By: Anne S.K. Turkos
Ninety years ago this spring, University of Maryland rifle team member Irene Knox qualified for the Summer Olympics with a record-setting score of 599 out of a possible 600 points at the national collegiate rifle shooting championships as the individual champion. To give you an idea of how remarkable this achievement was, the New York Times noted that
“This means that over a fifty-foot range she hit a circle
fifteen one-hundreths of an inch in diameter fifty-nine
times out of sixty attempts, her only slightly awry shot
going into the next highest scoring ring for a mark of nine.”
Sadly, there was no competition in women’s rifle at the 1932 Summer Games, which were held in Los Angeles. Economic conditions at the time and the remoteness of the location led to a much lower level of overall participation in the games, which featured only half as many athletes as had participated four years earlier. Irene missed her chance to become an official Olympian, but we still count her on our all-time list.
The UMD women’s rifle team formed in 1922 with encouragement from Dean of Women Adele Stamp. The team was successful almost immediately, winning national championships in 1926, 1931, and 1932. Irene Knox and her twin sister Josephine helped lead the way in 1931 and 1932.
Irene, whose full name was Grace Irene, and Josephine Knox were born on July 24, 1913, in Miami, Florida, the daughters of Lloyd T. Knox and Ida Hunter Knox. They had an older sister, Lucy, and twin brothers Lloyd and Howard. All five siblings graduated from the University of Maryland, but Irene and Josephine appear to have been the only rifle shooters in the family.
While Josephine was an excellent markswoman, Irene was clearly the superior shot, notching consistently high or record-setting marks at meets.
One of Knox’s perfect scoring targets. Sports Information Office, Acc. 1996-091-UA.
In one of the many newspaper interviews she gave, when “asked if she liked rifle shooting as a sport for girls, Irene [replied]: ‘I am wild about it. I would just go up and shoot all day long, if my eyes would hold out’.” In the same interview, she attributed her phenomenal success to the coaching she received from Sgt. Earl Hendricks, U.S. Army, the rifle instructor at UMD and the fact that she had an exceptionally far-sighted right eye.
Her shooting exploits received national coverage. In addition to the New York Times, the Daily Boston Globe, Baltimore Sun, Washington Post, Sunday Star (Washington, DC), and Christian Science Monitor all carried coverage of her outstanding performance at intercollegiate meets. She was even featured in the June 1932 issue of Alger’s Newspaper for the Youth of America.
Beyond the rifle range, which was often set up in the attic of the Skinner Building, Irene was a member and officer of the Student Grange, a member of the Women’s M Club, secretary of the Women’s Athletic Association, and a founding member of the Alpha Xi Delta Sorority. She received her B.S. in Education in 1934. Irene went on to a long career as a teacher in junior high and high school at Western High School in Washington, DC, and the Nicholas Orem School in Prince George’s County, MD. She also served as a Girl Scout volunteer and leader for over 60 years.
Irene never married and lived with her sisters Lucy and Josephine and Josephine’s husband, Arden Kidwell in the College Park area. The three sisters later moved to Asbury Methodist Village in Gaithersburg, MD. Lucy passed away in 1994, two years after her sister Irene was inducted into the University of Maryland Athletic Hall of Fame. Irene remained at Asbury until her own death on May 6, 1999, and was survived by her twin, Josephine, and an extensive group of three generations of nieces and nephews.
Anne S.K. Turkos is the University Archivist Emerita for the University of Maryland. She has been a part of the staff of the UMD Libraries’ Special Collections and University Archives since January 1985. Before retirement in July 2017, she worked with campus departments and units, student groups, and alumni to transfer, preserve, and make available permanent university records. She continues to support the Archives through her work on special projects and fundraising. Follow Anne on Twitter at @AnneTurkos.
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