As we discover the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis
Museum, it was the invention of the lawn mower
Edwin Budding the 1830s
that had made it possible for the
ancient game of real tennis to move out
of doors to be played now .
The other requirement that was essential was
the discovery Charles Goodyear
1839 of how to vulcanized rubber which
made it possible to manufacture inflated
rubber balls that would bounce on grass.
So here's the original pony roller from
the club's first ground Worple Road
then of course it was a croquet club, and
it was to raise funds the repair of
this roller which had broken, so the
club decided 1877 to hold the first
tennis tournament. The pony roller was
to the club by John was the
editor of the field magazine return for the election
of a daughter to membership and it was essential, of
course, to the which
depended upon being flat so that Croquet
could be properly . It's nice to
think that after just about 150 years, we
still have it of course the
rackets have changed so much the
years made originally wood and then
aluminium fibreglass steel and now
mostly graphite. Perhaps the most
fundamental change has come tennis
clothing. the 1800's the ankle-length
dresses by the ladies were
cumbersome to say the least
and the well bone stays they were all
expected to wear the dresses
would often draw blood; the 1930s
onwards clothing for the ladies became
altogether more comfortable and
practical and today some the players
find quite ingenious staying
cool. Even more dramatic has been the
pace in Wilden's facilities.
The ancient Centre Court its seating
terraces completely rebuilt
now has its famous retractable roof how
could we live without it; and alongside
number one court opened we have
two magnificent new show courts in
number two and number three.
Looking ahead Wimbledon 2020, announced
just recently, envisages even more
dramatic change for number
one court and improvements to the entire
site that will enhance the image of
Wimbledon as tennis in an English garden.
What an exciting prospect!