These professional walkers traversed hundreds of miles, around tracks and across state lines, to compete in one of the nation’s first spectator sports. Though the craze was short-lived, it left behind ...

The term "pedestrianism" may have Latin roots, but in the 1800s its first association would have been a sporting ...

“Watching people walk was America’s favorite spectator sport,” Matthew Algeo, author of the book “Pedestrianism” that traces the sport’s roots, told NPR in 2014. “In the decades ...