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Whip used by Rodeo Star Frank Dean to Set Guiness World Record

Catalog Data

User:
Dean, Frank  Search this
Physical Description:
leather (overall material)
Measurements:
overall: 80 ft x 2 1/2 in; 24.384 m x 6.35 cm
Object Name:
whip
Used:
United States: North Dakota
Description (Brief):
Frank Dean used this whip to set a Guinness Book record for "The longest stock whip ever 'cracked' which means the end of the whip was made to travel above the speed of sound, 760 mph." The record was set by Frank Dean at the North Dakota State Fair in 1939. He also did a trick with this rope where he cut a piece of paper in half from his own hand and fired a pistol that his wife and partner Bernice was holding.
Frank and Bernice Dean toured the rodeo circuit for 45 years beginning in the 1930s. They performed all over the world in wild west shows, rodeos, motion pictures, circuses, vaudeville and night clubs until Bernice's death in 1980 and Frank's passing in 1985. They were featured in the Buffalo Bill Wild West Show and were both Guinness World Record holders. According to Frank, Bernice was "the most versatile of all the Cowgirls." She was proficient at shooting, rope spinning, trick riding, whip popping, horse training and showing, juggling and balancing on a rolling globe, knife throwing, roman riding, bronc riding and relay riding.
Location:
Currently not on view
Name of sport:
Rodeo  Search this
Level of sport:
Professional  Search this
Web subject:
Sports  Search this
Credit Line:
Frank Dean
ID Number:
1984.0088.14
Accession number:
1984.0088
Catalog number:
1984.0088.14
See more items in:
Culture and the Arts: Sport and Leisure
Data Source:
National Museum of American History
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746b0-a7ef-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:nmah_679546