July 5, 1957: Althea Gibson wins the ladies' singles title at Wimbledon, defeating fellow American Darlene Hard, 6-3 and 6-2. This made her the 1st black person to win Wimbledon.
Gibson had already become the 1st African-American to win a "major" or "Grand Slam" tennis event, the 1956 French Open. But Wimbledon was the tennis tournament. So it made the achievement considerably more hyped than her win at Roland Garros the year before.
She would go on to win the U.S. Open that year as well. The following year, she won both tournaments again.
It would take until 1968 for a black man to win the U.S. Open, and 1975 for one to win Wimbledon. In both cases, it was Arthur Ashe. It would take until 1971 for another black woman to win Wimbledon, the Aboriginal Australian Evonne Goolagong. It would take until 1999 for another black woman to win the U.S. Open, Serena Williams; and 2000 for another African-American woman to win Wimbledon, Venus Williams.
Born in South Carolina and raised in Harlem, she became one of the earliest black women to win LPGA tournaments. She was elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1971. She lived out her life in East Orange, New Jersey, and worked with the Essex County Parks Department. By the late 1980s, her health turned bad, and she was unable to appear in public. When the Williams sisters began winning major tournaments, she wrote them an open letter, thanking them for picking up the torch.
Gibson died on September 28, 2003, at the age of 76. Because of her work with the Parks Department, a statue of her was placed in Branch Brook Park in Newark.
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July 5, 1957 was a Friday. These baseball games were played that day:
* The New York Yankees beat the Washington Senators, 5-3 at Griffith Stadium in Washington. Singles by Bill "Moose" Skowron and Yogi Berra in the top of the 10th inning made a winning pitcher of Art Ditmar, in relief of Tom Sturdivant. Mickey Mantle went 1-for-3 with 2 walks and an RBI.
* The New York Giants beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 11-6 at the Polo Grounds. Johnny Antonelli was the winning pitcher. Willie Mays pinch-hit, and drew a walk. The Giants got home runs by 2 old heroes, Dusty Rhodes and the recently reacquired Bobby Thomson; and by Gail Harris and Eddie Bressoud.
* The Brooklyn Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 6-5 at Ebbets Field. Roy Campanella hit a 3-run homer off Robin Roberts in the 8th inning to give Dem Bums a come-from-behind win.
* The Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles, 7-5 at Fenway Park in Boston. Ted Williams went 1-for-4 with an RBI. For the Orioles, Gus Triandos hit 2 home runs. Brooks Robinson did not play.
* The Detroit Tigers beat the Kansas City Athletics, 8-4 at Briggs Stadium (later Tiger Stadium) in Detroit. Al Kaline went 1-for-4.
* The Chicago White Sox beat the Cleveland Indians, 14-4 at Comiskey Park in Chicago.
* The Chicago Cubs beat the Milwaukee Braves, 7-4 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Ernie Banks went 0-for-3 with a walk. Hank Aaron went 2-for-4 with a home run and 2 RBIs.
* And the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Cincinnati Redlegs (as the Reds were known from 1954 to 1958), 4-3 at the 1st Busch Stadium (formerly the last Sportsman's Park) in St. Louis. Joe Cunningham doubled home the winning run in the bottom of the 11th inning. Stan Musial went 1-for-5. Frank Robinson went 1-for-4 with a walk.
Also, Doug Wilson, an 8-time NHL All-Star defenseman for the Chicago Blackhawks, and the 1st Captain of the San Jose Sharks, was born on this day.
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