Title

Legendary Ladies of Lincoln: Althea Gibson

Authors

Mark Schleer, Lincoln University, Jefferson City MissouriFollow
Ithaca Bryant, Lincoln University, Jefferson City MissouriFollow

Files

Description

One quote from Venus Williams sums up what Ms. Gibson did for this world, “For players like myself and a lot of other African American players on the tour, Althea Gibson paved the way for us”. Althea Gibson was born in Silver, South Carolina on August 25, 1927. She grew up in a poor family in Harlem but mastered tennis at an early age. She enrolled in Florida A&M and, after graduation in 1953, worked at Lincoln University as a Physical Education instructor.Ms. Gibson was the first African American woman to win the Wimbledon and U.S. Championships in 1957, and the French Open and three double titles at Wimbledon in 1958. After retiring, she toured with the Harlem Globetrotters. Althea Gibson passed away at the age of 76 in 2003.

Publication Date

2-1-2019

Publisher

Lincoln University Archives

City

Jefferson City, MO

Keywords

Lincoln University of Missouri alumni, Lincoln University women

Disciplines

Archival Science

Recommended Citation

Schleer, Mark and Bryant, Ithaca, "Legendary Ladies of Lincoln: Althea Gibson" (2019). Legendary Ladies of Lincoln. 27.
https://bluetigercommons.lincolnu.edu/lll/27