This week in East Oklahoma City history.
Jim Thorpe died March 28, 1953, athlete from Prague
James Francis Thorpe died on March 28, 1953. He was an athlete known for winning two Olympic gold medals in 1912 in pentathlon and decathlon. Thorpe was the first Native American to win Olympic gold for the United States. He played professional football, baseball, and basketball, including several seasons in the early National Football League. Thorpe attended Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania but was born near Prague, Oklahoma, where he spent part of his early life. His Olympic medals were taken away for violating amateurism rules but were restored decades after his death. Thorpe struggled with health and financial issues later in life. He was married three times and had eight children. His legacy continues through honors in sports halls of fame and recognition from the Sac and Fox Nation. Thorpe’s connection to Prague, Oklahoma, marks the starting point of his life and Native heritage.