"More than half a century after the death of sports star Jim Thorpe, his surviving children and a small town in northeastern Pennsylvania are locked in a battle over the Native American athlete's remains.
The two-time Olympic gold medalist, member of the NFL Hall of Fame and former major league baseball player was buried in the town of Jim Thorpe, Pa., after he died of a heart attack in 1953.
Now, Thorpe's surviving children and his tribe, the Sac and Fox Nation, are suing the town to bring his body back to his home state of Oklahoma. But town officials want his remains to stay put.
Thorpe's body was laid to rest in the town in 1957, but his legacy still lives on in Jim Thorpe, Pa.
"This guy has a whole town named after him," explains Jack Kmetz, president of the Jim Thorpe Area Sports Hall of Fame and lifelong resident of Jim Thorpe, Pa. "He has a bank named after him. He has a post office. He has his own zip code.""
Get the Story:
A Fight For Jim Thorpe's Body
(NPR 8/3)
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