1950, August - Struble makes first Lake George attempt
“Natator Quits In 18th Hour” (Oregonian, Portland, OR)
1958, August
“Diane Struble Is First to Conquer Length of Lake George” (Post-Star, Glen Falls, NY)
“The Winner” (Post-Star editorial)
“Hundreds Flock to Airport in Impromptu Welcome for Diane Struble” (Post-Star)
“Honor Dianne Struble, Daughters, Managers” (Post-Star)
“Distance Lends Allure To Mom’s Swim Goal” (New York Herald Tribune)
Later articles about Struble and Lake George
“When Diane Struble swam Lake George” (by Cathy DeDe, Glen Falls Chronicle, 6 Aug 2015)
Note: Sometimes the above link redirects to an ad page. If that happens, see this archived version.
“A Swim Through Nostalgia” (by Amanda May Metzger, The Post Star, 19 Aug 2015)
“Blonde Ambition: Lake George posed a challenge that Diane Struble was keen to best.” (by Elaine K. Howley, Outdoor Swimmer, Aug 2018)
Video
1959, July
“Diane Struble to Start Her Swim at 7 Tonight” (Post-Star)
“Diane Waves Farewell” (Post-Star)
“Swimmer Diane Struble, 26, Conquers Lake Champlain” (Burlington Free Press, Burlington, VT)
1959, August
Training Troubles
“Lady’s Not For Drowning” (Daily News, New York)
“Trains for Swim Around Island, Police Called Out” (New York Herald Tribune)
“Turn Champ’s Swim to Dry Run” (Daily News, New York)
Pre-swim
Note: The following three articles indicate that Diane Struble thought she would be the first woman to swim around Manhattan. Harold Schoemmell, Lottie Schoemmell’s son, met Struble at the end of her swim and showed her a clipping about his mother’s swim. Struble never again claimed to be first.
“Blonde Aquatic Champion To Seek Record Tonight” (Bergen Evening Record, Bergen, NJ)
“Blonde Dianne Strubel, 27, points toward record swim” (Philadelphia Inquirer)
“Diane Strubel Starts Swim Around Manhattan Saturday” (Burlington Free Press, Burlington, VT)
Mid-swim
“Lake George Mother Swimming Manhattan” (Binghamton Press, Binghamton, NY)
“Manhattan Mermaid” (Plainfield Courier News, Bridgewater, NJ
“Mrs. Struble Begins Long N.Y. Swim” (Times Record, Troy, NY)
Done!
“Diane Completes Manhattan Swim” (Post-Star, Glen Falls, NY)
“Diane Struble Swims Around Manhattan” (Philadelphia Inquirer) / copy with arrow to Schoemmell
“Diane Swims Around Manhattan” (Sunday Press, Binghamton, NY)
“Diane Swims Circle Around Manhattan & Hates to Stop” / continued
“Manly Waters of Manhattan Fall for a Blonde in Blue” (Sunday Home News, New Brunswick, NJ)
“Mom Swims Around Manhattan” (Daily News, New York)
“Mother Of 3 Swims Around Manhattan Isle” (Arizona Republic, Phoenix, AZ)
“Mother of 3 Swims Around Manhattan” (Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, Rochester, N.Y.)
“She Swims Around Manhattan” (New York Herald Tribune)
“Swimmer Circles Island In 11 Hrs.” (New York Times)
“Swimming Mother Greets Daughters” (Statesman, Salem, OR)
Editorial
“Around Manhattan the Easy Way” (New York Herald Tribune)
Video
“Mother Swims Around Manhattan”
Television show from 4 November 1959. Struble’s secret is that she swam around Manhattan Island. Below: Detail from Diana Nyad’s 1978 memoir, Other Shores.
1959, September - Boston Harbor
“Plans Nantasket To Revere Swim” (Boston American)
“Diane in Non-Stop Hull-Revere Swim” (Boston Advertiser)
“Diane Struble Only Hungry After 20-Mile Hub Swim” (Springfield Republican, Springfield, MA)
1963, August - 60-mile Jim Moran Lake Michigan Swim Challenge race
Pre-race
“Mother of 5 Sings and Swims” (Chicago Daily News)
“20 Swimmers Set For Lake Challenge” (Herald-Press, St. Joseph, MI)
Abdel-Latif Abo-Heif wins
“‘Swimming Machine’ Wins Title, $15,000”/extra images (Herald-Press, St. Joseph, MI)
2006 - Where is she today?
Images from Times-Union slideshow, “Lake George through the years”:
74 of 99: “Swimmer Diane Struble, mother of 3, is ready to swim 32 miles from Ticonderoga to Lake George Village on Aug. 22, 1958.”
76 of 99: “Diane Struble pauses with the Warren County Sheriff's Department patrol boat crew before starting on her attempt to swim from Ticonderoga to Lake George Village, 32 miles away on Aug. 22, 1958.”
77 of 99: “Swimmer Diane Struble, mother of 3, is ready to swim from Ticonderoga to Lake George Village on Aug. 22, 1958.”
79 of 99: “Swimmer Diane Struble takes grapes from Kip Navaretta after about the first hour in Lake George. Aug. 22, 1958.”
80 of 99: “File photo by Richard K. Dean—Diane Struble swimming. While some 200 boats followed swimmer Diane Struble on her 35 hour journey from Ticonderoga to Lake George (Aug. 22-23, 1958), some 10,000 people lined the shores of the lake to cheer her on. Warren County Sheriff Carl K. McCoy said that was ‘the largest crowd we ever had in the village.’”
On Today Show with Betsy Palmer, c. 1958.
At Animal Land c. 1950s or ’60s.
