“Babe’ Didrickson Zaharias Tribute Article – April 18, 1971

I drive by the sign post marking the entrance to Didrickson Drive just off W. 21st Street just about every day, and wonder: how many of its younger residents know who the street is named for?

“Babe” Didrickson Zaharias wasn’t from Lorain. But since the streets in that area were named for famous golfers (the land used to be part of the original Lorain Country Club), it’s nice that she was included, along with Ben Hogan and Harry Vardon. It’s refreshing to see her honored, seeing how so many streets in Lorain are named for states, letters of the alphabet or even other cities.

Below is a pretty good article by Jim Murray of the Los Angeles Times about the life of Ms. Didrickson Zaharias that appeared in the Sunday Journal on April 18, 1971. The lively, well-written article made note of her cancer diagnosis eighteen years earlier in April 1953. 

The woman later named ’the best female athlete of the 20th Century by the Associated Press' passed away in September 1956.

Here’s a link to another good article about her on ESPN.com, and here is her Wiki entry.

At a time when much less impressive accomplishments are celebrated on the news and social media, it’s incredible to read about what Ms. Didrickson Zaharias managed to achieve in golf (10 LPGA major championships), basketball, baseball and track & field (2 Olympic gold medals) during her short lifetime. It’s a shame that she is not remembered and celebrated more often.