Running History  ›  Ronald McDonald

The Second Running of the Boston Marathon

The following is an account of the 1898 Boston Marathon which appeared in the May 1, 1898 edition of the Boston Sunday Journal.
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A MARATHON RUN.

McDonald Lowers the Record and Runs to Boston in 2 Hours and 42 Minutes.
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The Marathon run held by the Boston Athletic Association on Patriots’ Day (April 19) was successful beyond the strongest hopes of the management. The record of 2h. 55m. and 10s., made last year was beaten by four of the runners. This old record was 10s. faster than that made by Loues at the Olympic Championship Marathon run. The names of the four men breaking the record are Ronald J. McDonald, Cambridgeport Gymnasium Association; Hamilton Gray, St. George’s A. C. of New York; R. E. McLennan, East Boston A. A.; and John J. McDermott of the Pastime A. C. of New York.

Ronald J. McDonald finished first and established the new mark for the distance at 2h. and 42 m. McDonald was born in Antigonish, N. S., June 13, ‘76, and is 22 years old. He is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs about 142 pounds. He has been ruinning about three years, and has won several prizes. He took up cross-country at the beginning of the winter, and has competed in all the B. A. A. cross-country runs and won a prize in all of them. He was one of the members of the club’s team which competed at the national cross-country championships, and finished 12th.