Abbie Pratt
An American golfer who won an Olympic medal for France and later traded fairways for royal titles as a Serbian princess.
1859–1938 (age 79)·American golfer·Birthday: March 21
Biography
Abbie Pratt's life reads like a novel of Gilded Age eccentricity and transatlantic reinvention. Born Myra Abigail Pankhurst in Massachusetts, she first emerged as a competitive golfer under the name Abbie Wright. Her moment of sporting glory came at the 1900 Paris Olympics, where, representing France for reasons lost to time, she claimed the bronze medal in the women's golf tournament. Her personal life soon outpaced her athletic fame. After two earlier marriages ended, she wed Prince Daria Karađorđević, a member of the exiled Serbian royal family, in 1921, becoming Princess Daria. She spent her later years in a royal milieu in Europe, a world away from the American golf courses of her youth, her Olympic medal a curious footnote to a story of social ascent and aristocratic alliance.
#1 When Abbie Was Born
The biggest hits of 1859
Abbie's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1859Born
1864Started school
President: Abraham Lincoln
1872Became a teenager
President: Ulysses S. Grant
1875Could drive
President: Ulysses S. Grant
1877Could vote
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
1880Turned 21
Edison patents the incandescent light bulb
President: Rutherford B. Hayes
1889Turned 30
Eiffel Tower opens in Paris
President: Benjamin Harrison
1899Turned 40
President: William McKinley
1909Turned 50
Robert Peary claims to reach the North Pole
President: William Howard Taft
1919Turned 60
Treaty of Versailles signed; Prohibition ratified
President: Woodrow Wilson
1929Turned 70
Wall Street crashes, triggering the Great Depression
Gas: $0.21/galPresident: Herbert Hoover"Singin' in the Rain" — Cliff EdwardsBest Picture: The Broadway Melody
1938Died at 79
Kristallnacht and the escalation toward WWII
Gas: $0.20/galHome: $2,850Min wage: $0.25/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Begin the Beguine" — Artie ShawBest Picture: You Can't Take It with You
Key Achievements
- Won the bronze medal in women's golf at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris.
- Competed in the Olympics representing France, despite being a native-born American.
- Was a competitive golfer in the United States during the sport's early growth period.
Did You Know?
She was one of the first American women to compete in Olympic golf.
Her third husband, Prince Daria, was a grandson of the Serbian Prince Alexander Karađorđević.
She was married three times, with surnames Wright, Pratt, and finally Karađorđević.
The 1900 Olympic women's golf competition was a 9-hole event, and only 10 players participated.
“I won the Olympic medal playing for France, but I am an American.”
