American Lawn Tennis Magazine
Learn about this long-running magazine devoted to the sport of tennis in the first half of the 20th century.
American Lawn Tennis, Vol. 1, No. 1, Pages 1-32International Tennis Hall of Fame
Early tennis magazines in the United States
Prior to American Lawn Tennis first hitting the printing press in 1907, other magazines had covered the sport.
With such titles as Archery and Tennis News (1882-83), Lawn Tennis (1889), Outing Weekly Tennis Record (1890-91), Official Lawn Tennis Bulletin (1893-97), or Golf and Lawn Tennis (1900-01), no magazine had the staying power of American Lawn Tennis, which ran from 1907-1951.
“Believing that performance speaks much more convincingly than words, American Lawn Tennis submits this, its initial number, to the tennis players of the country, not as a model issue or a complete fulfillment of its promise to produce a journal that will fittingly represent the sport, but as an earnest of its intentions and purposes.” - Stephen Wallis Merrihew
Brainchild of Stephen Wallis Merrihew
Tennis' popularity was growing exponentially in the United States, and the American public was clamoring for a new magazine that would bring the sport to their fingertips.
Brainchild of Stephen Wallis Merrihew
Merrihew had ambitious plans for a superior publication to those prior. This new magazine would include tennis news from around the country (and overseas), tournament results, commentary on issues facing the sport, player interviews and insight, and importantly, photographs.
"To all, American Lawn Tennis extends most sincere thanks. No effort will be spared to deserve the confidence so freely expressed and to give tennis players the very best paper that time and money can produce. To do this, aid, prompt and unstinted, must come from the players. News of the clubs and individual players is wanted, together with pictures. No section will be neglected." - Stephen Wallis Merrihew
It was the planned addition of photographs, along with reports from players, readers, clubs and officials, along with Merrihew's intense dedication to covering the sport that got the magazine off the ground and established as the preeminent tennis journal in the country.
It began with 32 pages
The first issue was published on April 15, 1907. With fifteen issues a year, Merrihew's magazine primarily focused on tennis (and occasionally other racquet sports) in the United States but also reported on international events, evidenced by readership in 72 countries.
An important resource for researchers
As the magazine covered tennis news and first-hand accounts from across the United States and the globe for 44 and a half years, the history contained in its pages is a critical resource for those researching the sport.
Collage of American Lawn Tennis magazine covers (2024) by International Tennis Hall of Fame MuseumInternational Tennis Hall of Fame
Dedicated to the diversity of the players
Merrihew, as publisher, supported racial diversity, the concept of open tennis (where amateurs and professionals competed together), the development of junior tennis, collegiate tennis, major events, club events, women's tennis – anything to do with the sport and its players.
The International Tennis Hall of Fame would like to acknowledge the dedicated and thorough research completed by Richard Hillway and Geoff Felder in their article "Stephen Wallis Merrihew & American Lawn Tennis" published in the Autumn 2013 issue of the Journal of the Tennis Collectors of America that aided us in developing this story.
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