The Grandfather of Black Basketball

Edwin Bancroft Henderson

doi:10.5771/9781538163627

The Grandfather of Black Basketball

The Life and Times of Dr. E. B. Henderson

1. Edition 2024

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doi.org/10.5771/9781538163627
ISBN print: 978-1-5381-6361-0
ISBN online: 978-1-5381-6362-7
Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham

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Abstract

The first contemporary biography of the man credited with introducing basketball to African Americans on a wide-scale, organized basis.

Dr. Edwin Bancroft Henderson was the son of working-class parents born in slavery. A driven, intelligent, and charismatic young man, Henderson attended Harvard University’s Dudley Sargent School of Physical Training. There he met the leaders in the new field of physical education and recognized athletics—and basketball, especially—as a public health initiative and a way that young Blacks could gain college scholarships and debunk the idea of racial inferiority.

In The Grandfather of Black Basketball: The Life and Times of Dr. E. B. Henderson, Edwin Bancroft Henderson II—Dr. Henderson’s grandson—provides unprecedented detail and fascinating insight into this influential figure in Black history. Henderson organized the first athletic league for Blacks, introduced basketball to Black people on a wide-scale, organized basis, and founded associations to train and organize Black officials and referees. He also wrote and co-edited the first Spalding publication that highlighted the exploits of African American participation in sports and authored The Negro in Sports. Outside of athletics, Henderson was instrumental in founding the first rural branch of the NAACP, advocated for school desegregation, and held executive board positions with multiple NAACP branches.

Overlooked for decades, Henderson was finally enshrined in the National Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013 as a contributor. The Grandfather of Black Basketball gives long-overdue recognition to a sports pioneer, civil rights activist, author, educator, and pragmatic humanitarian who fought his entire life to improve opportunities for youth through athletics.

Schlagworte

African American athletes African American biography Basketball Black athletes Black sports history DC history E. B. Henderson Father of Black Basketball Interstate Scholastic Athletic Association Jim Crow NAACP National Basketball Hall of Fame National Negro Press Association US sports history Virginia history W. E. B. DuBois Washington, DC history civil rights biography early civil rights history physical education racial issues sports history the Great Migration the Talented Tenth

Chapter Expand | CollapsePage
i–xxvi Preface i–xxvi
- Contents
- Illustrations
- Acknowledgments
- Foreword
- Introduction
1–6 Sunrise 1–6
7–18 The “Black Mecca” 7–18
19–24 Pittsburgh 19–24
25–30 Back Home to Washington 25–30
31–38 M Street High School 31–38
39–46 Miner Teacher’s College, Normal School No. 2 39–46
47–54 Ned and Nell’s Courtship 47–54
55–62 Harvard University’s Dudley Sargent School of Physical Training 55–62
63–74 Building the Infrastructure 63–74
75–82 Building the Framework for Organized Athletics 75–82
83–88 Eastern Board of Officials (EBO) 83–88
89–94 Basketball Games Begin in Washington (1907) 89–94
95–104 Bringing Home the Title 95–104
105–114 E. B. Henderson’s Early Published Works 105–114
115–122 The Hendersons Move to Falls Church, Virginia 115–122
123–148 Protest in Virginia 123–148
149–164 Protest in the Nation’s Capital 149–164
165–180 The Rise of Professional Sports in Washington, DC 165–180
181–192 Articles, Letters, and The Negro in Sports 181–192
193–202 Highland Beach, Maryland 193–202
203–220 Sunset 203–220
221–226 Epilogue 221–226
227–244 Notes 227–244
245–254 References 245–254
255–272 Index 255–272
273–274 About the Author 273–274

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