The idea of traveling around the world in a pre-determined amount of time had first taken form in the mind of French author Jules Verne. In 1872 his adventure novel, Around the World in 80 Days, was first published. From its debut, the book and its English hero, Phileas Fogg, were immensely popular throughout the world, and the book was reprinted many times during the following years.
Despite the book’s popularity with the public, no one had attempted to duplicate or better Fogg’s fictional record. To many people, believing that the world could actually be traveled in eighty days or less was simply nonsense. Then, in 1889, two journalists, Joseph Pulitzer of the New York World, and John Brisben Walker, owner of Cosmopolitan magazine, set out to prove the Poo-Bahs wrong.
Nellie Bly and the Race around the World
Joseph Pulitzer had made the World one of America’s leading newspapers by combining moral crusading with sensationalism which often resulted in reporters using deceit, disguise or a public stunt to gain a story. When his paper’s circulation started to drop in the late 1880s, the publisher and his editors brainstormed for a way to increase it. Their final idea: Send a reporter, 25 year old Nellie Bly, around the world in a race against time.
Born Elizabeth Jane Cochrane, Bly had become a New York icon with her earlier exposes of mental institutions, sweatshops, and the illegal trafficking of newborn babies. She was eager to accept the assignment and on November 14, 1889, departed from New York bound for England. From there, she would travel to France (visiting briefly with Jules Verne), Italy, central and southeast Asia, China and Japan and then sail eastward to San Francisco where a train ride would complete the final leg to New York.
Elizabeth Bisland Becomes a Second Entry in the Race
Upon hearing of the World’s decision, Cosmopolitan's John Brisben Walker decided that he would make it a two-woman race. The morning after Bly left New York, twenty-eight old Elizabeth Bisland, Cosmopolitan’s literary editor, left the city by train, hoping to reach San Francisco in less than five days. Bisland would follow Bly’s route, but in the opposite direction.
Bly and Bisland had little in common besides age and gender. Nellie, a rural Pennsylvanian by birth, had little education or formal training. Elizabeth was a Southern belle, well bred and with a love for art, music, and the literary classics. Bly, the investigative reporter, wrote with an intense realism; Bisland was a romantic and filled her writings with aesthetic appreciation. Bly carried all her essentials in a Gladstone bag; Bisland packed a large steamer trunk. Finally, Nellie approached the trip with unbridled enthusiasm while Elizabeth was reluctant about the whole idea.
The Great Race
During the race, Nellie and Elizabeth sent cables home to keep their readers up to date. Unlike Phileas Fogg, they had few thrills and adventures to report. Both trips were actually prosaic and neither ran into any problems which were not common to other travelers of that day (and today) --- storms, nearly missed connections, and unexpected delays. However, this did not keep the World from teasing readers of the thrills that “always” lay just ahead.
Although death defying experiences were lacking and the two travelers spent most of their days idling away time with fellow travelers and sightseeing, their communiqués helped to open the world to many readers. Bisland’s correspondence, as would be expected, was filled with descriptions of the beauty of the cultures and geography that she saw around her (she especially loved Japan); Bly’s messages, as also would be expected, concentrated more on the lives of the everyday people she came across.
The two women unknowingly crossed paths somewhere in the South China Sea around December 15th with Bly reaching San Francisco on January 20, 1890. After traveling by special train for four and a half days, she arrived in New York, greeted by a large crowd. She had made the journey in 72 days. Four days after that, Bisland landed in the port city, welcomed by only a few co-workers and friends.
Although both women accomplished the goal, Elizabeth received little recognition and soon disappeared into obscurity, while Nellie received a place in history as the person who broke Phileas Fogg’s record.
For a race of another sort, read here.
Sources/Suggested Readings:
Kroeger, Brooke. Nellie Bly: Daredevil, Reporter, Feminist. NY: New York Times Books, 1994.
Marks, Jason. Around the World in 72 Days: the Race between Pulitzer’s Nellie Bly and Cosmopolitan’s Elizabeth Bisland. New York: Gemmittarius Press, 1993.
John K. Davis - John is a retired teacher/librarian and has also been doing freelance writing since the late 1970s. Over this period of time, he has had ...
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