The 31st Scripps National Spelling Bee was held in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

on June 11–12, 1958, by the

E.W. Scripps Company The E. W. Scripps Company is an American broadcasting company founded in 1878 as a chain of daily newspapers by Edward Willis "E. W." Scripps and his sister, Ellen Browning Scripps. It was also formerly a media conglomerate. The company is he ...

.(5 January 1958)
Plans made for 1985 SENC Spelling Bee
''Star-News'' The winner was 14-year-old eighth-grader Jolitta Schlehuber of

McPherson, Kansas McPherson () is a city in and the county seat of McPherson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 14,082. The city is named after Union General James Birdseye McPherson, a Civil War general. It i ...

, sponsored by the ''

Topeka Daily Capital ''The Topeka Capital-Journal'' is a daily newspaper in Topeka, Kansas, owned by Gannett. History The paper was formed following numerous name changes and mergers, including the merger of ''The Topeka Daily Capital'' and ''The Topeka State Jou ...

''. She correctly spelled the word ''

syllepsis In rhetoric, zeugma (; from the Ancient Greek , , lit. "a yoking together"Liddell, H. G. & al. ''A Greek-English Lexicon''"" Perseus Project. Retrieved 24 January 2013.) and syllepsis (; from the Ancient Greek , , lit. "a taking together"''Random ...

''. She had placed fourth the prior year, and was the first winner from Kansas. Second place went to Terry Madeira of

Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania Elizabethtown (Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Betzischteddel'') is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located southeast of Harrisburg, the state capital. Small factories existed at the turn of the 20th century when the popu ...

, who misspelled ''propylaeum''.(12 June 1958)
Kansas Girl Top Speller
''

Times-News (Hendersonville, North Carolina) The ''Times-News'' is an American, English language daily newspaper headquartered in Hendersonville, Henderson County, North Carolina. It has served Henderson, Transylvania and Polk counties in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolin ...

''Watson, J.L. (29 March 1998)
Bee spelled victory for local resident
''

Lawrence Journal-World The ''Lawrence Journal-World'' is a daily newspaper published in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, by Ogden Newspapers. History Though the ''Journal-World'' title came into existence in 1911, the paper dates itself to 1858, according to the ...

'' A talent scout for ''

The $64,000 Question ''The $64,000 Question'' was an American game show broadcast in primetime on CBS-TV from 1955 to 1958, which became embroiled in the 1950s quiz show scandals. Contestants answered general knowledge questions, earning money which doubled as the ...

'' game show in the audience invited Schlehuber to appear on that show, where she won $8000, which she used to pay college tuition.(19 June 1958)
New National Spelling Champ Studies in Small Rural School
''Nunda News'' (

Nunda, New York Nunda (pronounced "none-day") is a town in Livingston County, New York, United States. The population was 3,064 at the 2010 census. Nunda welcomes visitors with signs stating "Welcome to Nunda, a Nice Place to Live." The name is derived from ''N ...

), p. 7.(29 March 1988)
Bee Spelled Victory for Local Resident
''

'' After the last year's bee had taken almost 10 hours, this was the first time the bee was put on a two-day program. There were 68 contestants this year, 27 boys and 41 girls.Robinson, Linda (9 January 1969)
City Math Teacher Here Today, But Where Tomorrow
''

'' Forty-eight spellers were eliminated in eleven rounds in the first day of competition on Wednesday, June 11, leaving 12 girls and 8 boys for the second and final day of competition.Twenty Remain Undefeated in Bee
''Gettysburg Times'' (Associated Press) Benson S. Alleman was pronouncer.(12 June 1958)
20 Spelling Experts Now In Final Stretch
''Sarasota Journal'' (UPI) The top prize was $1,000, with $500 for second, $250 for third, $100 for the next five, $50 for the next ten, and $25 each for the rest.

References

{{Scripps National Spelling Bee Scripps National Spelling Bee competitions 1958 in education 1958 in Washington, D.C. June 1958 events in the United States