Harold Charles Wilson (15 January 1903 – 2 May 1981) was an American

rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is di ...

and Olympian. He was born in Washington Boro, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, the oldest child of William B. Wilson and Henrietta A. Charles. By 1910, his family had moved to

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, where he grew up. Wilson was a member of the

U.S. Olympic Team United States of America (USA) has sent athletes to every celebration of the modern era Olympic Games, except for the 1980 Summer Olympics, during which it led a boycott to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. American athletes have w ...

, representing the United States at the Games of the VIII Olympiad held in Paris, France from 4 May through 27 July 1924. He competed in the paired oar shell with coxswain

rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically atta ...

event (crew). The boat included Wilson (stroke),

Leon Butler Leon Edward Butler (December 2, 1892 – June 15, 1973) was an American rower who competed in the 1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1924), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad (fren ...

(bow seat), and Edward Jennings (cox). Rowing out of the Pennsylvania Barge Club of Philadelphia, the crew qualified for the U.S. Olympic team on 13 June 1924 at national trials held in Philadelphia. At the Olympic Games, the boat came in third, earning a

bronze medal A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receive ...

on 17 July 1924 at the

Argenteuil Argenteuil () is a Communes of France, commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Argenteuil is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Val-d'Oise Departments of France, ...

Basin on the

Seine ) , mouth_location = Le Havre/Honfleur , mouth_coordinates = , mouth_elevation = , progression = , river_system = Seine basin , basin_size = , tributaries_left = Yonne, Loing, Eure, Risle , tributarie ...

. After the 1924 Olympic Games, Wilson made his home in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. He married Virginia E. Harris ''née'' Gessing (25 October 1902 – 21 March 1986) in Manhattan, New York City, NY on 27 June 1931.New York City, Office of the City Clerk (27 Jun 1931). Marriage license: Harold Wilson & Virginia Harris; ''Family Search'', ''New York City Marriage Records, 1866–1938'' (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:24D4-HX4: accessed 28 May 2015) They moved to the Philadelphia suburb of Laverock in 1949. With his father, he owned and operated the Fairhill Laundry at 241 W. Allegheny Avenue in

North Philadelphia North Philadelphia, nicknamed North Philly, is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is immediately north of Center City. Though the full extent of the region is somewhat vague, "North Philadelphia" is regarded as everything north of either ...

. Wilson retired and closed the business in 1969. In his retirement, he lived in

Beach Haven, New Jersey Beach Haven is a borough in Ocean County, New Jersey located on Long Beach Island (LBI) and bordering the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 1,170,Lawnview Memorial Park Lawnview Memorial Park, also referred to as Lawnview Cemetery, is a cemetery located at 500 Huntingdon Pike in Rockledge, Pennsylvania. It is 82 acres in size and is managed by the Odd Fellows Cemetery Company of Philadelphia. It contains the reb ...

Rockledge, Pennsylvania Rockledge is a borough in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,638 as of the 2020 census. Rockledge is surrounded by Abington Township, and Philadelphia, and shares a ZIP Code with Jenkintown. Geography Accordin ...

References

External links

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Harold Wilson's profile at databaseOlympicsWebsite of Pennsylvania Barge Club
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Harold 1903 births 1981 deaths American male rowers Burials at Lawnview Memorial Park Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in rowing People from Beach Haven, New Jersey Rowers at the 1924 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1924 Summer Olympics