How Wimbledon got its start
A look back at the early days of one of the world’s most beloved sporting affairs
Wimbledon 1879.
(Hulton Archive/Getty Images)As the club's name suggests, it was the game of croquet that originally drew nearby suburbanites to the lush four-acre meadowland. But in the 1870s, a new sport w
The first Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championship meeting at the Warpole Road ground in July 1877.
(Keystone/Getty Images)Traditionally, different hosts or regions played tennis according to their own game guidelines, but the All England Club established a set of formal rules.As tennis beg
Seven-time men's singles champion William Renshaw (left) plays for his first title in Wimbledon 1881.
(Hulton Archive/Getty Images)Facing pressure from fans and athletes alike, the club introduced the Ladies' Championship in 1884 — though the women could only compete after the men's games had
A late Victorian tennis outfit, featuring a long skirt, lace collar, frilled hat, and a corset underneath.
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British player Dorothea Lambert-Chambers, seven-time ladies' singles champion at Wimbledon, and 1908 Olympic gold medal winner in women's singles tennis, playing at Wimbledon in 1914.
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Spanish star player Lili De Alvarez at Wimbledon in 1926.
(G. Adams/Topical Press Agency/Getty Images)Many trademark tennis moves used by the pros — like the overarm serve and lob shot — weren't invented until the turn of the 20th century. The equip
Fashionable spectators at Wimbledon in 1914.
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A woman sitting in the tea enclosure at the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships in 1914.
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Crowds line up outside the gates of Wimbledon to see the men's singles finals match between Fred Perry and Gottfried Von Cramm in 1936. Britain's Perry defeated the German player.
(Fox Photos/Getty Images)But the classy flare and festivities associated with Wimbledon today had already begun to show themselves by the turn of the century: outdoor tea parties attended by
King George V opens Wimbledon's Jubilee Tennis Championships in June 1926. French star player Suzanne Lenglen kneels before the royal consort Queen Mary.
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British player Fred Perry during his winning David Cup match in 1934.
(H F Davis/Getty Images)In 1967, Wimbledon became the first sporting event to be broadcast in color, bringing the exhilarating matches and roaring crowds to audiences all over Britain.The fol
Althea Gibson, the first black woman to win a Wimbledon championship, in 1957, competes at Wimbledon in 1956.
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American tennis star Billie Jean King during the women's singles championships in 1967.
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Australian player John Newcombe plays against fellow Australian Rod Laver at Wimbledon 1969.
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