View source for Margaret Abbott

{{Short description|American golfer (1878–1955)}}
{{For|the wife of Tony Abbott, former prime minister of Australia|Margie Abbott}}
{{Featured article}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use shortened footnotes|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox golfer
| name             = Margaret Abbott
| image            = Margaret Abbott Charles Dana Gibson (cropped).jpg
| alt              = Pencil portrait of Abbott by Charles Dana Gibson
| caption          = Portrait by [[Charles Dana Gibson]],{{Sfnp|Fuller|2018|p=113}} {{circa|1903}}
| fullname         = Margaret Ives Abbott
| birth_date       = {{Birth date|1878|6|15}}
| birth_place      = [[Calcutta]], [[British Raj]]
| death_date       = {{Death date and age|1955|6|10|1878|6|15}}
| death_place      = [[Greenwich, Connecticut]], U.S.
| sporting_nationality = {{USA}}
| height           = 5 ft 11 in{{Sfnp|Fox|2018}}
| status           = Amateur
| spouse           = {{Marriage|[[Finley Peter Dunne]]|December 1902|April 24, 1936|end=d}}
| children         = 4, including [[Philip Dunne (writer)|Philip]]
| medaltemplates   =
{{MedalSport|Women's [[Golf at the Summer Olympics|golf]]}}
{{MedalCountry | {{USA}} }}
{{MedalCompetition|[[Golf at the Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]]}}
{{MedalGold |[[1900 Summer Olympics|1900 Paris]]|[[Golf at the 1900 Summer Olympics – Women's individual|Individual]]}}
| show-medals      = yes
}}

'''Margaret Ives Abbott''' (June 15, 1878&nbsp;– June 10, 1955) was an American [[amateur golf]]er. She was the first American woman to win an Olympic event: the [[Golf at the 1900 Summer Olympics – Women's individual|women's golf tournament]] at the [[1900 Summer Olympics]].

Born in [[Calcutta]] (now Kolkata), [[British Raj]], in 1878, Abbott moved with her family to Chicago in 1884. She joined the [[Chicago Golf Club]] in [[Wheaton, Illinois]], where she received coaching from [[Charles B. Macdonald]] and [[H.&nbsp;J. Whigham]]. In 1899, she traveled with her mother to Paris to study art. The following year, along with her mother, she signed up for a women's golf tournament without realizing that it was the second modern Olympics. Abbott won the tournament with a score of 47 [[Stroke play|strokes]]; her mother tied for seventh place. Abbott received a porcelain bowl as a prize.

In December 1902, she married the writer [[Finley Peter Dunne]]. They later moved to New York and had four children. Abbott died at the age of 76 in 1955, never realizing that she won an Olympic event. She was not well known until Paula Welch, a professor at the [[University of Florida]], researched her life. In 2018, ''[[The New York Times]]'' published her belated obituary.

== Life and career ==
=== Early life ===
Margaret Ives Abbott was born on June 15, 1878, in [[Calcutta]] (now Kolkata), [[British Raj]], to Charles and [[Mary Abbott (golfer)|Mary Ives Abbott]]. Her father was a wealthy American merchant who died in 1879. Margaret, along with her mother and her siblings, moved to [[Boston]]. During her teenage years, her mother became literary editor of the ''[[Chicago Herald (1881–95)|Chicago Herald]]'' and the family moved to [[Chicago]] in 1884.{{Sfnmp|Fox|2018|Taylor|2021|Rumore|2021|4a1=Mallon|4a2=Jerris|4y=2011|4p=25}}

In the late nineteenth century, women were restricted from competing in various sports. Golf clubs allowed women to play only if they were accompanied by a man. Abbott, along with her mother, began playing golf at the [[Chicago Golf Club]] in [[Wheaton, Illinois|Wheaton]], a suburb of Chicago. She was coached by [[Amateur sports|amateur]] golfers [[Charles B. Macdonald]] and [[H. J. Whigham]]. Abbott and Macdonald partnered in an 1897 tournament at [[Washington Park (community area), Chicago|Washington Park]]. She won several local tournaments, and by 1899, she had a two [[Handicap (golf)|handicap]].{{Sfnmp|Fox|2018|Rumore|2021|Abbott|1900|Taylor|2021}} She was referred to as a "fierce competitor", and was known to have a "classy backswing".{{Sfnm|Welch|1982|p=753}} That same year, she and her mother traveled to Paris. Her mother researched and wrote a travel guide ''A Woman's Paris: A Handbook of Every-day Living in the French Capital'' (1900); Margaret studied art alongside [[Auguste Rodin]] and [[Edgar Degas]].{{Sfnmp|Fox|2018|Rumore|2021|Abbott|1900|Taylor|2021}}

=== Paris Olympics ===
{{Further|Golf at the 1900 Summer Olympics – Women's individual}}

[[File:Margaret Abbott golf event 1900 Olympic Games.png|thumb|Margaret Abbott plays in the 1900 Olympic Games women's golf event in Compiegne, France.]]

[[File:Margaret Abbott Chicago Tribune (cropped2).jpg|thumb|Article on Abbott's victory in the ''Chicago Tribune'',{{Sfnp|Barnard|1900}} October 7, 1900|alt=Refer to the caption]]

The [[1900 Summer Olympics]], hosted in Paris between May and October, was the second modern Olympics. [[Pierre de Coubertin]], the founder of the Olympics, initially planned the games for men only. In 1900, however, women were allowed to compete for the first time in five sports: golf, tennis, sailing, rowing and [[Equestrian at the Summer Olympics|equestrianism]].{{Sfnp|Taylor|2021}} Out of a total of 997 athletes, 22 were women.{{Sfnmp|Holmes|2016|Lieberman|2016}} The events lacked proper equipment,{{Sfnp|Holmes|2016}} did not have an opening or closing ceremony, and included sports like [[Tug of war at the 1900 Summer Olympics|tug of war]], [[Kite flying at the 1900 Summer Olympics|kite flying]], [[Ballooning at the 1900 Summer Olympics|hot air ballooning]], and [[Pigeon racing at the 1900 Summer Olympics|pigeon racing]].{{Sfnp|Fox|2018}} Two golf events were scheduled—one for men and one for women.{{Sfnp|Mallon|1998|p=129}} The women's event was held over 9 holes ranging in distance from {{Convert|59|m|yd|abbr=off|sp=us}} to {{Convert|195|m|yd|abbr=off|sp=us}} from the [[ladies' tees]]; the men's was a 36-hole event.{{Sfnp|Mallon|1998}} Titled "{{Lang|FR|Prix de la ville de Compiègne}}",{{Sfnp|Olympics}} the women's event took place on October 3 in [[Compiègne]], about {{Convert|30|mi|km|sp=us}} north of Paris.{{Sfnp|Mallon|1998|pages=129, 131}}

The Olympics coincided with the [[1900 Paris Exposition]], and many believed that it was overshadowed by the latter.{{Sfnmp|Fox|2018|Holmes|2016|3a1=Costa|3a2=Guthrie|3y=1994|3p=124}} ''Golf Illustrated'' referred to the event as the competition "in connection with the Paris Exhibition".{{Sfnp|Golf Illustrated|1900|p=28}} The golf tournament was billed as the "Exposition Competition" or "Paris World's Fair Competition" instead of being referred to as an Olympic event.{{Sfnp|Fox|2018}} Olympics historian [[Bill Mallon]] later said: "A lot of the events in 1900 were considered demonstration sports. It's very hard to tell what was an Olympics sport and what was not." According to Mallon, many athletes did not know that they were participating in the Olympics.{{Sfnmp|1a1=Fox|1y=2018|2a1=Mallon|2y=1998|2p=129}}

Abbott learned about the tournament from a newspaper notice. Taking a break from her studies, she decided to sign up for the event.{{Sfnp|''Encyclopædia Britannica''|2006}} She won with a score of 47 [[Stroke play|strokes]].{{Sfnp|Barnard|1900}} [[Pauline Whittier]] was the runner-up, with 49 strokes, while [[Abbie Pratt]] finished 3rd with 53 strokes.{{Sfnp|Barnard|1900}} Mary Abbott also participated in the event and tied for seventh place with a score of 65.{{Sfnp|Mallon|1998}} All ten competitors played in long skirts and hats.{{Sfnp|Fox|2018}} According to [[Philip Dunne (writer)|Philip Dunne]], his mother would later tell her family she won the tournament "because all the French girls apparently misunderstood the nature of the game scheduled that day and turned up to play in high heels and tight skirts".{{Sfnp|Welch|1982|p=754}}

For her victory Abbott was awarded an old [[Meissen porcelain|Saxon porcelain]] bowl mounted in chiseled gold.{{Sfnp|Barnard|1900}} The winners of some events at the Paris games [[1900 Summer Olympics medal table|were awarded]] rectangular gold, silver, and bronze medals designed by French sculptor [[Frédéric-Charles-Victor de Vernon|Frédéric Vernon]].{{Sfnp|Paris 1900 Medals}} No medals were awarded for many other events, including golf, with prizes instead being cups, bowls, and other similar trophies.{{Sfnp|Mallon|1998|p=9}} Abbott's victory was reported in the ''[[Chicago Tribune]]''.{{Sfnp|Barnard|1900}}

=== Later life ===
[[File:Margaret Abbott in 1902.jpg|thumb|Abbott in the ''Chicago Tribune'', November 28, 1902]]

Abbott stayed in Paris and won a French championship before returning to America in 1901.{{Sfnmp|1a1=Fox|1y=2018|2a1=Rumore|2y=2021}} She married the writer [[Finley Peter Dunne]] on December 9, 1902. According to the ''Chicago Tribune'', although the wedding ceremony "was celebrated as quietly and with as little display as possible", they received telegrams from "dozens of{{nbsp}}[...] literary lights", including Sir [[Arthur Conan Doyle]].{{Sfnp|Rumore|2021}} The couple later settled in New York City.{{Sfnmp|1a1=Fox|1y=2018|2a1=Rumore|2y=2021}} They had four children, including [[Philip Dunne (writer)|Philip Dunne]].{{Sfnp|Ellis|1969|p=260}} Abbott did not compete in many tournaments due to a knee injury caused by a childhood accident.{{Sfnp|Welch|1982|p=754}} Records of Abbott's ties to the Chicago Golf Club were destroyed in the 1912 clubhouse fire.{{Sfnp|Welch|1982|p=754}} Abbott died at the age of 76 on June 10, 1955,{{Sfnp|Fox|2018}} in [[Greenwich, Connecticut]], five days before she would have turned 77.{{Sfnp|Taylor|2021}}

== Legacy ==
Abbott never realized that she participated in and became the first American woman to win an Olympic event.{{Sfnp|Fox|2018}} She was not well known until Paula Welch, a professor at the [[University of Florida]] and a member of the Olympics Board of Directors, researched her life during the 1970s when she first saw Abbott mentioned as an Olympic champion in 1973. Welch spent a decade examining newspaper articles that mentioned Abbott's successes in various golfing competitions.{{Sfnmp|Holmes|2016|2a1=Welch|2y=1982|2p=752}} In the mid-1980s, she contacted Philip, Abbott's son, informing him about his mother's Olympic victory.{{Sfnmp|1a1=Fox|1y=2018|2a1=Holmes|2y=2016}} Analyzing the reasons for her obscurity, Welch said: "We didn't have the coverage that we have today{{nbsp}}[...] She came back. She got married. She raised her family. She played some golf, but she didn't really pursue it in tournaments."{{Sfnp|Fox|2018}}

Writing for ''[[Golf Digest]]'' in 1984, Philip wrote: "It's not every day that you learn your mother was an Olympic champion, 80-odd years after the fact. The champion herself had told us only that she had won the golf championship of Paris."{{Sfnmp|Olympics|2021|USOPM}} In 1996, Abbott was the featured athlete of the 1900 Olympics in the official [[1996 Summer Olympics|Olympics program of the Atlanta games]].{{Sfnp|University of Florida|1996}} After 1904, golf was not included in the Olympic Games until the [[2016 Summer Olympics]].{{Sfnp|Lieberman|2016}} In 2018, ''[[The New York Times]]'' published her belated obituary.{{Sfnp|Fox|2018}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Works cited ==
=== Online sources ===
{{Refbegin|2}}
* {{Cite encyclopedia |title=Margaret Abbott: A Study Break |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/A-Study-Break-1367944 |access-date=May 11, 2022 |date=January 19, 2006 |ref={{sfnRef|''Encyclopædia Britannica''|2006}}}}
* {{Cite news |last=Fox |first=Margalit |date=March 8, 2018 |title=Margaret Abbott: The First American Woman to Win an Olympic Championship. |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/obituaries/overlooked-margaret-abbott.html |url-access=limited |access-date=May 11, 2022}}
* {{Cite magazine |last=Holmes |first=Tao Tao |date=August 10, 2016 |title=The First American Woman to Win an Olympic Championship Didn't Even Know It |url=https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-first-american-woman-to-win-an-olympic-championship-didnt-even-know-it |magazine=[[Atlas Obscura]] |oclc=960889351 |access-date=May 11, 2022}}
* {{Cite web |last=Lieberman |first=Stuart |date=March 21, 2016 |title=Margaret Abbott Aced Team USA's First Women's Olympic Gold Medal and Didn't Know It |url=https://www.teamusa.org/News/2016/March/21/Margaret-Abbott-Aced-Team-USAs-First-Womens-Olympic-Gold-Medal-And-Didnt-Know-It |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160324084347/http://www.teamusa.org/News/2016/March/21/Margaret-Abbott-Aced-Team-USAs-First-Womens-Olympic-Gold-Medal-And-Didnt-Know-It |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 24, 2016 |access-date=May 11, 2022 |publisher=[[United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee]]}}
* {{Cite web |title=Margaret Ives Abbott |url=https://olympics.com/en/athletes/margaret-ives-abbott#b2p-athlete-olympic-results |access-date=May 11, 2022 |publisher=[[Olympic Games]] |ref={{sfnRef|Olympics}}}}
* {{Cite web |date=October 5, 2021 |title=Margaret Abbott, the Olympic Golf Champion Who Died Without Knowing It |url=https://olympics.com/en/news/margaret-abbott-the-olympic-golf-champion-who-died-without-knowing-it |publisher=[[Olympic Games]] |access-date=May 12, 2022 |ref={{sfnRef|Olympics|2021}}}}
* {{cite web |title=Olympic Games Paris 1900 — Medal Design |url=https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/paris-1900/medal-design |publisher=International Olympic Committee |access-date=August 12, 2021 |ref={{sfnRef|Paris 1900 Medals}}}}
* {{Cite news |last=Rumore |first=Kori |date=August 4, 2021 |title=Chicago Golfer Margaret Abbott was the 1st American Woman to Win a Gold Medal at the Olympics – But She Never Knew it. Here's Why. |work=[[Chicago Tribune]] |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/olympics/ct-olympics-margaret-abbott-gold-medal-20210803-wyk535vvtbewdespssz7tep55q-story.html |access-date=May 11, 2022}}
* {{Cite web |last=Taylor |first=Katie |date=2021 |title=Margaret Ives Abbott |url=https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/margaret-ives-abbott |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220623142456/https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/margaret-ives-abbott |archive-date=June 23, 2022 |access-date=May 11, 2022 |publisher=[[National Women's History Museum]]}}
* {{Cite web |title=An Unknowing Historymaker: Margaret Abbott was the First American Female to be an Olympic Champion |date=March 7, 2020 |url=https://usopm.org/an-unknowing-historymaker-margaret-abbott-was-the-first-american-female-to-be-an-olympic-champion/ |access-date=May 12, 2022 |publisher=[[United States Olympic & Paralympic Museum]] |ref={{sfnRef|USOPM}}}}
* {{Cite news |date=July 9, 1996 |title=Recognizing First U.S. Women's Champion Is A Step In The Right Direction |publisher=[[University of Florida]] |url=https://news.ufl.edu/archive/1996/07/recognizing-first-us-womens-champion-is-a-step-in-the-right-direction.html |access-date=July 27, 2022 |ref={{sfnRef|University of Florida|1996}}}}
{{Refend}}

=== Print sources ===
{{Refbegin|2}}
* {{Cite book |last=Abbott |first=Mary |url=https://archive.org/details/awomansparisaha00abbogoog/page/n5/mode/2up?view=theater |title=A Woman's Paris: A Handbook of Every-day Living in the French Capital |publisher=[[Small, Maynard & Company]] |year=1900 |via=the [[Internet Archive]]}}
* {{cite news |last=Barnard |first=C. I. |date=October 6, 1900 |title=Wins Women's Golf Cup. — Miss Margaret Abbott Leads Play Near Paris. |page=9 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chicago-tribune-wins-womens-golf-cup/126492128/ |work=Chicago Tribune |place=Paris |publication-place=Chicago |access-date=June 16, 2023 |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}
* {{Cite news |date=July 25, 1984 |title=Playing Dress-Up Hurt Athletes in 1900 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-los-angeles-times-playing-dress-up-h/126492793/ |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |access-date=June 16, 2023 |ref={{sfnRef|''Los Angeles Times''|1984}}}}
* {{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/womensportinterd0000unse |title=Women and Sport: Interdisciplinary Perspectives |publisher=Human Kinetics |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-87322-686-8 |editor-last=Costa |editor-first=D. Margaret |editor-last2=Guthrie |editor-first2=Sharon Ruth |via=the [[Internet Archive]] |url-access=registration}}
* {{cite book |last=Ellis |first=Elmer |title=Mr. Dooley's America: A Life of Finley Peter Dunne |publisher=Archon Books |year=1969 |orig-year=1941 |isbn=978-0-208-00734-6 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/mrdooleysamerica0000elli |via=the [[Internet Archive]]}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Emery |first=Lynne |date=1984 |title=Women's Participation in the Olympic Games: A Historical Perspective |journal=[[Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance]] |volume=55 |issue=5 |pages=62–72 |doi=10.1080/07303084.1984.10629768}}
* {{Cite book |last=Fuller |first=Linda K. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L1dxDwAAQBAJ |title=Female Olympian and Paralympian Events: Analyses, Backgrounds, and Timelines |publisher=[[Springer Publishing]] |year=2018 |isbn=978-3-319-76792-5 |via=[[Google Books]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Mallon |first=Bill |url=https://archive.org/details/1900olympicgames00mall |title=The 1900 Olympic Games: Results for All Competitors in All Events, with Commentary |publisher=[[McFarland & Company]] |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-7864-8952-7 |url-access=registration |access-date=June 11, 2022 |via=[[Internet Archive]]}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Mallon |first1=Bill |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5d71iha1Q-YC |title=Historical Dictionary of Golf |last2=Jerris |first2=Randon |publisher=[[Scarecrow Press]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-8108-7465-7 |via=[[Google Books]]}}
* {{Cite magazine |magazine=Golf Illustrated |publication-place=London |date=October 12, 1900 |volume=6 |number=70 |pages=28–29 |title=International Tournament at Compiègne |ref={{sfnRef|Golf Illustrated|1900}} |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OoQXAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA28 |via=[[Google Books]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Warner |first=Patricia Campbell |title=When the Girls Came Out to Play: The Birth of American Sportswear |publisher=[[University of Massachusetts Press]] |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-55849-548-7 |chapter=Part One: The Influence of Fashion. Chapter 5, Women Enter the Olympics: A Sleeker Swimsuit |chapter-url=https://scholarworks.umass.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1006&context=umpress_wtg}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Welch |first=Paula |year=1982|title=Search for Margaret Abbott |url=http://library.la84.org/OlympicInformationCenter/OlympicReview/1982/ore182/ORE182s.pdf |journal=Olympic Review |volume=182 |pages=752–754 |access-date=March 9, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160912053406/http://library.la84.org/OlympicInformationCenter/OlympicReview/1982/ore182/ORE182s.pdf |archive-date=September 12, 2016 |url-status=dead}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
*{{Sports links}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Abbott, Margaret}}
[[Category:American female golfers]]
[[Category:Amateur golfers]]
[[Category:Golfers at the 1900 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States in golf]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1900 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Sportswomen from Kolkata]]
[[Category:Golfers from Chicago]]
[[Category:American expatriates in British India]]
[[Category:1878 births]]
[[Category:1955 deaths]]
[[Category:19th-century American sportswomen]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportswomen]]