The Grandfather of Black Basketball: The Life and Times of Dr. E. B. Henderson($22.95Value)

Description

The first contemporary biography of the man credited with introducing basketball to African American athletes 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 Black athletes 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 Black athletes, 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. “ The Grandfather of Black Basketball illuminates a time of significant advancement for Washington's Black population in the first half of the 20th century.” ―Washington History Magazine “ The Grandfather of Black Basketball is a very detailed, impassioned, and compelling biography that is essential reading for anyone interested in Edwin Bancroft Henderson and the larger civil rights struggle and role of sport during the first half of the twentieth century and beyond. Tracing his earliest days in Washington, DC, through his last years in Tuskegee, Alabama, the book makes clear Henderson's extraordinary versatility, influence, and commitment to social justice as a physical educator, administrator, community activist, and chronicler of African American athletes.” ―David K. Wiggins, George Mason University “[Dr. E. B. Henderson] was a one-man band. Not just in terms of playing, coaching, and fundraising for basketball. This is the guy who gave Black basketball structure. Not just in the literal sense, but also in a historical context. He really chronicled the origins of Black basketball. (From the 2014 GVI production of E. B. Henderson's induction into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame)” ―David Aldridge, senior columnist, The Athletic “Informatively enhanced for the reader's benefit with the inclusion of B/W historical photos, eighteen pages of Notes, a ten page listing of References, and an eighteen page Index, The Grandfather of Black Basketball: The Life and Times of Dr. E. B. Henderson is a welcome and unreservedly recommended addition for personal, community, and college/university library African American & Sports/Basketball history and biography collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists.” ―Midwest Book Review “This is more than a story about hoops. While E. B. Henderson made important contributions in that realm, he also was an avid proponent of equal rights for African Americans beyond the basketball court. The Hendersons' determination to generate change was a testimony to their strong will and dedication to protecting the rights of African Americans. The Grandfather of Black Basketball is a reminder of the many fronts on which African Americans have to function. Henderson understood focusing only on basketball was not enough. The challenges facing African Americans had to be confronted and resisted. His story is an important one historically and for the present day.” ―Dr. Spencer Crew, Robinson Professor of History at George Mason University Edwin Bancroft Henderson II is the founding president and director of the Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation, whose mission it is to research, preserve and celebrate the African American and civil rights history of Falls Church, Fairfax County, and Northern Virginia. He received the NAACP’s African American History Preservation Award and was named a National Trust for Historic Preservation Diversity Scholar. He is a Life Member of the NAACP and a member of the Historical Society of Washington. He has served on the Falls Church Historical Commission since 1995. Henderson was an educator for 25 years and is the namesake of Dr. E. B. Henderson.