The 51st

Scripps National Spelling Bee The Scripps National Spelling Bee (formerly the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee and commonly called the National Spelling Bee) is an annual spelling bee held in the United States. The bee is run on a not-for-profit basis by The E. W. Scri ...

was held in

Washington, D.C. ) , 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, ...

at the

Mayflower Hotel The Mayflower Hotel is a historic hotel in downtown Washington, D.C., located on Connecticut Avenue NW. It is two blocks north of Farragut Square (one block north of the Farragut North (Washington Metro), Farragut North Washington Metro, Metro ...

on June 7–8, 1978, sponsored 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 ...

. The winner was 13-year-old Peg McCarthy of

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ; Kansa language, Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the Capital (political), capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the County seat, seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the ...

, on the word "deification". Second place went to 12-year old Lyn Sue Kahng of

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

, who missed "crescive".(9 June 1978)
Spelling bee winner gives part of the credit to luck
''St. Petersburg Times'' (

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

)(8 June 1978)
Agony of victory (photo)
''Daily News'' (

) Third place went to Julie Won of

Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania Mechanicsburg is a borough in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. The borough is eight miles (13 km) west of Harrisburg. It is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle metropolitan statistical area. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 8,981. ...

who missed "fecund".(10 June 1978)
No Fear for '78 Champ
''The Hour'' (UPI) Won took 2nd place the

next year "Next Year" is a song released as the last single from the third Foo Fighters' album ''There Is Nothing Left to Lose''. History A shorter version (running at just 3:21 compared to the original's 4:36) was released as a single in 2000 and wa ...

, where Won lost on the word "virescence". There were 106 spellers this year (another record as usual during this era), made up of 58 girls and 48 boys, from ages 10 to 14.(7 June 1978)
106 Youngsters Complete Today in Spelling Bee
''Sumter Daily Item'' (Associated Press) The competition was whittled down to 76 spellers after three rounds, and 23 of them survived into the finals.(8 June 1978)
76 Continue Spelling Bee Today
''Lakeland Ledger'' (Associated Press) McCarthy was the third winner from

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

, following Jolitta Schlehuber in the 1958 bee and Robert Walters in the 1968 bee.(29 March 1988)
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 ...

'' Richard R. Baker served as pronouncer.(9 June 1978)
The Spelling Bee: Angst to Zeal
''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

References

Scripps National Spelling Bee competitions 1978 in Washington, D.C. 1978 in education June 1978 events in the United States {{WashingtonDC-stub