Press), 1957-06-08
Checked by the Geniuses.club editorial team. Ages are given as of September 2026.
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