# Edward Geers > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Edward_Geers > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Edward_Geers.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Geers > Source revision: 1348253177 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|American harness racer (1851–1924)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2020}} {{Infobox horseracing personality | name =Edward Geers | image =File:Edward Franklin "Pop" Geers.jpg | alt = | caption = | birth_name =Edward Franklin Geers | birth_date =January 25, 1851 | birth_place =[Lebanon, Tennessee](/source/Lebanon%2C_Tennessee), U.S. | death_date =September 3, 1924 | death_place = [Wheeling, West Virginia](/source/Wheeling%2C_West_Virginia), U.S. | resting_place = | nickname = Pop Geers | occupation = {{hlist|Harness racing driver}} | sport=[Harness racing](/source/Harness_racing) | years_active = | career wins = | career winnings = | race = | horses= | honors =[United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame](/source/Harness_Racing_Museum_%26_Hall_of_Fame) (1958) }} '''Edward Franklin Geers''' (January 25, 1851 – September 3, 1924), nicknamed "'''Pop'''", was an American [harness racer](/source/harness_racer) and author of 'Ed Geers' experience with the Trotters and the Pacers.'{{cite news |title=50,000 Pay Tribute To Geers's Memory. Activities at West Virginia Fair Are Suspended Out of Respect to Dead Driver |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1924/09/05/archives/50000-pay-tribute-to-geerss-memory-activities-at-west-virginia-fair.html |newspaper=[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times) |date= September 5, 1924|access-date=2010-12-17 }}McCormick, Mike (August 16, 2014). "Historical perspective: Edward 'Pop' Geers and the 'Four-Cornered Track'". Terre Haute Tribune Star. Retrieved December 10, 2017. ==Early life== He was born on January 25, 1851, in [Tennessee](/source/Tennessee) to William Gideon Geers and Emily Woolard.{{cite web|last1=McCormick|first1=Mike|title=Historical perspective: Edward 'Pop' Geers and the 'Four-Cornered Track'|url=http://www.tribstar.com/features/historical-perspective-edward-pop-geers-and-the-four-cornered-track/article_cf46ef36-2581-11e4-b3db-0019bb2963f4.html|website=Terre Haute Tribune Star|access-date=2017-12-10|language=en|date=August 16, 2014}} It was in [Wilson County, Tennessee](/source/Wilson_County%2C_Tennessee) that Geers first discovered the passion for horses that would shape his entire life, developing his training and driving abilities from boyhood.{{cite web|title=Sport: Dead|date=|url=https://time.com/archive/6652354/sport-dead/|website=time.com|access-date=April 11, 2026}} ==Career== He took charge of training a string of horses at the age of 20. Geers recorded his first victory at the Wilson County Fair, driving Little Dave across the finish line in 3:04. Four years later, he laid further groundwork for his professional ascent, founding his own stable at the Swell Stock Farm owned by Major Brown in [Spring Hill, Tennessee](/source/Spring_Hill%2C_Tennessee).{{cite web|title=Edward "Pop" Geers|date=December 29, 2023|url=https://wilsoncountyaghalloffame.org/hall-of-fame/edward-pop-geers/|website=wilsoncountyaghalloffame.org|access-date=April 11, 2026}} thumb|left|200px|Geers, {{c.}} 1912 Geers settled in [Nashville, Tennessee](/source/Nashville%2C_Tennessee) in 1873, and it was there that he developed the talents of Brown Hal, giving rise to the renowned Hal family.{{cite newspaper|title=POP' GEERS DIES IN TRACK ACCIDENT.; " Grand Old Man of Trotting Turf" Is Hurled From Sulky When Horse Falls|date=September 4, 1924|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1924/09/04/archives/pop-geers-dies-in-track-accident-grand-old-man-of-trotting-turf-is.html|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=April 11, 2026}} Following the closure of his Nashville training stables, he relocated in 1876 to the early fairgrounds in [Columbia, Tennessee](/source/Columbia%2C_Tennessee).{{cite web|title=Special Program: The Life and Times of Pop Geers|date=November 21, 2024|url=https://www.ohiocountylibrary.org/calendar/special-program-the-life-and-times-of-pop-geers/3757|website=ohiocountylibrary.org|access-date=April 11, 2026}} His introduction to New York racing came in 1877, when he competed at [Fleetwood Park Racetrack](/source/Fleetwood_Park_Racetrack). Among the first to recognize the potential of the bicycle wheel, Geers embraced the innovation early. In 1892, he guided [Nancy Hanks](/source/Nancy_Hanks_(horse)) to a 2:04 mile in a then-revolutionary ball-bearing, pneumatic-tire, featherweight [sulky](/source/sulky) that reshaped the sport of harness racing. On August 18, 1916, Geers drove his first sub-two-minute mile, clocking 1:59 3/4 at [Driving Park](/source/Driving_Park) Racetrack. ==Death== E. F. Geers died on September 3, 1924, in [Wheeling, West Virginia](/source/Wheeling%2C_West_Virginia), United States. The veteran driver passed away from injuries suffered in a racing accident at the West Virginia State Fair. When his mare Miladi Guy fell, he was thrown from his seat, fractured his skull, and died while still unconscious. He was laid to rest in Rose Hill Cemetery.{{cite web|title=Edward Franklin 'Pop' Geers|date=|url=https://www.visitcolumbiatn.com/listing/edward-franklin-pop-geers/725/|website=visitcolumbiatn.com|access-date=April 11, 2026}} ==Legacy== Geers was honored in 1926 with the dedication of a memorial park in Columbia, Tennessee featuring a granite obelisk. Pop Geers Park originated as the first community park developed by the city.{{cite web|title=Sheila Hickman: About Edward Franklin (Pop) Geers, Columbia harness racer|date=June 23, 2022|url=https://www.columbiadailyherald.com/story/opinion/2022/06/23/sheila-hickman-about-edward-franklin-pop-geers-harness-racer/7709129001/|website=columbiadailyherald.com|access-date=April 11, 2026}} His decades of competitive racing translated into nearly $2,000,000 in accumulated prize winnings.{{cite web|title=Sport: Hambletonian|date=|url=https://time.com/archive/6749793/sport-hambletonian/|website=time.com|access-date=April 11, 2026}} He was inducted into the [United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame](/source/Harness_Racing_Museum_%26_Hall_of_Fame) in 1958.{{cite web|title=EDWARD F. GEERS|date=|url=https://harnessmuseum.com/content/edward-f-geers|website=harnessmuseum.com|access-date=April 11, 2026}} In 2009, he was inducted into the Wilson County Agricultural Hall of Fame. ==References== {{reflist}} ==External links== * {{Internet Archive author |sname=Edward Geers}} * {{Find a Grave|31219760}} * [https://www.harnessmuseum.com/content/edward-f-geers Harness Racing Museum, Hall of Fame, Edward F. Geers] {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Geers, Edward F.}} Category:1851 births Category:1924 deaths Category:American harness racers Category:American harness racing drivers Category:American horse trainers Category:American harness racing trainers Category:United States Harness Racing Hall of Fame inductees Category:People from Lebanon, Tennessee Category:Sportspeople from Tennessee Category:19th-century American sportsmen Category:20th-century American sportsmen --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Edward Geers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Geers) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Geers?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.