strongman cabinet card
Horace “Ironhide” McTavish, born in 1883 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, emerged as one of the earliest American icons of physical culture during the rise of the fitness movement in the early 20th century. A former blacksmith’s apprentice, McTavish forged his powerful physique through years of swinging sledgehammers and hauling scrap iron in the steel mills. He soon captivated crowds at county fairs with dramatic displays of strength, such as bending horseshoes and hoisting barrels overhead. By 1910, he had gained national acclaim as “The Granite Man,” touring vaudeville circuits across the United States and publishing one of the first illustrated strength manuals, "Muscles and Mettle." Rejecting chemical enhancers, McTavish swore by raw eggs, beef broth, and what he called “vigorous introspection” as the cornerstones of physical excellence. Though his popularity declined in the 1920s, his influence endured, and today he is celebrated as a foundational figure in the history of American strongman competitions.
strongman cabinet card
Horace “Ironhide” McTavish, born in 1883 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, emerged as one of the earliest American icons of physical culture during the rise of the fitness movement in the early 20th century. A former blacksmith’s apprentice, McTavish forged his powerful physique through years of swinging sledgehammers and hauling scrap iron in the steel mills. He soon captivated crowds at county fairs with dramatic displays of strength, such as bending horseshoes and hoisting barrels overhead. By 1910, he had gained national acclaim as “The Granite Man,” touring vaudeville circuits across the United States and publishing one of the first illustrated strength manuals, "Muscles and Mettle." Rejecting chemical enhancers, McTavish swore by raw eggs, beef broth, and what he called “vigorous introspection” as the cornerstones of physical excellence. Though his popularity declined in the 1920s, his influence endured, and today he is celebrated as a foundational figure in the history of American strongman competitions.