LITTLE-KNOWN FACTS
Gertrude Ederle, the first woman to swim the English Channel, spoke to thousands at City Hall and over WNYC following the ticker tape parade in her honor on August 27, 1926.
"City Hall was draped in bunting, thousands [of people] waved flags, and the noise upon Trudy's arrival was deafening. She was led up spiraling stairs into the rotunda…Whalen had gone all out for the celebration…On each side she was flanked by army and navy officers and members of the mayoral committee. On the balcony of the chamber, a band played patriotic hymns, and Miss Virginia Choate Pinner sang the national anthem. The welcoming ceremony was broadcast by the municipal radio station WNYC, and fifty amplifiers installed especially for the occasion relayed the remarks to those outside…She told the mayor she had done it for her country and thanked both New Yorkers and German-Americans for their support…"
Source: America's Girl: The Incredible Story of How Swimmer Gertrude Ederle Changed the Nation, by Tim Dahlberg, St Martins Press, 2009, pgs. 183-184.
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