Note to Tamara: I'm sure since this was asked 6 months ago, that your floor is done. But I'm only answering you, so others may read this even though it can't benefit you now.

You need to hunt for a wood with what is called the highest "Janka Scale" rating. The top two are African Pearwood (2990 psi) to the top of the chart, Brazilian Walnut rated at 3680 psi. (You can search 'Janka scale' on the Web to find many sites that list ratings for every type of wood flooring.) Along with that, you have to make a choice in manufacturer and whether it's pre-finished floor or not. On top of that, if you choose a pre-finished solid wood product, you want to know how many layers of aluminum oxide are used in the finish. This determines the "Wear-ability" of your new floor along with the hardness of the wood.

BTW.... Hickory has a higher Janka Rating than many common woods. But perhaps it was poorly finished or maybe the fact that hand scraping actually weakens the structure of the wood in the wrong places un-naturally and unevenly. In order to make it look like it's withstood ages of abuse it's also treated and it's just a short cut method to a used looking floor. But you really need to rely more on how thick and wear resistant the finish is, as much as the type of wood. Gets worn? Refinish sooner before you have to sand it!

Hand scraped floors with their uneven surface have a tendency to wear at a greater rate than a flat even floor. Where wearing process is more evenly distributed naturally. So if you need to re-sand instead of just re-finish, you won't be doing it as often on solid flat wood, if at all. Finish is more important in your case then. Preferably with as many layers of aluminum oxide as you can buy.

Check out this Advantage floor with Brazilian Walnut (Ipe Wood):
http://www.advantagelumber.com/ipe_flooring4.htm

Also remember how important sub flooring is in putting down hardwoods. If the home is in Florida, then this is even more important because of the near constant moisture. The flooring I linked to above is "pre-finished clear" (not select or 2nd grade) and it has 7 layers of "Aluminum Oxide" for fantastic scratch resistance! ........stick with Solid Wood or if you're in Florida, go for proper sealing, sub floor preparation with a good quality Engineered Wood Floor with best/most layers of finish you can get!

Nice read on wear of Ipe wood and this company's statement of it's use with kids:
http://www.advantagelumber.com/ipe_decking_blog/the-benefits-of-ipe-brazilian-walnut-flooring