Ethel Sutton Bruce (January 22, 1881 – June 18, 1957) was an English-born American tennis player.
Early life
editEthel Mathilda Godfray Sutton was born in Portsmouth, England, the daughter of Adolphus DeGrouchy Sutton and Adeline Esther Godfray Sutton. Adolphus Sutton was a naval captain. The family moved to Pasadena, California when Ethel was a girl. Three of her sisters, May Sutton, Florence Sutton, and Violet Sutton, were also competitive tennis players.[1]
Career
editEthel Sutton often played against her sisters; together, the Suttons won every Southern California women's singles championship between 1899 and 1915.[2] Ethel won the title in 1906, 1911, 1912, and 1913.[3] Ethel also won titles in doubles and mixed doubles events.[4][5]
Ethel Sutton Bruce wrote a series of articles about tennis for the San Francisco Call newspaper in 1913.[6] She later co-authored a book, Tennis, Fundamentals and Timing (1938) with her husband.[7] She also taught tennis in physical education classes for women at the University of California Los Angeles.[8][9]
In 1947, all four Sutton sisters wore 1890s-style tennis costumes to play at a Santa Monica fundraiser for Children's Hospital Los Angeles.[10]
Personal life
editEthel Sutton married Robert O. Bruce; they had a son, Robert. She died in Santa Monica, California in 1957, aged 76 years.[11]
Ethel Sutton Bruce's brother-in-law was tennis player Tom Bundy. She was the aunt of several tennis players of a younger generation, including Dorothy Cheney and John Doeg. In 1976, Ethel Sutton Bruce, Violet Sutton Hope-Doeg, and Florence Sutton were inducted into the Southern California Tennis Association Hall of Fame.[12]
References
edit- ^ Thomas H. Pauly, Game Faces: Five Early American Champions and the Sports They Changed (University of Nebraska Press 2012): 109-142. ISBN 9780803238176
- ^ Bill Henry, "The Ladies — God Bless 'Em" Los Angeles Times (May 7, 1933): 55. via Newspapers.com
- ^ Jill Lieber, "A Dodo in Name Only" in Ron Rapoport, ed., A Kind of Grace: A Treasury of Sportswriting by Women (RDR Books 1994): 151. ISBN 9781571430137
- ^ Roger W. Ohnsorg, Robert Lindley Murray: the Reluctant U.S. Tennis Champion (Trafford Publishing 2011): 69. ISBN 9781426945137
- ^ "West Beats East by 3 Matches to 2" American Lawn Tennis (April 15, 1920): 9.
- ^ "Mrs. Bert O. Bruce, Expert on Tennis Court, Will Write Series of Articles for the Call" San Francisco Call (September 15, 1913): 1. via Newspapers.com
- ^ Ethel Sutton Bruce, Bert O. Bruce, Tennis, Fundamentals and Timing (Prentice-Hall 1938).
- ^ "Announcement of Courses" Register - University of California (1924): 157.
- ^ "Learning Court Technique — en Masse" Shamokin News-Dispatch (December 1, 1931): 10. via Newspapers.com
- ^ Jessie Jean Marsh, "Children's Hospital Benefit Set" Los Angeles Times (June 15, 1947): 35. via Newspapers.com
- ^ "Mrs. Ethel S. Bruce" New York Times (June 21, 1957): 25. via ProQuest
- ^ "Women’s History Month From A Tennis Perspective" Southern California Tennis News (March 1, 2016).
