Letters: At the Birth of Basketball, by Fredrick C. Abbott, 1948
Description:
A letter to the editor that appeared in the December 26th 1948 edition of the Springfield Union. The letter was written by Fredrick C. Abbott, Class of 1983, who claims to have been present when Dr. Naismith first explained the rules and intentions for the game of basketball. Abbot explains he was playing in the gymnasium when Dr. Naismith called over the men in the room and first introduced the rules of the game. Though a student at the time, Abbott is not listed as one of the 18 students to first play the game.
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James A. Naismith (November 6, 1861 – November 28, 1939), known as "The Father of Basketball," was born in Almonte, Ontario. When he was nine, both of his parents died of typhoid fever and he was raised by his uncle, who later financed Naismith's way through college. He earned his theological degree from McGill University and graduated from Springfield College, then the YMCA Training School, in 1891. After graduation, he was hired as a faculty member, where he taught for five years. It is in his first year as a faculty member at Springfield College that he created the game of Basketball as an activity for an unruly class. In 1895, Naismith enrolled at the Gross Medical School in Denver and received his M.D. in 1898. In that same year, Naismith took the position of department head of physical education at the University of Kansas, where he remained until his death.
Is part of a scrapbook of Naismith materials, collector unknown, that has been taken out of its binding and the pages separated by archival paper. It is the 22nd item in the scrapbook.
