Good Morning POU! We continue with out historical timeline of African Americans and tennis history.
1920
The first private grounds for a black tennis club in the United States are built by “Mother” Mary Ann Seames and her husband, who purchased property on the South Side of Chicago to build the four tennis courts.
1921
Dwight Davis, the donor of the Davis Cup, serves as an umpire at ATA national semifinals.
The first black-owned-and-operated country club in the United States is founded by the Progressive Realty Group, a group of African-American businessmen who purchased and opened the Shady Rest Golf and Tennis Club in Scotch Plains, New Jersey.
1922
The Springfield (Massachusetts) Tennis Club and New Jersey Tennis Association are created.
1925
New England Tennis Association and St. Louis Tennis Association are formed.
Reginald Weir and Gerald Norman Jr.
1929
Reginald Weir and Gerald Norman Jr. are denied entry into the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) Junior Indoor Championship because of their race, even after paying the entry fee. Support from the NAACP resulted in a formal grievance after Norman’s father filed a complaint.
University of Illinois tennis player Douglas Turner is the runner-up in the Big Ten championships.
1930
The Colored Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) and the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) receive the Williams Trophy after it was donated by members of the Grand Central Station staff.
Jimmie McDaniels returns a shot during the New York State Negro Tennis Championships in 1940 GETTY IMAGES
1941
On the anniversary of the ATA’s Silver Jubilee, USLTA president Holcombe Ward extends his warmest regards to the organization … without allowing a single person of color to participate in his league. In the letter, he states, “I extend most cordial greetings and sincere wishes for the success of the American Tennis Association in its further development, work and efforts to maintain the high standards of the game of tennis wherever played.”
1950
Althea Gibson becomes the first African-American to participate in the U.S. Nationals. In the first round, she defeats Barbara Knapp, but would then fall to Louise Brough in the second round, 1-6, 6-3, 7-9. Before a thunderstorm descended on the court, Gibson was actually beating Brough. When the players came back the next day, Gibson lost three straight games and the match.
1951
Victor Miller and Roosevelt Megginson become the first African-Americans to play in the USLTA Interscholastic Championships.
1953
Two years after Miller and Megginson, Lorraine Williams wins the USLTA National Girls’ 15 Singles, becoming the first African-American to win a USLTA national championship.