Help Us Preserve Tarzan Brown's Inspiring Story

ELLISON “TARZAN” BROWN

MEMORIAL FUND

THE MAN WHO GAVE HEARTBREAK HILL ITS NAME

Help us pay tribute to one of America’s greatest Indigenous Marathoners!

His Story: Ellison "Tarzan" Brown was a legendary marathon runner from the Narragansett Tribe of Rhode Island. Here are some highlights of his running history:

Early Life: Born into poverty on September 22, 1913, in Westerly, Rhode Island, Brown was known for his natural athleticism and strength. He earned the nickname "Tarzan" due to his love for climbing trees and swinging from branches.

Boston Marathon: Brown first gained attention in the Boston Marathon in 1935, where he finished thirteenth despite minimal training and wearing old sneakers, he ran the last 7 miles barefoot. He went on to win the Boston Marathon in 1936 and 1939.

Records: He set the American men's marathon record at the 1939 Boston Marathon with a time of 2:28:51 and broke his own record at the 1940 Salisbury Beach Marathon with a time of 2:27:30.

Olympics: Brown competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin qualified for 1940 Olympics, which were canceled due to World War II.

Legacy: Brown is one of only two Indigenous North Americans to have won the Boston Marathon and the only one to win it more than once. He was inducted into the American Indian Athletic Hall of Fame in 1972. We aim to ensure his legacy will live forever by creating this bronze statue as a testament to his distance running prowess, and his heritage.

Why Now: Ellison “Tarzan” Brown was the best Indigenous long-distance runner in history, and one of the best in the world. He was never able to earn a living through his athletic prowess. He was never acknowledged rightfully for the athlete he was during his running career. We want to change that!

Our Goal: Raise $50,000 in funds to enable the creation of a bronze statue depicting Tarzan’s victory at the 1939 Boston Marathon, thus far we have raised 40% of our goal through local action. The statue is anticipated to be placed in the “New” Tomaquag Museum which will be built at the University of Rhode Island. We are coordinating our efforts with the museum, and our efforts have been approved by his grandchildren.

Who we are: Our Steering Committee members are Byron Brown, Chief Sachem of the Wiquapaug Eastern Pequot Indian Tribe, Summer Gonsalves a Brown family member, Larry Hirsch, Jim Hirst, Joe Pellegrino, Nick Bottone and C. P. A. Steve Greene.

Our Progress: We have established a subsidiary bank account to receive funds, we have received an estimate and have authorized the creation of the mold to be used for the statue. Our contributions to date are already greater than 40% of our goal. We are timing this to coincide with this year’s Boston, Marathon on April 21, 2025, we are reaching out to all runners and their family members, as well as all Native Americans to help us finally provide a fitting tribute to this world-class runner, family man and artisan as a stone mason.

More historical information can be found at our website celebrating "Tarzan's" running career at tarzanbrownmemorialfund.org.

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