Arthur Ashe
Updated Feb 06, 2019
A photo of Arthur Ashe
  1. 1. Summary
  2. 2. Biography & Family History
  3. 3. Family Tree & Genealogy
  4. 4. Obituary
  5. 5. Family Photos
  6. 6. Memories
  7. 7. Additional Records
  8. 8. Record Sources

Arthur Ashe (1943 - 1993)

Arthur Ashe was born on July 10, 1943 at Richmond, Virginia. He died on February 6, 1993 at New York City, New York at 49 years old.

His occupation and profession is listed as: Chronology: "Arthur Ashe in the Spotlight" Aug. 1, 1963: Becomes the first black to be named to a United States Davis Cup team. June 21, 1965: Leads U.C.L.A. to the N.C.A.A. tennis championship. Aug. 25, 1968: Becomes the first black to win United States men's singles championships. Sept. 9, 1968: Wins the first United States Open title. Dec. 12, 1968: Is ranked No. 1 by the United States Lawn Tennis Association. June 30, 1969: Is banned from South African championships. Jan. 26, 1970: Becomes the first black to win the Australian Open. Nov. 24, 1973: Becomes the first black to reach final of the South African Open. 1974-1979: President of the Association of Tennis Professionals. July 5, 1975: Becomes the first black to win the men's singles title at Wimbledon. Dec. 21, 1979: Undergoes quadruple bypass heart surgery. April 16, 1980: Announces his retirement from competitive tennis. Sept. 7, 1980: Named captain of the Davis Cup team. The United States wins championships under him in 1981 and 1982. June 21, 1983: Undergoes double bypass heart surgery. March 21, 1985: Named to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. 1988: His three-voloume history "A Hard Road to Glory: A History of the African Athlete" is published. April 8, 1992: Announces he contracted the AIDS virus from a blood transfusion during heart bypass surgery. He said he tested positive for H.I.V. three and a half years earlier while hospitalized for a bacterial invection in his brain. (Source: The Associated Press) .
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Summary

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Arthur Robert Ashe Jr. (July 10, 1943 – February 6, 1993) was an American professional tennis player who won three Grand Slam titles. Ashe was the first black player selected to the United States Davis Cup team and the only black man ever to win the singles title at Wimbledon, the US Open, and the Australian Open. He retired in 1980. He was ranked World No. 1 by Harry Hopman in 1968 and by Lance Tingay of The Daily Telegraph and World Tennis Magazine in 1975. In the ATP computer rankings, he peaked at No. 2 in May 1976. In the early 1980s, Ashe is believed to have contracted HIV from a blood transfusion he received during heart bypass surgery. Ashe publicly announced his illness in April 1992 and began working to educate others about HIV and AIDS. He founded the Arthur Ashe Foundation for the Defeat of AIDS and the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health before his death from AIDS-related pneumonia at age 49 on February 6, 1993.

Arthur Ashe Biography & Family History

This genealogy profile is dedicated to the life and ancestry of Arthur Ashe and his immediate Ashe family. Add to Arthur Ashe's genealogy page to share your memories & historical research with his family and other genealogy hobbyists.

Birth

 at Richmond, in Virginia

Death

 on at New York City, in New York

Cause of death

There is no cause of death listed for Arthur.

Burial / Funeral

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Obituary

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Last Known Residence

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Average Age

Arthur Ashe lived 21 years shorter than the average Ashe family member when he died at the age of 49.

Life Expectancy

Family

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Education

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Professions

Chronology: "Arthur Ashe in the Spotlight"

Aug. 1, 1963: Becomes the first black to be named to a United States Davis Cup team.

June 21, 1965: Leads U.C.L.A. to the N.C.A.A. tennis championship.
Aug. 25, 1968: Becomes the first black to win United States men's singles championships.

Sept. 9, 1968: Wins the first United States Open title.

Dec. 12, 1968: Is ranked No. 1 by the United States Lawn Tennis Association.

June 30, 1969: Is banned from South African championships.

Jan. 26, 1970: Becomes the first black to win the Australian Open.

Nov. 24, 1973: Becomes the first black to reach final of the South African Open.

1974-1979: President of the Association of Tennis Professionals.

July 5, 1975: Becomes the first black to win the men's singles title at Wimbledon.

Dec. 21, 1979: Undergoes quadruple bypass heart surgery.

April 16, 1980: Announces his retirement from competitive tennis.
Sept. 7, 1980: Named captain of the Davis Cup team. The United States wins championships under him in 1981 and 1982.

June 21, 1983: Undergoes double bypass heart surgery.

March 21, 1985: Named to the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
1988: His three-voloume history "A Hard Road to Glory: A History of the African Athlete" is published.

April 8, 1992: Announces he contracted the AIDS virus from a blood transfusion during heart bypass surgery. He said he tested positive for H.I.V. three and a half years earlier while hospitalized for a bacterial invection in his brain. (Source: The Associated Press)

Organizations

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Military Service

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Middle name

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Surnames

Ethnicity

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Nationality

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Religion

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Gender

Male

Family Photos

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Arthur Ashe and Gerald Ford
Arthur Ashe and Gerald Ford
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur and Camera Ashe
Arthur and Camera Ashe
Arthur Ashe
Arthur Ashe

Timeline

1943 - In the year that Arthur Ashe was born, on March 31st, the Broadway musical Oklahoma! opened. Written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II (the first of their string of successful collaborations), audiences loved it. The musical ran for 2,212 performances originally and was made into a movie in 1954.

1947 - When he was just 4 years old, in June, the Marshall Plan was proposed to help European nations recover economically from World War II. It passed the conservative Republican Congress in March of 1948. After World War I, the economic devastation of Germany caused by burdensome reparations payments led to the rise of Hitler. The Allies didn't want this to happen again and the Marshall Plan was devised to make sure that those conditions didn't arise again.

1955 - Arthur was only 12 years old when in January, President Eisenhower sent direct aid to South Vietnam. In February, U.S. advisors were sent to train troops.

1958 - By the time he was only 15 years old, on March 24th, Elvis Presley was inducted into the United States Army. Although he could have served in Special Services as an entertainer, he chose to become a regular soldier. Almost everyone thought it would be the end of his career - it wasn't.

1993 - In the year of Arthur Ashe's passing, on February 26th, a truck bomb exploded in the garage under the North Tower of the World Trade Center. While the bomb didn't do what was planned (collapse the North Tower into the South Tower), it did kill six people and injured thousands of people.

Arthur Ashe Family Tree

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Obituary

This obit of Arthur Ashe is updated by the community. Edit this biography to contribute to his obituary. Include details such as cemetery, burial, newspaper obituary and grave or marker inscription if available.

February 8, 1993
OBITUARY
Arthur Ashe, Tennis Star, Is Dead at 49
By ROBIN FINN
Arthur Ashe, a tennis champion who spent his years in the sport fighting discrimination and then spent the final year of his life seeking to broaden public awareness on the subject of AIDS, died Saturday. He was 49.
A New York Hospital administrator, Judith Lilavois, said Ashe died at 3:13 P.M. of pneumonia.
Yesterday, Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder said that Ashe's body would lie in state at the executive mansion in Richmond tomorrow from 5 to 9 P.M. Ashe's wife, Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe, said that her husband's funeral would be Wednesday at 1 P.M. at the Arthur Ashe Youth Center in Richmond, where he was born, and that he would be buried at Woodland Cemetery.
Ashe was the only black man to win Wimbledon and the United States and Australian Opens.
Militant in his convictions but mild in his manner, this slim, bookish and bespectacled athlete never thought himself a rebel and preferred information to insurrection.
Dedicated to Helping Others
Ashe served on the board of directors of Aetna Life & Casualty and the United States Tennis Association, as chairman of the National Heart Association in 1981-82, and had recently rejoined the Board of Trustees of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases. He also held corporate posts with Head Sports USA and Le Coq Sportif USA.
A memorial service will be held in New York City on Friday. Details have not been completed.

Memories

What do you remember about Arthur Ashe? Share your memories of special moments and stories you have heard about him. Or just leave a comment to show the world that Arthur is remembered.

Amanda S. Stevenson
Member since 2014
A great tennis champ.
Jan 23, 2018 · Reply
Amanda S. Stevenson
Member since 2014
Why isn't he here?
Jan 23, 2018 · Reply
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Amanda S. Stevenson
Member since 2014
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