Beginning August 30, New York City will once again host the annual US Open Tennis Tournament in Flushing Meadow Park, Queens. Players from around the world will compete in the stadium named in honor of tennis legend, Arthur Ashe, which is located within the National Tennis Center, named for another tennis great, Billie Jean King. And perhaps some of the many thousands of spectators at the Open will notice a tribute to one more tennis champion—Althea Gibson, the first African-American to win a major world tennis title.
Situated on the southeast side of the stadium and unveiled on August 26, 2019, the granite sculpture of Althea Gibson, by artist Eric Goulder, commemorates her remarkable life and achievement. United States Tennis Association Photograph, 2019.
The sculpture is not the first manifestation of New York City’s recognition of the tennis star. On July 11, 1957, New Yorkers gave Althea Gibson a ticker-tape parade, the ultimate symbol of a job well-done, for her victory that summer at Wimbledon. Considered the most prestigious of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, Gibson’s win at Wimbledon made her an international star. And once again, records in the Municipal Archives, in this instance the subject files of Mayor Wagner and his Public Events office, add color to the story.
New York City has a long tradition of celebrating the successes of American athletes. In 1924, the City welcomed home the U.S. Olympic team from the Paris games with a ticker-tape parade. In 1926, and again in 1930, the City feted golf champion Bobby Jones with parades. The city congratulated members of the U.S. Olympic team, including Jesse Owens, with a ticker-tape parade on their return from the 1936 games in Berlin. And in 1952, the city gave the U.S. Olympic team a rousing parade to send them off to the games in Helsinki.
L. to R. Mr. Daniel Gibson, Althea Gibson, Mayor Robert F. Wagner, June 11, 1956. Mayor’s Official Photograph Collection. NYC Municipal Archives.
Gibson overcame obstacles far greater than the 100-degree heat at Wimbledon in the summer of 1957. For years, she battled racial discrimination in the world of professional tennis before becoming the first African-American female athlete to enjoy international fame. Born on August 25, 1927, in Silver, South Carolina, she moved to New York City with her family while still an infant. In a fortunate circumstance, the family settled on West 143rd Street in Harlem, a designated “play street” where the Police Athletic League set up a paddle tennis court right in front of the Gibsons’ front stoop. Recognized at an early age for her talent, Gibson was mentored by prominent Harlem businessmen.
In 1942, she won her first tournament, the New York State girls’ championship sponsored by the American Tennis Association. Organized in 1916 by black players, the ATA was as an alternative to the whites-only United States Lawn Tennis Association. Gibson continued playing on the black tennis circuit until 1950 when she became the first black player to compete in the national tennis championship at the West Side Tennis Club in Forest Hills, Queens. A year after her debut in Forest Hills, Gibson became the first black athlete to compete at Wimbledon. She won the French Championship in 1956.
Mayor Robert F. Wagner greets Women’s Tennis Champion, Althea Gibson, City Hall, July 11, 1957. Mayor’s Official Photograph Collection (image scanned from microfilm). NYC Municipal Archives.
After her win at Wimbledon in July 1957, Gibson received her trophy from Queen Elizabeth II and danced with Prince Philip at the Wimbledon Ball before returning home to the ticker-tape reception. The frontpage story in the New York Herald Tribune said that more than 100,000 spectators turned out to greet Gibson as she rode in the city’s special Chrysler parade limousine from the Battery to City Hall. Commenting on the crowds, it was “one of the most enthusiastic in recent years,” according to the Tribune.
City to Honor Althea Gibson, Press Announcement, July 1957. Mayor Robert F. Wagner Collection. NYC Municipal Archives.
Althea Gibson Reception, Waldorf Astoria Hotel, Luncheon Menu, July 1957. Mayor Robert F. Wagner Collection. NYC Municipal Archives.
Following the City Hall reception, the motorcade brought Gibson and her family to the Waldorf Astoria where Mayor Wagner hosted a luncheon that featured “Roast Salt Meadow Lamb” and “Pineapple Dessert Surprise.”
Gibson repeated her Wimbledon triumph again in 1958, but soon after she retired from tennis. She simply could not make enough money playing tennis. Gibson embarked on a brief singing career and appeared in a movie. In 1963, she returned to sports world and qualified for the Ladies Professional Golf Association Tour, the first black woman to do so. But like the world of professional tennis, she faced continuing discrimination from the largely white golf establishment. Tournaments often were played at country clubs that wouldn’t let her in the locker room even to change her shoes.
Althea Gibson eventually settled in East Orange, New Jersey and held several sports-related posts in the New Jersey State government. In the 1970s and 80s she served as a tennis coach and a mentor to athletes, especially young black women.
Gibson’s health failed in her later years. She suffered a stroke in 1995 and died on September 28, 2003, at the age of 76.
Althea Gibson to Mayor Robert F/ Wagner, Letter of thanks, July 1957. Mayor Robert F. Wagner Collection. NYC Municipal Archives
The sculpture of Althea Gibson in the National Tennis Center is not the only tribute to the champion athlete in New York City. On July 1, 1981, Edward Koch officially opened the Althea Gibson public tennis facility at 1700 Fulton Street, in Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant. At the ceremony, Koch said, “Althea Gibson grew up in New York City and became a world class tennis player. Perhaps some day soon we’ll be seeing other champions starting on their way to the top from right here in Bedford-Stuyvesant. The talent is there, and now we have a place to develop that talent.”
Althea Gibson sent a letter of thanks to Mayor Wagner shortly after her ticker-tape parade and luncheon ceremony in July 1957. In the letter, Gibson wrote, “I shall remember always the honor and thrill I received in the ‘Ticker Tape Parade’ and the hearty welcome given me by you at City Hall.” With the park in Bedford Stuyvesant, and the sculpture in the stadium, New Yorkers can say they will remember always a remarkable woman and athlete.