Hidden Hero - Will Hoagland

Running is one of today's most popular sports worldwide with over 70,000 participants in the United States alone. Strange as it sounds, during the 1870s and 1880s, America's most popular spectator sport wasn't baseball, boxing, or horse racing - it was competitive walking known as pedestrianism. Inside sold-out arenas, competitors walked around dirt tracks almost nonstop for six straight days (never on Sunday), risking their health and sanity to see who could walk the farthest - 500 miles, then 520 miles, and 565 miles! These walking matches were as talked about as the weather, the details reported form coast to coast.

World champion "pedestrian" Willard Hoagland was born in Union Springs in 1872. His father, Joshua Hoagland, and grandfather, Charles Hoagland, pioneer settlers of Union Springs, were both blacksmith and carriage makers. As a child, Will showed an aptitude for walking and walking fast. His early training was in the boat house of Charles Courtney who served as Hoagland's mentor and manager. At age 17, Hoagland started competing with walkers in this area defeating them decisively. Later Hoagland took on the more notable pedestrians with a career of many victories and few defeats. He participated in over 450 races during his career putting away his walking gear in 1912 following a record of courage, endurance and strength. In 1887, Hoagland set the world record of 100 miles in 18 hours and four minutes without a stop. As a result, considerable money changed hands as the odds were 3 to 1 against Hoagland. At his peak, Hoagland would give handicaps of 1 to 15 miles against the best walkers of the world and still outwalk his competitors. Record books show that he was known to cover 500 miles in individual races.

In later years, Hoagland served as a game manager in Cayuga County apprehending hundreds of persons for violations of game laws. Hoagland took great pride that no violator every laid a hand on him while resisting arrest. His professional career also included serving as an umpire in the National Baseball League. With the many thousands of miles which he traveled in his walking matches and game protector patrol, Hoagland took great pride that his feet were without a blemish. Proper fit of shoes and proper foot care were his advice to those who suffered from "pedal ailments", advice that is still relevant today.

Will Hoagland

Hidden Heroes - Charles & Dr. Elizabeth Wakeley

Which story to tell about the Wakeley family of Levanna was a dilemma to this writer. Would it be Dr. Elizabeth Wanzer Wakeley (1831-1902), a Quaker and prominent physician who practiced medicine in the area for over 30 years during a time when men dominated this profession? Or would it be her husband, Dr. Charles C. Wakeley (1832-1916), the grandson of Abner Wakeley, a Baptist preacher and pioneer settler of the area?

Charles distinguished himself as a manufacturer, farmer, civil engineer, surveyor, architect and astrophysicist. In 1863 and according to the New York Times, Charles Wakeley and his associate, Lewis Rutherford, took the first photographs of the moon through a photographic telescope which they had developed. The telescope is now in the collection of Columbia University. But Charles' early roots in farming held fast. In 1874, two years before Heinz Catsup was first manufactured, Charles founded the Cayuga Lake Catsup Manufactory which the family continued to operate until 1904. In the early days, the catsup was shipped out in different sized bottles from the Cayuga Lake landing near their home. By 1880, the operation employed 15 workers from area families and produced 7,000 gallons of catsup. By 1896, bottles were abandoned in favor of large barrels which could be shipped out by the LVRR line which traversed the eastern shores of Cayuga Lake. By 1900, 60 tons of catsup were being processed in a season. So the next time you are in the grocery store, check out the many varieties and sizes of catsup offered and think - what if?

Hidden Hero - Mary McGhan Perkins

Last week's inauguration of Kamala Harris as the Vice President of the United States burst many barriers for the women of our country.

If we look back to 1952, another local woman, Mary McGhan Perkins, also burst several barriers in her own right. Mary and her husband, Walter, lived in the village of Cayuga with their children, Richard, Jean, Karen and Lynne. As the owner of Jenkins Laboratories in Auburn, Mr. Perkins was well known in many business and civic circles. In business since the 1920's, Jenkins Pharmaceuticals was a reputable and respected name in its industry never having been cited for misrepresentation of its products. The firm marketed or manufactured over 175 different pharmaceutical formulations with a full line of tablets, liquids, ointments, capsules and injectables.

Sadly, at the pinnacle of his business career, Mr. Perkins died at the young age of 48 leaving his family to cope and continue not only without his life but the business which he had managed as president since 1935. Undaunted by becoming a young widow with four children, Mary became the president of Jenkins Labs and continued in this role until the sale of the business in 1962. During her tenure, the business continued its many achievements developing a culture of team work and success.

This would not be the only first for Mary Perkins. In 1956, she was the first woman to be elected as a village trustee in Cayuga County garnering the most votes of all candidates. This was a remarkable accomplishment for the time, especially when you consider that she was the president of a major business, a single mother with four children and a respected actively contributing member of many civic and community organizations.

In this week of firsts, we pay tribute to Mary Perkins, another hidden hero no longer hidden!

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